11 Responses

1. Facilitation
   Although this book is about facilitation it contains hundreds of great ideas for helping people and teams be more creative:

   The Complete guideto facilitation
   Justice & Jamieson
   HRD Press

2. Creativity in meetings
   Cant recommend a specific book but would suggest you look at any of the Edward de Bono books / work on 6 hat thinking. Might be worth looking under NLP (neuro linguistic programming) in the library also for some very useful techniques. Good luck…

3. Why take two bottles into the shower…. ?
   The advice I have had from someone working for the DeBono organisation is to read Edward’s book entitled “Serious Creativity”.

   It contains most of what is contained in all of the other books he’s written, in one handy showerproof container!

   P.S. I lied about the shower bit.

4. ?WHAT IF! How to Start a Creative Revolution at Work
   ?WHAT IF! How to Start a Creative Revolution at Work – this book, although not specifically about meetings, gives plenty of different hints and tips about the innovation and creativity process. Written by people who do it for a living, (?WHAT IF! is an invention company with training consultancy) this book gives examples of where these techniques have worked for real and some of the detail of how they can work for you. Want a different approach, try this.

   ?WHAT IF! How to Start a Creative Revolution at Work (Capstone)

5. Innovation, creativity and the learning organisation
   I have just completed a project in moving companies forward in creative problem solving and development of Intellectual capital. Resources include ‘ Master it Faster’ by Colin Rose of Accelerated Learning Systems in Bucks and Comintell ‘What’ Where; Who’ software for IC capture (Web site). Also look up Senges book The Dance of Change'(on how learning and creativity can be used by companies)
   Colin Roses book of Accelerated Learning techniques has been licensed by the Industrial society and can be supplimented by a workbook which allows such things as ‘buy in’ to be measured. It also includes creative thinking techniques and problem solving. I hope this is of help.
   One of my evaluation techniques is to measure the increase; I hope; of suggestions into the company scheme.

6. creativity
   Dave -I have found the Robert Fritz book “Creating” -Butterworth Heinneman 1994 the best thing I have come across on creativity. He is pretty scathing about “creativity” but promotes creating-thus the title. His focus is “if you are being creative-show me what you have created-what exists now that didn’t exist before? He is determined to get people to be clear about an outcome and then examine the tension that exists between where you currently are and what you want to create. The book explains an approach rather than suggests exercises, although there are some, but much of it provides a practical approach to working in a way that allows creating to taake place

7. Isolation is the issue
   Dave

   People approach creativity too often like a skill – something that can be learned. Many people just aren’t creative. And then there are those who are creative but consistently come up with stupid ideas.

   Also, organisational culture frequently just can’t handle new ideas or does not want them. So there is no encouragement. Innovative people are therefore sidelined. Occasionally, when things get tough, top people are allowed to think, or we pull an expert in from R&D. But basically, thinking is out.

   I use Metaplan, a group process for brain storming and communicating. Everybody communicates, the loudmouth is gagged, there’s no fighting for air space, the group sees exactly where it is going and it prevents creativity being isolated or ignored.

   If you are interested, I’ll give you more details.

   Mike Westwood
   [email protected]
   http://www.ambit.uk.com

8. Building an innovative culture
   I can’t find the original source for this, but here are 10 tips to building an innovative culture:

   1) Come to work each day willing to be fired
   2) Circumvent any orders aimed at stopping your dream
   3) Do any job needed to make your project work, regardless of your job description
   4) Find people to help you
   5) Follow your intuition about the people you choose and work only with the best
   6) Work underground as long as you can – publicity triggers the corporate immune mechanism
   7) Never bet on a race unless you are running in it
   8) Remember it is easier to ask for forgiveness than for permission
   9) Be true to your goals, but be realistic about the ways to achieve them
   10) Honour your sponsors

   [email protected]

9. Practical Creativity
   For a concise book with great practical exercises try Instant Creativity by Brian Clegg and Paul Birch. We’ve used quite a few of the excercises, particularly for problem solving, with great results. Even better, it’s only about £7.99 from Amazon!

10. Try the CMC at Malham
    You might like to contact the Centre for Management Creativity at Malham (no, I have no connection with them other than as a customer). They have lots of good ideas and books on the topic.

11. Creativity book
    Try “Best Practice Creativity” by Peter Cook – Gower 1998

    Lots of practical exercises and questions to pose (plus readable background theory)

    Steve