A Whack on the Side of the Head – Paper

Creativity shag be the ascendent of fame and success, and tapping into this choice nookie be difficult for some. Some distinguish that you atomic number 18 every born with or with forbidden creativeness, time others argue that it is wise(p) and absorbed throughout a persons livelihoodtime. In any case, there has to be a trigger that ignore jump-start the fictive process for those who be in destiny a germinal instigate. Roger von Oechs A Whack on the Side of the Head is a oblivious book describing how to figuratively whack some creativity into volume.Roger von Oech states that there be decade mental b chuck outs that hinder creativity, and sometimes, tout ensemble people really need is a whack on the head to moot variedly and to a greater extent than clearly about their current situations. Members of society do non absorb a need to be seminal for close of what they do, nonwithstanding for when people need to think something different these mental affianc es need to be place and opened. Without un quietening the mind of its creative hindrances, sensitive technologies and inventions would cease to exist.Roger von Oechs book discusses the versatile techniques and tips to whack peoples intellection, and tries to enlighten his readers with mentally stimulating puzzles and theories. A Whack on the Side of the Head is primarily secti cardinald into the ten mental locks that von Oech feels be forcing people to think to a greater extent of the akin in twofold situations. Each lock must(prenominal) be identified and scourge to progress toward a to a greater extent creative and fulfilling lifestyle. The first mental lock is adverting for the right answer. The educational carcass has taught us to al paths assist for the single, correct answer.This is accept able-bodied in most academic situations, but the enigma with applying this virtuoso right answer philosophy in real ball applications is that people stop searching for answers once they boast found superstar that craps. There are multiple solutions to worrys, and just because one seems correct, it whitethorn non be the most correct. Looking for the second and third right answers can lead to more efficient and innovative ware. The second mental lock is thinking that something isnt logical. There are devil ways of thinking, arduous and soft. Things with a hard side accept to one correct answer, part soft sided thinking has many correct answers.Also, there are two main phases in the creative development of ideas. The first phase is the grotesque phase, where one generally plays with ideas and asks many what if and what rules can I break causa questions. On the other hand, practical thinking evaluates and executes ideas by asking questions much(prenominal) as what is the deadline and who can help us? Soft thinking is sort of effective in the fantastic phase when searching for new-fangled ideas, while hard thinking is trounce used during the practical phase when one is preparing to carry and idea into action.Both thinking techniques should be used to produce more and break-dance ideas, purge when a certain style of thinking does non seem logical. The next creativity lock is always following the rules. Roger von Oech doesnt become cliche by manifestation rules are meant to be unkept but he does insist that some rules should be challenged. In an changing world, some rules are outdated and should adapt the appropriate, current way of living. For example, basketball used to hire a jump ball after every basket. In 1938, after almost a half decade of basketball, this command finally was changed in order to look at game play more continuous.It just made sense to break and change this rule for so long, but no one ever suggested it. One should be supple with the rules. Breaking and bending the rules wont necessarily lead to creative ideas it is one possibility. Many rules outlive the purpose to which they were intend ed, and thus should be from time to time challenged. Always existence practical is an encumbrance to creativity. This world was built by practical people, but they knew when to unleash their creative side and achieve an imaginative frame of mind. The author proposes asking what if? questions throughout your day to try to spark some creativity. These questions can then be used as stepping stones towards a new idea, and although the questions provide not always yield brilliance, they testament for sure make someone more productive. Another strange, yet effective, manner of macrocosm impractical is imagining yourself as the idea. Lets say, for example, that you are in bear down of designing a new parking meter. You could ask questions such(prenominal) as What does it feel like when my time has expired? or What would I look like if I took credit cards? These silly questions could actually seat a comp permitely new design of debit card system parking meters. Being impractical no t nevertheless conquers ourselves to think differently, but it can almost always lead to new ideas. Roger von Oechs fifth part mental lock is thinking that play is frivolous, as well as pausing your mind. One must break free from their dull tactics and allow themselves to play with an idea. Having fun is one of the most substantiating motivators in the piece of attain and it is contagious, causing others around you to want to shit in on the action.By play and having fun, one can rid any preconceived notions about the halal way to do things and truly direct productive and creative thinking towards a new idea. Along with fun, taking a break to let your mind unwind can be useful in act to sort out a problem. Many times, people will convey a problem on their mind all day but will never come up with a solution. Then on their bowel movement home, while thinking about absolutely nothing, an idea, almost magically, pops into their head and they have their solution. Software devel oper Rick Tendy says, I never try to reckon a problem by solving it. By putting your problem on the mental back burner, one can put the problem into perspective, it allows the disgorge of the problem to grow over time, and lastly, it allows a person to approach the same problem later with new assumptions and focus. The next creative lock is saying to yourself Thats not my area. One shouldnt rely too heavy on specializations when creating an idea. When this happens, a person many not only subtend their problems to too small an area, they may also stop flavour for ideas in other fields.These people will stop searching for an answer because it is an administrative problem or only a computer person would distinguish this. One has to look outside their area of expertise to shape solutions. For example, if you are an engineer with a problem, it might be beneficial to think of how an artificer or a teacher would find a solution. By looking at a problem from different perspectives , a hale new realm of creativity can be open up. ADD MORE. Trying not to be drawish is major way to limit creativity and get stuck in a routine of being sensible with decisions.Conforming to society may make people feel safe and secure, but not one single invention has come from this thinking. somebody has to be foolish, by either consulting a fool or being the fool themselves. Roger von Oech says that a fool keeps people from always thinking the same things. In other words, even though they may be a fool, they demand a new way of thinking that is full of interesting and silly ideas. People must let their stupid monitor down and allow themselves to play with tedious ideas and see if they work. However, you must be prepared to laugh at yourself and not be worried about being embarrassed.Just like having fear of being wrong, one cant expect to have silly ideas and most of them not work. The next creative mental lock is avoiding ambiguity. Creative minds think doublely and they l et ideas be open to interpretation. Just because everyone has the same notions and ideas regarding a certain problem, doesnt mean that it is correct, or the most correct. Avoiding ambiguity is an in particular good idea in practical situations where the consequences of misunderstanding would be serious. In imaginative situations, however, this manner of thinking stifles your imagination and ingenuity.There is a place for ambiguity, by chance not so much while evaluating and executing ideas, but certainly when you are searching for and playing with them. Another way to be ambiguous is to let an oracle decide, or in other words, use a random outside source. Let random, unexpected information stimulate your imaginations. essential American Indian medicine men used to let skew-whiff rawhide dry in the sun, and the resulting wrinkles in the leather would be their new hunting map where the wrinkles represented new trails for the hunters to follow.Ambiguity was used to solve the Nativ e Americans problem of diminishing game on their current hunting trails, and can be used today in the same manner. The next mental lock incorporates many other locks. This lock is thinking to err is wrong or that one must be correct all of the time to have a positive result. You must be wrong to be creative. Inventors do not get things right the first, second, tenth, hundredth, and so on time. They may go years without decision the correct solution, but they are allowing narrowing in on the answer but allowing themselves to fail.Thomas Edison said that he knew 1,800 ways to not make a light bulb. Christopher Columbus thought he was finding a shorter route to India. One of Madame Curies failures was radium. Failures give us an opportunity to try a new approach. Maybe you find a new way to not fail which leads to a new idea. If you make an error, use it as a stepping stone to an idea you might have otherwise not discovered. As Woody Allen says, If youre not failing every now and agai n, its a sign youre not trying anything very innovative. The last lock is simply thinking that you are not creative.If you want to be more creative, believe in the worth of your ideas, and have the persistence to continue building on them. With this type of attitude, you will be open to take more fortunes, learn how to fail, search for more than one answer, and occasionally break some rules. By giving yourself a creative license, you allow yourself to be silly, imaginative, and foolish even if that isnt typically you. By applying all of the mental lock remedies, you will be on your way to a great idea, and by doing so, you will be able to whack yourself into creativity. ADD MORE.Now once you have an idea, you must use it. Someone can be the most creative person in the world and have millions of terrific ideas, but if those ideas arent carried into fruition, it is almost pointless. People who are successful in the creative process can master quadruple key contributions to allow themselves to move from inception into deployment. Each of these four roles embodies a different method of thinking. The first is the adventurer who searches for new information and resources. The explorer pokes around in new areas and seeks out a variety of different information.The next role is the workman, whose responsibilities are to turn these resources and information into new ideas. The artist follows their intuition, asks what if? questions, and breaks or stools rules of their own. The third role is the judge who evaluates the merits and validity of the idea. The judge runs risk analyses, questions assumptions, and listens to their gut. The judge ultimately makes a decision on the idea. The last role is the warrior, whose sole responsibility is to carry an idea into action. You must have the heroism and desire to do what is necessary to make your idea a reality.By master these roles, Roger von Oech says you will be a master of creativity. Roger von Oech has conducted c reativity seminars with renowned companies such as CBS, Coca- Cola, GE, HP, and IBM to name a few. These companies all hired his services because they chicane of the true value of creativity throughout any phase of shapingal way, individual, group, and organization. Organizational performance depends on individual performance from the entire work force. Hiring and molding creative workers is an excellent way to increase efficiency and encourage morale in the office.Managers seek creative individuals for two prefatory reasons. One, they bring fresh thoughts which lead to better productivity. Secondly, they are frequently much better workers as they are not solely preoccupied with results, but sort of the steps involved in achieving these results. Anyone can find an answer once, but what truly makes creative individuals an asset to an organization is their desire to find multiple correct answers in any scenario. Just as individuals are important, how groups of individuals gath er with their creative minds and ideas is beneficial to any company.Without a creative team of workers, a group would only be as strong and adaptive as its most intuitive member. For example, if a manager organizes a team of by and large uncreative workers, one can expect that this group will get its work done, but not offer any alternatives or modernistic results. On the contrary, a group comprised of many creative minds will not only produce the desired results, they may in fact find better ways of solving problems and perhaps challenge rules to make the production more efficient.With creative mental locks slowing down idea creation, it can be seen as imperative to mold individuals into creative workers. Lastly, the entire organization will benefit from its employees ridding themselves of these deterring mental locks. This creative bearing processes give life to an organization. An organization thrives on its ability to be adaptive to change, and its ability to ca-ca the change s themselves. Apple revolutionized the concept of digital media with their iPod, and it was due to creative individuals who had disregard for the way other companies were thinking.This type of thinking is the mother of invention, which brings about a recognizeing workforce, increased revenue, and job satisfaction. Improvements of individual, group, and organizational performance are an output of creative organizational behavioral changes and developments. This whack in the head thinking keeps the study from being monotonous and predictable, a characteristic that every organization hopes to avoid. In a society where companies race to put out the next best tech toy, it is crucial for any organization to heed Roger von Oechs advice.Not only must every level of the organization be creative, they must have the will and desire to carry out their ideas into action. Creativity is a resource that will be valuable forever. Those organizations that have it will continue to be innovative, wh ile those without will be forgotten about. The future will essentially be dictated by innovative minds, and their ability to carry out brilliant ideas. A Whack on the Side of the Head was written more than 25 years ago, but all of the information is timeless.Organizational behavior has been, and always will be structured around the creative minds of the individuals, the comradery of the organization, and the overall effectiveness of the organization. Roger von Oechs book demonstrates an importance on creativity that is sought after by every organization. The study of organizational behavior is a careful application of how people in groups and individuals act at heart an organization. Although creativity is only a single characteristic of people, it may be one of the most valued when groups are systematically studied.As stated before, the basic goal of any company is to take an idea or problem, and solve it with as little resources as possible. CEOs, program managers, and floor m anagers alike could all benefit from this book both for personal development and to help their employees unlocked their minds. There will always come a time in the workplace where an individual or group will get stuck on a problem that will result in a interdict effect all around them. By being creative, employees will be stimulating their mind and playing with ideas which lead to higher office morale.Interactions of workers is the whole principle behind organizational behavior, and more creative these workers are, the more positive and productive these individuals will be within their groups. A Whack on the Side of the Head has several practical applications in the workplace. Upon reading the book, a manager can use the knowledge attained to help employees solve problems by pinpointing which mental lock they need to overcome. Furthermore, these managers will also know the remedies that are stifling their workers. This book is a simple, yet enjoyable, read that can be processed on many levels.For the younger audience, this book is meant to create a future of limitless creativity by molding the mind. For the older, master key audience, this book retrains the mind to thinking differently and breaks old suffocating habits. piece of writing STYLE. A Whack on the Side of the Head is a wondrous book for those looking to merely be more creative recreationally, or do so for the betterment of an organization. From an organizational behavior standpoint, Roger von Oechs work will improve interactions individually, within a group, and among an entire organization by allowing new and exciting ideas flow freely from these now unlocked brains.