THE POWER OF PERSONA

Is Dilip Mukerjea clowning as shown in this amusing snapshot? No, he is not. In fact, he is "demonstrating" to us a new way to see and think about a problem or a challenge or appraise a situation.

I like to call it, the Power of Persona.

Basically, it involves the imagined shift of one's mindset into behaving, or role playing, to be precise - thinking and doing - like another competent person or even another inanimate object in space.

 Indeed, many creativity gurus have formulated it in many different ways.

I believe Roger von Oech is among the first to come up with four stereotype roles or personas, in the creative thinking process, namely:

- Explorer;
- Artist;
- Judge;
- Warrior:

when he wrote his now classic 'A Whack on the side of the Head: How You Can Be More Creative', in the early 80's.

You can visit www.creativethink.com to read more about them.

Around the same time in the early 80's, Michael Hewitt-Gleeson from Down Under, and working with Edward de Bono, through their joint School of Thinking initiative in New York, introduced the world to their version of stereotype roles in the creative thinking process, known as 'Six Thinking Caps':

- White;
- Black;
- Yellow;
- Red;
- Green;
- Blue;

It has been alleged that Edward de Bono, after breaking off with his protege, Michael Hewitt-Gleeson, plagiarised the material to write his 'Six Thinking Hats' in the mid-80's.

Since then, Michael Hewiit-Gleeson, has added the seventh cap, Grey Cap, to his original concept.

More information can be found here: www.schoolofthinking.org/

In 2005, Tom Kelley of IDEO, the internationally-renowned global design consulting firm, shared with the world their winning design methodology, a powerful set of learning, organising and building personas, through their book, 'Ten Faces of Innovation: IDEO's Strategies for Defeating the Devil's Advocate and Driving Creativity Throughout Your Organisation.".

Here they are:

- The Anthropologist;
- The Experimentor;
- The Cross Pollinator;
- The Hurdler;
- The Collaborator;
- The Director;
- The Experience Architect;
- The Set Designer;
- The Storyteller;
- The Caregiver;

More information about them can be found here: www.tenfacesofinnovation.com/

Actually, back in the sixties, William J J Gordon and George Prince, had developed a slightly different but unique creative problem solving process of their own, through the brilliant use of metaphors and analogies. They called it, "Synectics".

Within their proprietary methodology, they are designated as:

- Symbolic Analogy;
- Personal Analogy;
- Direct Analogy:
- Fantasy Analogy;

For example, you can imagine yourself being the object under examination and then attempt to uncover the feelings and problems faced by the object.

More information can be found here: //synecticsworld.com/.

In a nut shell, using role playing or the power of persona to explore ideas is an interesting and powerful tactic to see and think more and further.

HOW'S YOUR BRAINPOWER?

Here's a link to a fascinating audit of your brainpower from creativity guru Michael Hewitt-Gleeson's School of Thinking.

For the fun of it, just give it a go!

WHAT IS SPEED OF THOUGHT? ARE YOU A SPEED THINKER?

Here's the link to some interesting - but thought-provoking - perspectives about thinking from Dr Michael Hewiit-Gleeson, a one-time protege of Dr Edward de Bono.

Dr Michael Hewiit-Gleeson is the founder of the School of Thinking in New York City with Dr Edward de Bono in late 1979 to teach thinking as a deliberate skill set.

In 1995, the School of Thinking reportedly became the largest virtual school on thinking skills in cyberspace. Readers can enrol the first ten lessons at this link.

By the way, Dr Michael Hewitt-Gleeson is also the author of the wonderful book, 'Software for Your Brain' (1989), which offers the fascinating "cvs2bvs" thinking philosophy. [Readers can go & read my earlier blogpost.]

Readers can visit this link to download a free copy of the foregoing book, as well as to this link to learn more about the "cvs2bvs" thinking philosophy.

Enjoy your exploration!

ZINGFUL TENETS from Sam Harrison

Creative communications, marketing & branding expert, Sam Harrison, shares his 15 'Zingful Tenets' on his corporate website.

I like the first tenet:

1. Don’t stop with the first idea you spot. Even if it’s a good idea, it’s probably the same one everyone else would spot. And the good is often the enemy of the best. Put the first three ideas aside and dig deeper.

To me, this tenet somehow resonates with de Bono's First Law.

For the uninitiated, this is de Bono's First Law:

"An idea can never be the best arrangement of available information."

He argues that:

1) one cannot regard any idea as absolute as there is a need to try to restructure an idea in order to get a better one;

2) the arrangement of information is only one of several alternatives;

3) because the current arrangement of information can never make the best use of available information, it is necessary to try to restructure to bring the arrangement up to date;

By the way, I like to suggest to readers to pop into the corporate website of de Bono's one-time protege, Michael Hewitt-Gleeson, who happens to share another superb perspective about the foregoing phenomenon. He calls it the CVS/BVS equation, which is worth exploring.

Here's the link.

Nonetheless, readers can go to this link to read about the remaining 14 creativity tenets of Sam Harrison.

It is pertinent for me to point out that Sam Harrison is also the author of two popular books on creativity:

- 'ZING! Five Steps & 101 Tips for Creativity on Command'; &

- 'IdeaSpotting: How & Where to Find Your Next Great Idea';

His third book, 'IdeaSelling: Successfully Pitch Your Creative Ideas to Bosses, Clients & Other Decision Makers', is already out.

I have already read the first two, & will probably acquire the third shortly.

The first two books have been fun, easy & interesting read.

A WISE QUOTE FOR MONDAY MORNING

“Thinking is the skill of leading your self. Leadership is the skill of helping others to lead themselves. So is selling. Like all skills, thinking, selling and leadership can be learned and developed with training”.

~ Michael Hewitt-Gleeson, creativity expert & founder/creator/principal of The School of Thinking on the net;

BECOMING MORE OF AN INNOVATOR IN YOUR DAILY LIFE

As far as I know, the whole idea of what I like to call "role-playing learning personas" has apparently been first broached by creativity guru Roger von Oech, when he outlined four specific roles as follows [in his book, 'A Kick in the Seat of the Pants', published in the mid-eighties;], which one can assume in the process of expanding one's mental horizons, &/or generating multiple viewpoints, while looking at a problem situation, or business issue:

- explorer;

- artist;

- judge;

- warrior;

I have already talked about this in an earlier post.

To recap, from Roger von Oech's book:

- When it's time to seek out new information, adopt the mindset of an Explorer. Get off the beaten path, poke around in outside areas, & pay attention to unusual patterns.

- When you need to create a new idea, let the Artist in you come out. Ask 'what-if' questions & look for hidden analogies. Break the rules & look at things backwards. Add something & take something away. Ultimately, you'll come up with an original idea.

- When it's time to decide if your idea is worth implementing, see yourself as a Judge. Ask what's wrong & if the timing's right. Question your assumptions & make a decision.

- When you carry your idea into action, be a Warrior. Put a fire in your belly, eliminate your excuses, & do what's necessary to reach your objective.

Then, more or less around the same time, came creativity guru Michael Hewitt-Gleeson from Down Under, with his 'Six Thinking Caps', followed by creativity guru Edward de bono, with his 'Six Thinking Hats', culminating specifically as follows:

- white (rational, logical, objective);

- red (emotional);

- black (negative);

- yellow (positive, hopeful, optimistic);

- green (creative & innovative);

- blue (ordered, controlled, structured);

[Readers can read more about them in their respective corporate websites.]

Last, but not least, came the world-known IDEO design people with their book, written by Tom Kelley, entitled 'The Ten Faces of Innovation: IDEO's Strategies for Defeating the Devil's Advocate & Driving Creativity Throughout Your Organization'.

Here's their battle-tested methodology of the 'role-playing learning personas', from their book:

1. The Anthropologist:

He observes human behavior & developes a deep understanding of how people interact physically & emotionally with products, services, & spaces;

2. The Experimenter:

He prototypes new ideas continuously, learning by a process of enlightened trial & error; also, takes calculated risks to achieve success through a state of "experimentation as implementation."

3. The Cross-Pollinator:

He explores other industries & cultures, & then translates those findings & revelations - via mixing & matching ideas, people & technology - to fit the unique needs of the customer;

4. The Hurdler:

He knows that the path to innovation is strewn with obstacles & develops a knack for overcoming or outsmarting those limits, challenges & roadblocks;

5. The Collaborator:

He helps bring eclectic groups together, & often leads from the middle of the pack to create new combinations & multi-disciplinary solutions; more importantly, to get things done;

6. The Director:

He not only gathers together a talented cast & crew but also helps to spark their creative talents, by marshalling all available resources;

7. The Experience Architect:

He designs compelling experiences that go beyond mere functionality to connect at a deeper level with customers' latent or expressed needs;

8. The Set Designer:

He creates a stage on which innovation team members can do their best work, transforming physical environments into powerful tools to influence behavior & attitude;

9. The Caregiver:

He builds on the metaphor of a health-care professional to deliver customer care in a manner that goes beyond mere service;

10. The Storyteller or Tale Blazer [to borrow the term from my good friend, Dilip Mukerjea], :

He builds both internal morale & external awareness through compelling narratives that communicate a fundamental human value or reinforce a specific cultural trait;

According to IDEO, people who adopt the "role-playing learning roles" are humble enough to question their own worldview, & in doing so, they remain open to new insights every day.

In a nut shell, the personas are about "being innovation", rather than merely "doing innovation."

Take on one or more of these roles, as outlined in the foregoing, & you'll be taking a conscious step toward becoming more of an innovator in your daily life.

Come to think of it, one can also adopt the 'Problem Walkabout' approach, apparently drawing parallels from the four-quadrant brain profile of Ned Herrmann, as conceived by John Kruithof [in his book, 'Thinking Quality, Quality Thinking'], as follows:

- look at it analytically & rationally, taking a bottom-line view;

- look at it conservatively, taking a detailed procedural view;

- look at it emotionally, taking a people-oriented view;

- look at it intuitively & conceptually, taking a big picture view;

I have already talked about this approach in an earlier post [in the 'Optimum Performance Technologies' weblog].

HOW IS YOUR BRAINPOWER?

Here is a link to a simple audit for you to rate your own brainpower.

It was designed by Dr Eric Bienstock who is Vice-Principal of the School of Thinking, a brainchild of creativity guru from Down Under, Michael Hewitt-Gleeson, in New York.

From what I have understood, it is not a scientific test. It’s just an audit to help you take stock of your thinking. That’s all!

To paraphrase, a trained thinker can direct his or her thinking and use it in a deliberate manner to produce an intended result.

To a trained and skilled thinker, thinking is a practical tool that can be used at will. This ability to use ‘thinking as a skill’ is the sort of thinking ability that is required to get things DONE.

FREE DOWNLOAD: SOFTWARE FOR YOUR BRAIN

I am sure that many readers are familiar with the work of Michael Hewitt-Gleeson from Down Under.

Just in case you don't:

He is the man who created the global School of Thinking curriculum with creativity guru Edward de bono way back in the nineties.

The School of Thinking curriculum is reportedly the largest program in the world for teaching “thinking skills” and teaching “teaching thinking skills”.

More importantly, he is the brain behind the classic, 'Sofware for Your Brain' (originally published in the late eighties) & its principal premise:

cvs TO bvs or cvs2bvs;

In a nut shell, cvs2bvs simply means that the Current View of the Situation (CVS) can never be equal to the Better View of the Situation (BVS).

Or, cvs ≠ bvs;

According to the progenitor, when you understand & practise it consistently, your BVS can be ten times better than your CVS.

cvs X10 = bvs;

I am a fully dedicated supporter of his brilliant ideas. To me, the equation is the hallmark of enhancing your perceptual sensitivity &/or sustaining your sensory acuity: via changing perceptions, multiple perceptions, & fluidity of perception.

[By the way, in the wonderful book, 'Fast Strategy: How Strategic Agility will help you stay ahead of the Game', the two Scandinavian consultants/authors Yves Doz & Mikko Kosonen refer to this phenomenon as "strategic sensitivity".]

Readers can now proceed to this link to download a 200+ page complimentary copy of 'Software for Your Brain' (2004 edition) from the author.

To paraphrase the author, you can Read . . . Enjoy . . . Escape.