Fredrik Härén's Blog, page 13

Become Creative Energy. (Episode 110.)

Interview with Jorge Lopez-Doriga, Chief Communication and Sustainability Officer at AJE.

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In my job as The Creativity Explorer I get to meet so many very creative people. People who embody the very essence of creativity. It’s the best part of my job and a privilege.

I can live on these meetings for days. I recall one of these unforgettable meetings held sometime back, with Jorge Lopez-Doriga, Chief Communication and Sustainability Officer at AJE –  the 5th largest beverage company in the world.

I wish I would have just recorded our conversation and put it up as a podcast, because it’s hard to summarise Jorge’s views on creativity, but I will try. But in honor of our conversation I will not just reference what was said, instead I will take the creative liberty to publish the essence of the message of our conversation about creativity. Some of these lines Jorge said, some of it I wrote based on what he said.

Read it slow and reflect.

Become Creative Energy.

– There is no separation between you and the world.

– What you see is energy that functions.

– All the past and all the future is included in today.

– When you access the source of everything, you enter the creative source.

– It gives you a vision of what to do.

– Get rid of your point of view. When you do, you get the whole picture.

– The world is being created and dissolved at every instance.

– Do not hold on to your ideas. You need to constantly question your approach.

– Ideas are not yours, they pass through you.

– Connect with the infinite unknown.

– Find the source where all is coming from.

– Turn the creative light inwards. They are called in-sights after all. The direction is clear. Go inwards.

– When you look at the surface of the mind you only see what is shallow. The surface is choppy, the calm is in the deep. Dive down there.

– Ideas come to us. They are not yours. Make sure you are open enough to receive them. Remove the interference.

– Do not just listen, become listening.

– When you really listen and see, you do not see objects or hear sounds – you see energy.

– Aim for a space that is a combination of emptiness and consciousness.

– This is not something you have to learn – it’s something you have to remember.

– Real art is transparent, you do not see paint and a canvas, you see something else.

– Creativity in the natural revolution – you have to find your source of creativity.

– It’s about returning to the source.

– Become the question – but do not look for the answer.

– When you ask questions all doors are open. When you look for answers all doors close except one.

– The problem with answers is that they make you think you know something.

– When you tap the creative source you cannot help but to respond – you get so much energy.

– How can you be tired with all the energy that exists in the source?

Become Creative Energy.

The post Become Creative Energy. (Episode 110.) first appeared on The Creativity Explorer.

Ideamonds – small, brilliant ideas. (Episode 109)

Interview with Diana Mondino, Minister of Foreign Affairs in Argentina.

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Yes, “Ideamond” is a made up word. I just made it up, after having a discussion about creativity with Diana Mondino early this year. Diana is a woman who wears many creative hats. In addition to being recently appointed as the Minister of Foreign Affairs in Argentina, she sits on the board of Loma Negra (a huge cement company), has co-founded a leading private university in Argentina, is the CEO of a FinTech and much, much more.

During our discussion, I learned a lot about creativity, but I was especially inspired about how Diana was passionate about the many small, but brilliant, ideas, that move the world forward.

To illustrate, what I now have decided to call “an ideamond”, she mentioned the person who, many years ago, came up with the idea of colouring the three pages of a triplicate form in three different colors to make it easier to show which one goes to the client, which one goes to the company and which one goes to the government.

A small, but brilliant idea.

That is just what constitutes an “ideamond” – that the idea is small, but brilliant.

Just like a diamond.

Yes, the world needs big, world-changing ideas for our many large problems, but it’s the “diamonds” that help to improve the lives of most people.

Few things make me happier than stumbling upon a solution created by someone who had a brilliant “ideamond”.

And the world is filled with potential for more of them!

All we have to do is to dig where we stand and say: “How could this thing be improved in a small –  but brilliant – way?”.

The post Ideamonds – small, brilliant ideas. (Episode 109) first appeared on The Creativity Explorer.

Ideamond. (Episode 196)

This week’s newsletter is inspired by the latest episode of my series ‘The Creativity Suite‘.

 

Ideamonds – small, brilliant ideas.

 

Yes, “Ideamond” is a made up word. I just made it up, after having a discussion about creativity with Diana Mondino early this year. Diana is a woman who wears many creative hats. In addition to being recently appointed as the Minister of Foreign Affairs in Argentina, she sits on the board of Loma Negra (a huge cement company), has co-founded a leading private university in Argentina, is the CEO of a FinTech and much, much more.

During our discussion, I learned a lot about creativity, but I was especially inspired about how Diana was passionate about the many small, but brilliant, ideas, that move the world forward.

To illustrate, what I now have decided to call “an ideamond”, she mentioned the person who, many years ago, came up with the idea of colouring the three pages of a triplicate form in three different colors to make it easier to show which one goes to the client, which one goes to the company and which one goes to the government.

A small, but brilliant idea.

That is just what constitutes an “ideamond” – that the idea is small, but brilliant.

Just like a diamond.

Yes, the world needs big, world-changing ideas for our many large problems, but it’s the “diamonds” that help to improve the lives of most people.

Few things make me happier than stumbling upon a solution created by someone who had a brilliant “ideamond”.

And the world is filled with potential for more of them!

All we have to do is to dig where we stand and say: “How could this thing be improved in a small – but brilliant – way?”.

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Would love to know your thoughts.  Comment on LinkedIn.

​

Fredrik Haren, The Creativity Explorer

The post Ideamond. (Episode 196) first appeared on The Creativity Explorer.

The Assignment (Episode 108)

Interview with Stiven Kerestegian, Head of Disruptive Innovation at IKEA Group.

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Have you ever been completely overtaken by a creative project? Have you experienced the feeling when there is this one creative thing that you just have to finish, that pushes virtually everything else in your life out of the way? Like if you are on a mission.

Then you have received The Assignment. The Assignment – with a capital A – is the description of when creativity takes over a person.

The Assignment is larger than the person. Bigger than life.

Or, in the words of Stiven Kerestegian: “It’s an Assignment from the Universe.”

Of all the creative people I have ever interviewed Stiven has one of the most impressive creative CV’s I have ever seen. He has led the Open Innovation practice at LEGO Future Lab, was one of the first contributors to the X-box for Microsoft as well as lead designer of several iconic mouse & keyboard products and today he is Head of Disruptive Innovation at IKEA Group. (He even proposed an Ipad-like device for Kodak before Steve Jobs created the actual Ipad, but Kodak was not brave enough to pursue it then, so Stiven left.) Oh, and he founded and still runs, an ethical shoe brand, Chilote Shoes (https://chiloteshoes.com), on the side. He is a creative powerhouse.

And many times during his career he has been given The Assignment.

Stiven described the feeling you feel when an Assignment takes over: “You do not know why you need to do something, but you are 100% sure you have to do it.”

Stiven has put up the four rules of The Assignment. They are:

– Thou shall not compromise

– Thou shall be comfortable with the uncomfortable

– Thou shall be a servant to the assignment

and finally:

– Love. And do not fight it.

Let’s break these four rules down:

– Thou shall not compromise

When you are on an Assignment you are on a mission, but the mission is not yours. It’s given to you and you need to make it happen. No matter what.

– Thou shall be comfortable with the uncomfortable

When on an Assignment you need to trust the process. Think of a person being pushed by a strong current. There is no meaning in fighting it. Just let it drag you with it. A powerful idea that has gotten a hold of you will pull you with it. Let it.

– Thou shall be a servant to the Assignment

Understand that when an Assignment has decided to bring you in then this is not just “your idea” or “your creative project”. The creative project has a life of its own, you are just the human vessel chosen to push for and manifest it. It has a purpose and energy of its own and your job is to help that idea become a reality. So do not take the role of “the creator”, or think of yourself as “the master of the idea”. Instead, think of yourself as the servant of the Assignment. The one that helps the idea reach its full potential by using your experience and resourcefulness to make it so.

and finally:

– Love. Do not fight it.

Just like true, unconditional love lets you surrender, in this same way, you need to surrender to the Assignment. Surrender, not in the meaning of “giving up” but in the meaning of “not resisting”. Let the Assignment guide you, and trust that it will, simply because the universe has converged you with this Assignment. One has little choice but to surrender to it just like true love.

Stiven explained to me that it’s equally important to learn to identify an Assignment when it invites itself to you, as well as learning to know when the energy of the Assignment has left you and when it’s time to move on to another creative project. Just like how a surfer needs to learn both how to see a wave before it comes to her as well as needing to know when to jump off the wave to go out for the next one.

Let me give you an example of the Assignment. A couple of years ago I suddenly got an urge to build a geometric dome on the island I live on. I do not know where that idea came from, but suddenly I got obsessed with the idea. I started researching dome builders, applied for a permit from the government but it was rejected. I then researched ways to have the decisions overruled. Got another no, but I kept pushing. People told me to just give up, but I kept arguing with the local government. Finally they – for some magical reason – changed their mind and gave me approval. When the dome arrived I literally pushed away every other thing on my todo-list and spent two days – non stop – building the dome. I just stopped to sleep. It’s a small, almost silly, example but it illustrates the energy that the Assignment gives a person to get an idea done.

The Assignment is different from Flow. Flow is a state where ideas and results just seem to flow naturally. Assignment is a state where you feel overtaken by one creative project and it feels like that project is directing and pushing you. Flow is enjoyable. Fulfilling the Assignment can be, but doesn’t have to be. But while flow is a state of mind, the Assignment is a state of being. Of giving yourself up to the task of making a specific idea happen.

The next time you feel you have been given the Assignment, embrace it.

The post The Assignment (Episode 108) first appeared on The Creativity Explorer.

Insights are explosions of possibilities. (Episode 107)

Interview with Elisa Romo de Vivar, Strategy & Insights Director at Danone.

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Most people seem to think that the moment we have an idea is the most powerful part of the creative process, but I would like to argue that another aspect should get more attention – the moment when we get an insight.

 

Sure, ideas are powerful, magical, and absolutely and utterly wonderful. But insights are even more powerful, even more magical, even more wonderful.

 

While an idea is a potential solution or an approach to a problem or situation, an insight is a deep understanding or revelation about a topic.

And with a great insight comes the potential for a whole host of possibilities, ideas and moments of clarity.

I recently had a discussion with Elisa Romo de Vivar, Strategy & Insights Director at Danone about insights. In her previous job, she was in charge of, amongst other things, Cerveza Victoria – a local beer brand in Mexico with a lot of tradition. As they were trying to revive the brand, they were researching Mexican consumers’ attitudes to their country, traditions, and identity. During the research they realised that there was a built up urge for more pride in Mexico. People were feeling that they were ready to be proud of their old Mexican traditions again. But they also had a second insight: while people wanted to be proud of their traditions again, the traditions felt a bit old and out of fashion.

Based on those insights, Elisa and her team created a campaign around “Día de Muertos” (the day of the dead) where they added color and modern design to the traditional black-and-white style of the tradition to bring it into modern day. It was a huge success, all thanks to the insight that Mexicans were ready to be proud of their old traditions once again. Based on this success Cerveza Victoria has done multiple campaigns based on other Mexican traditions that got a modern twist.

Elisa: “The country was ready for it, and we were able to read the needs of the people and become that Mexican product that stood for the new, proud Mexico.”

I asked Elisa about the feeling of having an insight, and she said: “When you have a big insight you get that ‘Oh-my-god-something-is-happening-feeling’. An insight is something that sparks possibilities.”

According to Elisa a powerful insight should have three things:

– It should reveal a human truth

– It should contain a bit of tension

– It should awaken a desire

Insights, or “the capacity to gain an accurate and deep understanding of someone or something”, move your world. They make it almost ridiculously easy to come up with good ideas and they make you see a new reality.

As powerful as insights are, they are harder to develop than ideas. According to Elisa one reason that people do not get so many insights is that they are not willing to invest the time and effort needed to gain new insights.

But we really should, or to quote the words of Elisa Romo: “Insights are really moments of pride. When we have a deep insight, we change the world for the better.”

So, invest more time and effort to explore how you could get more and more powerful insights and you are bound to have more and better ideas.

The post Insights are explosions of possibilities. (Episode 107) first appeared on The Creativity Explorer.

Bispective. (Episode 195)

 

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Bispective is a made up word created by combining the Latin word for “two” (bi) with the word “perspective” where “spec” means “to observe”. A person with Bispective is a person who can look at a situation from two perspectives.

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For example:

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– A salesperson who previously worked as head of procurement, who can now understand how people who buy services think.

​

– A person who becomes a parent, and can now understand both how it feels to be a child, but who can now also take the perspective of a parent.

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Where do you have “Bispective”, and how is it giving you a creative edge?

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Would love to know your thoughts – please comment here.

​

Fredrik Haren, The Creativity Explorer

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The post Bispective. (Episode 195) first appeared on The Creativity Explorer.

Daily Creativity Insights. (Episode 194)

I published this text on LinkedIn and since you are following me here I thought you might appreciate to know about my goal for 2024 of posting one SHORT creativity insight on LinkedIn every (working) day.

Follow me on LinkedIn (if you do not already do that) and let’s, together, explore creativity there as well. (I will of course also continue to publish here.)

I wish you a very creative 2024.

𝑭𝒓𝒆𝒅𝒓𝒊𝒌 𝑯𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒏 – 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑪𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝑬𝒙𝒑𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒓

My post on LinkedIn:

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In 2023 I focused on long-form text on LinkedIn (I published well over 50 long-form texts in the form of Articles and Newsletters on LinkedIn in 2023.)

For 2024, my focus will be on short-form.

(I will still publish long-form texts, like my series “The Creativity Suite”, but my focus will be on shorter texts.)

The reasons for focusing on shorter texts on LinkedIn are:

1) I want to challenge myself to condense my insights.

2) I want to put aside more time to write longer texts for my next couple of books.

3) I think I might be more consistent in my postings.

and, most importantly,

4) I have this idea that my audience might actually prefer short-form content on LinkedIn.

As the image is hinting, my goal is to publish one creativity insight per (working) day.

I am looking forward to continue exploring creativity with you in 2024.

 

𝑭𝒓𝒆𝒅𝒓𝒊𝒌 𝑯𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒏 – 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑪𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝑬𝒙𝒑𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒓

The post Daily Creativity Insights. (Episode 194) first appeared on The Creativity Explorer.

Dormant Ideas. (Episode 193)

Exploratory Thinking. (Episode 106)

Interview with José Miguel Bejarano, Innovation Lead at Siemens Energy.

 

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We all know the process of Design Thinking. How it starts with “Stage 1: Empathize – Research Your Users’ Needs.” and “Stage 2: Define – State Your Users’ Needs and Problems.”

It sounds clever, smart and customer centric. But what if there is a better way for some?

I explored this thinking with José Miguel Bejarano, Innovation Lead at Siemens Energy, in an interview last year. José, who is based in Mexico City, shared with me an interesting insight: Researching and interviewing customers works great for B2C companies and other organisations with a lot of clients, but it works less well for companies like Siemens Energy.

Because Siemens Energy has just a handful of clients in each market.

And – to put it frankly – there are only so many times these clients will let you meet up with them to interview them about their needs and problems.

Siemens Energy is a fascinating company. It can be described as a 29$ billion start-up with 91,000 employees and a 175-year heritage, as it was spun-off to be its own company in 2020. And while the company is huge, their client list is relatively short – because they work with giant utility companies around the world.

José noticed that it was getting harder and harder for his company to get quality time with their clients. Not because the clients were not interested in sharing their needs and problems, but because once they had done so a few times they just did not see the value of doing it one more time.

José explained to me that “coming to clients just asking for their problems was enough to open the door, but not enough to keep the door open.”

José: “We realised that our challenges are different than those for consumer companies with unlimited numbers of clients to interview, so we had to come up with a better way.”

This better way was to invite their clients to co-create the future of EoT. EoT stands for “the Energy of the Future”.

Siemens Energy would match internal innovators (called “Intrapreneurs”) with clients, and together they would explore new technologies, trends and solutions.

And it worked.

José told me that the narrative changed. Instead of feeling that Siemens Energy came to “extract information”, the clients now felt “together we are part of the development of the energy future.”

Siemens Energy saw that the clients’ perspective and the customers’ willingness to talk to Siemens Energy changed a lot. The clients now get value. They felt that it was less than a one-way road of them just giving information.

Design thinking is about thinking about the design.

But what José and his team are doing is inviting their clients to imagine what the future of their industry could look like. To raise the bar. Look further. Imagine. To explore together.

So let’s call that “Exploratory Thinking”.

So Practice Exploratory Thinking – don’t just interview your clients about “their problems”, but invite them to imagine a better future together with you.

The post Exploratory Thinking. (Episode 106) first appeared on The Creativity Explorer.

When the venue becomes part of the message of the speech. (Episode 192)