Zig Zag

The Surprising Path to Greater Creativity

Keith Sawyer

• Publisher: Jossey-Bass
• Year: 2013
• Print ISBN: 9781118297704
• eBook ISBN: 9781118539118
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Personal Development
• Subtopic: Creativity

A science-backed method to maximize creative potential in any sphere of life

With the prevalence of computer technology and outsourcing, new jobs and fulfilling lives will rely heavily on creativity and innovation. Keith Sawyer draws from his expansive research of the creative journey, exceptional creators, creative abilities, and world-changing innovations to create an accessible, eight-step program to increasing anyone's creative potential. Sawyer reveals the surprising secrets of highly creative people (such as learning to ask better questions when faced with a problem), demonstrates how to come up with better ideas, and explains how to carry those ideas to fruition most effectively.

This science-backed, step-by step method can maximize our creative potential in any sphere of life.

• Offers a proven method for developing new ideas and creative problem-solving no matter what your profession
• Includes an eight-step method, 30 practices, and more than 100 techniques that can be launched at any point in a creative journey
• Psychologist, jazz pianist, and author Keith Sawyer studied with world-famous creativity expert Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

Sawyer's book offers a wealth of easy to apply strategies and ideas for anyone who wants to tap into their creative power.

Index

A

Aalborg University (Denmark)

Absorb New Media technique

Accidents: examples of inventions made from; Langer's drawing a picture experiment on; look for serendipity in. See also Bad ideas; Creativity mistakes

Act It Out technique

Adams, Joe

Adams, Scott

Adamson, Peter

Adaptive expertise

AESOP (surgical robot)

Aesthetic judgment

American Sign Language (ASLPro online dictionary)

Amway

Analogies: analogical thinking to create; definition of; fusing ideas to create; mimicking nature to create; using personal analogy to create; using direct analogy to create

Apple: Jobs' typographical literacy contribution to; Steve Jobs' debugging products of

Apply What You Know to New Situations technique

Appoint a Personal Board of Directors technique

Art Center Design Conference (2008)

Artists: Csikszentmihalyi's examination of creative process of; mindfulness as quality needed by; Perkins' study of “noticing” abilities of; “problem-finding” creative style of. See also Creative learners; Creativity

The Artist's Way (Cameron)

Asimov, Isaac

Ask step: Csikszentmihalyi's experimental studio groups findings on; description of; examples of asking the “right” questions; Personal Creative Assessment to self-assess yourself; practices of the; understanding how integrated it is with the other steps; when to focus on the

Ask step practices: Find the Question; Search the Space; Transform the Problem

Asking the right question: Csikszentmihalyi's examining artistic creativity and; Einstein on identifying the right “crime” by; Howard Schultz's development of Starbucks by; Instagram photo app created by

Assembly line innovation

ATMs innovation

B

Bach, Johann Sebastian

Bad ideas: exercise for coming up with; how Hasbro created a success out of a; how they can lead to good ideas; learning by looking at bad examples and. See also Accidents; Failure

Balance Specialty with Generality practice, Be a Dilettante

Balance Specialty with Generality practices: Be T-Shaped; Branch Out; issues to consider for; Pair Up with an Expert

Bardeen, John

Be a Beginner practices: Do Something for the First Time; Plan on Fun; Start a New Hobby

Be a Dilettante technique

Be Specific technique: connecting four dots exercise; list as many white things as you can exercise; for showing how creativity is enhanced by constraints

Be the Devil's Advocate technique

Be T-Shaped technique

Become More Aware technique

Beethoven, Ludwig van

Beginning: listing fun activities you'd like to start; a new hobby; returning to your childlike state of; something new that you've never done before; techniques for returning to your

Bell, Joshua

Bergman, Ingmar

Bieber, Justin

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Blacksmithing class (The Crucible arts center, Oakland)

“Blocker,”

Blume, Judy

Boyle, Dennis

Bradbury, Ray

Brain: how what the eye sees is impacted by the; Perkins' study of “noticing” abilities of artists,’; similarities of waking and sleeping; three exercises to self-assess “noticing” ability by your

Brainstorming: generating ideas through; IDEO's use of

Branch Out technique

Branson, Richard

Break It Down technique

Bridgman, Percy

A Brief History of Time (Hawking)

Brown, Tim

Bug fixing. See Find the Bug

Build It practices: Construct It; Try Quick and Dirty; Visit a Craft Store

burbn app

Burgess, Lowry

“Burnout,”

Burns, Ken

Bushnell, Nolan

C

Calligraphy knowledge

Cameron, Julia

Card trick tutorials (Expert Village channel, YouTube)

Carey, Drew

Carnegie Mellon

Carver, Raymond

Cat problem: description of the; Map Your Idea

Catholic Church canonization process

Challenge Your Assumptions technique

Challenge Yourself technique

Challenges: job-related problems and; some examples of common life; technical types of professional

Change: creativity by switching your perspective; looking for new patterns for new perspective and; zig zag creativity as process of constant evolution and

Chaplin, Charlie

Chart the Flow technique

Chartier, Émile-Auguste

Chase, William

Che...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Praise for ZIG ZAG
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Introduction: Choosing Creativity
• The First Step: ASK: How the Right Questions Lead to the Most Novel Answers
• The Second Step: LEARN: How to Prepare Your Mind for Constant Creativity
• The Third Step: LOOK: How to Be Aware of the Answers All Around You
• The Fourth Step: PLAY: How to Free Your Mind to Imagine Possible Worlds
• The Fifth Step: THINK: How to Have Way More Ideas Than You'll Ever Need
• The Sixth Step: FUSE: How to Combine Ideas in Surprising New Ways
• The Seventh Step: CHOOSE: How to Pick the Best Ideas and Then Make Them Even Better
• The Eight Step: MAKE: How Getting Your Ideas Out into the World Drives Creativity Forward
• Conclusion
• Appendix A Outline of All of the Steps, Practices, and Techniques
• Appendix B: The Research Behind the Eight Steps
• References
• Acknowledgments
• About the Author
• Index