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Creativity In the Media

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What was “The Hurt Locker” about?

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The media, too, is a drug … addictive.

Why? Stories

News and entertainment

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Stories = content. Engaging content is king.

Listen carefully Content is created by teams.

Collaborative teams The media require collaborative

creativity.

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Three Creativity Elements Expertise: In-depth knowledge

about a field Creative Skills: Problem-solving

skills, creative process skills, collaborative teamwork skills

Intrinsic Task Motivation: Passion for the work, love of the process involved … not extrinsic reward such as money, awards

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Four Roles Of the Creative Process *

The Explorer Gathers information, explores for

knowledge in new places The Artist

Experiments with new approaches, combinations

Follows intuition, breaks rules, brainstorms, takes risks

• A Kick in the Seat of the Pants, Roger von Oech, Perennial Library, New York, 1986.

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The Judge Evaluates ideas and solutions,

critically weighs evidence The Warrior

Takes the offensive, fights for implementation, sells ideas, has courage

A Kick in the Seat of the Pants, Roger von Oech, Perennial Library, New York, 1986.

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Innovation Innovation is the result – the working

solution – of the creative process. Innovation is the most dominant

trend in business … the key to success Non-profits, too.

Innovation = problem finding and problem solving.

THE NEW SCHOOLSilicon Valley

Paris Hollywood Pixar

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Want to get a job in the media? Want to work collaboratively on

creative teams and innovate?

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Want To Get a Job In the Media?

1. Be an expert. Be so good they can’t ignore you.

2. Learn creative process and collaborative skills.

A. Traditional brainstorming doesn’t work.B. Learn to take criticism … and give it

gently. Bury your ego.3. Take only jobs that have intrinsic

motivation for you.

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Most Important

Practice, practice, practice

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Talent is overrated. It takes 10 years or 10,000 hours

of deliberate practice to become an expert.

Start practicing today. Get really, really good at

something.

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Creativity Mythology

1. Teams are more creative than individuals.

2. If you want to enhance creative teamwork, get rid of rules, guidelines and norms.

3. Striving for quality is better than striving for quantity.

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4. Active brainstorming is necessary to generate ideas.

5. Brainstorming teams should work closely together and tear down boundaries.

6. Team members should first brainstorm as a group to get the creative juices, flowing, then work alone.

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7. People who are pro-social (team-oriented) are more creative than those who are pro-self (individually oriented).

8. Deactivating moods (e.g., peaceful reflection, relaxation, serenity) lead to more creativity than activating moods (e.g., anger, fear, happiness).

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1. Teams are more creative than individuals. Research shows people working

completely individually out perform groups – by far.

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2. If you want to enhance creative teamwork, get rid of rules, guidelines and norms. Wrong. Groups that don’t have

guidelines are distinctly less creative. Groups need structure:

Starbursting e.g.

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3. Striving for quality is better than striving for quantity. Quantity first. Quality requirements lead to self-censoring. People fear ridicule – jeering. Groups need priming – the act of stimulating

new ideas with a phrase, suggestion, picture, metaphor.

Primacy effect – people focus on first good idea that comes along and limit discussion.

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4. Active brainstorming is necessary to generate ideas. People need time to pay attention to an

idea – to understand it. Thus, need to think about it – to fixate on it.

People need to incubate – have some time to let their dreams work.

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5 Brainstorming teams should work closely together and tear down boundaries. People need some space and often

some privacy. Cave-and-commons approach to office

space – freedom from continual interruption.

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6. Team members should first brainstorm as a group to get the creative juices, flowing, then work alone. Just the opposite. It is best to

brainwrite – work alone, independently and record ideas before moving to group discussion.

Brainwriting alone for 10 minutes is enough – not much happens after 10 minutes.

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7. People who are pro-social (team-oriented) are more creative than those who are pro-self (individually oriented). The opposite. People who have a high

concern for their own interests and ideas are more creative than people who are pro-social and will to “go along to get along.”

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8. Deactivating moods (e.g., peaceful reflection, relaxation, serenity) lead to more creativity than activating moods (e.g., anger, fear, happiness). Better to be focused, aroused and

highly activated. Discussing and arguing about ideas passionately works.

So, start yelling at each other…you get brownies points taken off by being polite and not taking risks!