Introduction To Imagination and Creativity

INTRODUCTION TO
IMAGINATION AND
CREATIVITY
Meanings of imagination
1. How would you define ‘imagination’?

2. Consider the term ‘imaginary’. What do they suggest
as how sometimes imagination is regarded?
3. What is it for someone to be ‘imaginative’?
4. How would you explain the difference between
‘imagination’ and ‘fantasy’?
1. Imagination –
 The power to form images
 From Concise Oxford Dictionary – ‘mental faculty
forming images or concepts of external objects not
present to the senses; creative faculty of the mind”
2. Imaginary
 Contrasted with ‘real’
 ‘Illusory’
3. Imaginative
 Someone who is good at conjuring up images.
 A more positive view of ‘imagination’ than do the
meaning of ‘imaginary’
4. Fantasy
 Has more associations of unreality or delusion.
Conceptions of imagination
Twelve conceptions of imagination (Stevenson, 2003)

1. The ability to think of something that is not presently
perceived, but is real.
2. The ability to think of whatever one acknowledges as
possible.
3. The ability to think of something which the subject
believes to be real, but which is not real.
4. The ability to think of things one conceives as
fictional, as opposed to one believes to be real, or
conceives of as possibly real.
5. The ability to entertain mental images.

6. The ability to think of anything at all.
7. The non-rational operations of the mind.
8. The ability to form beliefs, on the basis of perception,
about public objects with spatial parts and temporal
duration.
9. The sensuous component in the appreciation of works of
art or objects of natural beauty
10. The ability to create works of art that encourage

sensuous appreciation.
11. The ability to appreciate things that are expressive of
the meaning of human life.
12. The ability to create works of art that express
something deep about the meaning of human life.
Are you a creative and
imaginative person?
Problem 1: The Nine Dots
Connect the dots by four straight consecutive lines (without

taking your pen or pencil off the paper).
Are you a creative and
imaginative person?
 Problem 2: The six matchsticks
 Place six matchsticks on a flat surface. Now arrange the
matchsticks in a pattern of four equilateral (ie equal-
sided) triangles. You may not break the matchsticks.
What is Creativity?
Which behaviour would you consider creative or not creative?
1. In the middle of discussion on plants, 6-year old Danial raises
his hand. “Do you think the plants would grow taller and
stronger if, instead of watering them, we milked them?”
2. Maria wrote the best essay on environment her teacher had
ever seen. It was clear, well documented, and thorough,
including implications of environmental issues seldom
considered by high school students.
3. Aziz hide the economics notes in the men’s room. During the
exam, he would excuse himself to go to the men’s room to
read the notes, before proceeding with the examination.
What is Creativity?
4. Maya has recently become captivated by ‘Spongebob

Squarepants’ cartoon series. She frequently uses her
journal to write new adventures of Spongebob, Patrick,
Squidward and Mr. Crab.
5. Sam is wearing a baseball cap on that day. He has
installed a mirror under the brim. When the cap is
positioned at the correct angle, he can see the desk
next to his. This will be handy during the quiz later.
Definitions of creativity
 “True creativity often starts where language ends”

(Koestler, 1964)
 “ A creative result is a result both original and
appropriate” (Perkins, 1988)
 “A process of discovering what has not been considered
– the act of making new connections” (Gilliam, 1993)
 “..as the production of novel and useful ideas in any
domain” (Amabile, 1996)
 “Being creative is seeing the same thing as everyone
else but thinking of something different”
(http:www.ozemail.com.au)
The importance of creativity
in business
 Logical thinking progresses in a series of steps, each one
dependent on the last. This new knowledge is merely an
extension of what we already know, rather than being
truly new.
 Problems arise as a result of different or new situations
in management that require novel solutions.
 The need for creative problem solving has arisen as a
result of the inadequacies of logical thinking.
The importance of creativity
in business
 Creative problem solving is a method of using
imagination along with techniques which use analogies,
associations and other mechanisms to help produce
insights into problems which might not otherwise be
obtained through conventional, traditional methods of
problem solving.
How creativity can be used in
management
 To make more effective use of the manager’s time
 To improve a product’s appeal to customers
 To improve motivation amongst staff
 To cut costs through more efficient/effective
production methods
 To identify new and profitable product-market
opportunities
Conditions when creative
thinking is required most
 The need for creative thinking often becomes important
when paradigm shift occurs or likely to occur soon.
 Paradigm – is a set of rules and regulations that guide
our actions when solving problems.
 Paradigm shifts require a change in perspective on the
subject.
Conditions when creative
thinking is required most
 The process of paradigm shift can be encouraged and
effected early through the use of creative thinking.
 Creative problem solving methods make extensive use
of techniques and approaches that help to find solutions
to open-ended problems.
Characteristics of Creative
Thinking & Creative Thinkers
 Intelligence measures do not explain creative ability.
 Highly productive creative thinkers form more unique
combinations than others.
 It is the ability to make a contrast between similar
objects.
 It is a facility to see things to which others are blind.
Qualities of a creative person
 Challenge the status quo

 Confront assumptions
 Exhibit curiosity
 Like to investigate new possibilities
 Tend to take the initiative in most matters
 Are highly imaginative
 Are future oriented
 Tend to think visually
 See possibilities within the seemingly possible
 Not afraid to take risks
 Are prepared to make mistakes
 Are adaptable to different work environments
 Are adaptable to changing circumstances
 Look beyond the first ‘right idea’
Acquiring creative problem
solving skills
Four basic creative strengths and skills can be taught:
 Fluency – ability to produce many ideas (with similar or
same kind of theme)
 Flexibility – ability to produce a varied mix of ideas
 Elaboration – ability to add detail, depth, mixtures of
viewpoints or perspectives
 Originality – uniqueness, novelty, newness, creativeness
or innovativeness
5 minutes break
Everyone should have a ‘napkin’ when we get back…
The Back of the Napkin
Workshop
Solving Problems with Pictures
Dan Roam
MIX08 :: UX03 :: March 5, 2008 :: The Venetian
Visual thinking: what problems,
what pictures, and who is ‘we’?
2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF THE

24
NAPKIN all rights reserved
Rather than draw this:
Let’s draw this:
2008 © Dan Roam THE

25 BACK OF THE NAPKIN all
rights reserved
Rather than focus on this:
Let’s focus on this:
2008 ©
Dan
Roam
THE
26 BACK OF
THE
NAPKIN
all rights
reserved
Exercise 1: the Who is ‘We’
self-assessment

27
a) I’m in a brainstorming session in a
conference room that has a big
whiteboard. I want to:
1. Go to the board, pick up a pen and start drawing circles and boxes.
2. Try to decipher whatever is already written on the board.
3. Go to the board and start writing categorized lists.
4. Add a little clarification to what’s already up there – you know, to make
it clearer.
5. Forget the whiteboard – come on here, people, we’ve got work to do!
28 6. I hate brainstorming sessions.
2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF THE NAPKIN
all rights reserved
b) Someone hands me a pen and
asks me to sketch out a particular
idea. I:
1. Ask for more pens, preferably in at least three colors.

2. Just start sketching and see what emerges.
3. Say, “I can’t draw, but…” and then make a horrible stick figure.
4. Start by writing a few words, then putting boxes around them.
5. Put the pen on the table and start talking.
6. Say, “No thanks, I can’t draw”, and leave it at that.
29

c) Someone hands me a
complicated spreadsheet
and asks me to look it
over. I first:
1. Glaze over and hope it will go away.
2. Flip through the pages and see if something – I dunno, whatever – pops
up.
3. Read across the top of the columns or down each row in order, to identify
the categories.
4. Select a row and column at random and follow them to the data cell,
then look for similar (or different) data results in other cells.
5. Look for the largest or smallest values I can find, then trace them back to
identify them.
6. Notice that OPEX variance to budget is down for the second quarter in a
row. 2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF THE
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d) On my way home from a
conference, I see a cute fellow
attendee at the airport cafe, and
he or she asks me what I do. I:
1. Grab a napkin and ask the waiter if I can borrow a pen.
2. Pick up three packs of Sweet-n-Low, lay them on the bar, point to one and
say, “Okay, this is me over here, and this is the customer over here…”
3. Pull out a page from my PowerPoint deck – a really good page – and start
walking through it.
4. Start to recite my original job description: “There are three things that I
do…”.
5. “What I do? Well, better buy another round, because we’re going to be
talking a while.”
6. Say it’s too complicated to explain well, but ask him/her the same
31
question.
2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF
THE NAPKIN all rights reserved
e) I’m an astronaut floating in
space. The first thing I do is:
1. Take a deep breath, relax, and take in the whole view.

2. Pull out my camera.
3. Try to spot my house… or at least my continent.
4. Start describing what I see.
5. Close my eyes.
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6. Find a way to get back into my spacecraft. 2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF
Now comes the math, I’m afraid…
5-14 15-20 21-30

33 On a napkin, write your pen COLOR, and then…
Napkin exercise, step 1
Draw a
circle and
call it
“me”…
2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK

34 OF THE NAPKIN all rights
reserved
Step 1b
Now draw
another
circle
(more like
a cloud)
and give
it a name,
too…

35 BACK OF THE NAPKIN
all rights reserved
So, which problems shall we
look at…

rights reserved
What’s the business strategy
challenge?
2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK

37 OF THE NAPKIN all rights
reserved
Put into words…
The challenge:
 A new strategic vision
 A refined company
mission
 A new operating
philosophy
 New retail
fundamentals
 New store standards
 New customer practices
 New training materials
100 new staff every

month…
38
BACK OF THE NAPKIN
all rights reserved
How about a napkin map?

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Product development: Why are
we collecting all these numbers?
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43
44 2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF
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46

What are the three things the
CFO does want to look at?
Financial
Drivers
Date Org
Cut Unit

47
So, what might *that* look
like…
48

Or, when executed in Expression Blend…
49

Step 3
Draw in
the last
circle,
only make
this one
more of a
hotdog…
then add
in a +
symbol…
50
Step 3
The
universal
visual
thinking
problem
solving
toolkit…
Draw in
the first
set of 3 2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF
blades…
51
3 parts or ourselves to
improve

rights reserved
Step 4
Draw in
the next
set of
blades,
this time 4
of them…

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Let’s think about ‘process’ for a moment…

54
The 4 steps of visual thinking:
What is out there? What do I see? How can I manipulate This is what I saw, and
these patterns? this is what I think it
What am I looking at? Have I seen this before? means.
Can I fill in the gaps?
What are the limits? What patterns emerge?
Is this what I
Which way is up? What stands out? Have I seen enough – or expected… or not?
do I need to go back
What seems to be and look at more? When you look at this,
Look, not judge missing? do you see the same
things?
Analyse, reflect,
Make sense what is
manipulate in the
2008 © Dan Roam, all
55 there what is not there mind… Share – unless you
rights reserved
share, no one sees
what you see
Step 5
Now draw
in a
corkscrew,
and give it
5 twists…

rights reserved
Next… Class Activity
 How would you describe durians

to a person who has never seen a
durian?
How about ten apples?

58
Meet the SQVID… a.k.a ‘The 5
focusing questions’
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Two ways to use the SQVID

60
SQV.. examples:
Simple Qualitative
Vision
Elaborate
Quantitative Execution
61

..ID examples…
Delta
(change)
Individual
Status-Quo
Comparison
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Step 6
Now draw
in the last
set of 6
blades…

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The 6 ways we see:

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<6><6>
2008 © Dan Roam

THE BACK OF THE
65
NAPKIN all rights
reserved
Framework 1: “Portraits” for
WHO / WHAT problems

66 THE NAPKIN all rights reserved
Framework 2: “Charts” for HOW
MUCH / HOW MANY problems
67
Framework 3: “Maps” for
WHERE problems

68
Framework 4: “Timelines” for
WHEN problems
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Framework 5: “Flowcharts”
for HOW problems

70
Framework 6: “Multiple-variable
Plots” for WHY problems

71
Step 7
Done: our
very own
visual thinking
universal
problem
solving tool
kit!
72
Step 8
Give it to a
friend, and
help them see
the power of
visual thinking,
73
too.
Dan Roam
djroam@gmail.com
Office: 415-695-0231
Mobile: 415-823-5794
39 Romain St.
SF, CA 94114
www.digitalroam.typepad.com
www.thebackofthenapkin.com

74
Reflection
 The napkin…?
 What have you learnt so far?
Quiz (5%)
1. Differentiate the following words:

 Imagination
 Imaginary
 Imaginative
 Fantasy (4 marks)
2. Why is creativity important in business? (2 marks)
3. How can creativity be used in management (2 marks)
4. Give 2 qualities of a creative person (2 marks)
The 24-hour
Individual Assignment (5%)
 Choose ONE advertisement from printed media
(magazine/newspaper) and describe why that
advertisement is considered creative and imaginative.
(10 marks)
Submission requirements:
Not more than 2 pages (excluding attachment)
Times New Roman/Arial 12 font
1.5 spacing
Attach the advertisement chosen
Due: Next Thursday
The 24-hour
Individual Assignment
TIPS:
 Relate your discussion to the theories discussed in class
(e.g. (i) the conceptions of imagination, which
conception does the advert fit in? (ii) the different
definitions of creativity, which definition fit the advert
the most?)

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INTRODUCTION TO

1. How would you define ‘imagination’?

Twelve conceptions of imagination (Stevenson, 2003)

5. The ability to entertain mental images.

10. The ability to create works of art that encourage

Connect the dots by four straight consecutive lines (without

4. Maya has recently become captivated by ‘Spongebob

 “True creativity often starts where language ends”

 Challenge the status quo

Solving Problems with Pictures

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF THE

Let’s draw this:

2008 © Dan Roam THE

Let’s focus on this:

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF THE

1. Ask for more pens, preferably in at least three colors.

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF THE

1. Take a deep breath, relax, and take in the whole view.

5-14 15-20 21-30

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK

2008 © Dan Roam THE

2008 © Dan Roam THE

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK

100 new staff every

2008 © Dan Roam THE

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF THE

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF

2008 © Dan Roam THE

2008 © Dan Roam THE

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF

2008 © Dan Roam THE

 How would you describe durians

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF

2008 © Dan Roam THE

2008 © Dan Roam THE

2008 © Dan Roam

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF

2008 © Dan Roam THE BACK OF THE

1. Differentiate the following words:

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