Creativity Gone Sour: Motrin, Mothers, and Twitter

Over the weekend I was monitoring Twitter friends and was surprised to discover a bit of a dust up with regard to the Motrin brand. Motrin, it appears, had put up an ad suggesting that mothers who wear those slings to carry their babies are slaves to fashion, and that it hurts their backs. Depending on how you interpret the ad it can also be perceived as calling mothers “tired and crazy”. It also subtly suggests that the sling is not really as much of a bonding experience as it’s purported to be. One would guess the original intention of the ad would be to suggest that Motrin is the answer to all the neck, back, and shoulder pain a mom would would get from using a sling. It was also intended to be a “viral video”. It was! And it was Not Good! A virtual firestorm of negative reaction went aflame on the web.

Motrin, to put it mildly, has really stepped in it (McNeil Consumer Healthcare owns the Motrin brand, McNeil is a division of Johnson & Johnson). Rumor has it that Amy Gates (aka “@crunchygoddess on Twitter) learned about it on Facebook, who told Jessica Gottleib (aka JessicaGottlieb) who took it to Twitter and tweeted — to a huge community of mothers, bloggers, and knucklehead social observers like myself. Then Katja Presnal (aka @KatjaPresnal) created a response video for YouTube. 20 hours later the Motrin brand website is offline…

From a creativity and innovation perspective there are two points about this event I’d like to make.

1. Creativity isn’t useful or innovative unless it solves a problem. Creativity in a vacuum by some ad executive — who think they know the market — can be worse than useless, it can be damaging. We’ve all seen some visually interesting ads and at the end of it said, that was cool — what brand was it? The Motrin ad goes a step further, it’s creative thinking that actually harms a brand. One of the rules of structured creative problem solving is that you really understand the problem. Clearly, those who developed this ad don’t understand the role of slings, and the emotional connection mothers have to them. Now, it may be that slings do indeed cause some pain. Good research might have uncovered this insight. However, that insight alone, even if true, is not quite enough. In good creative problem solving you would not only understand the basic problem, you’d make sure that whatever you create as a solution works for the problem owner, the target in marketing terms. Mom’s clearly were offended by the ad’s tone, assumptions, and suggestions. Motrin aimed for empathy and simply missed the target. With web technologies, like Twitter and other tools, lack of funding is no excuse for not market testing. It’s incredibly easy to show a spot to a panel via the web. Why they didn’t do this is a mystery (or if they did how they missed the negative response). Traditional focus groups would have worked for this testing — if properly designed. I don’t agree with Peter Shankman, a social media guru, on this (his post on this event is otherwise brilliant IMHO). A series of focus groups might have “iterated” the spot and found language that was truly empathetic (or not, the concept may have been unsalvagable). What Peter and I can agree on is web tools like Twitter would have quickly given creators much needed consumer feedback on their ad concept. There is something to be said for the wisdom of crowds in the social media universe.

2. Social Media are Power Tools for creative and innovative self expression. Social Media is coming of age in a fast and furious way. They are powerful and can work for you, or against you. Yes, this might seem obvious, but I believe there is a vast universe of people who are missing the social media boat. I’m personally a Greggey-come-lately to social media. I’ve been on Facebook, Plaxo, and Linked-In for sometime but for the most part have found them to be a waste of time. Don the Idea Guy got me involved with Twitter and I thought, at first, it was completely silly — who would care to know “what I’m doing right now”? Why “micro blog” when you can macro blog or email? I didn’t get it, but am beginning to see the light. The lightning speed at which an organized response to the Motrin ad was put together was amazing, and it can be directly attributed to Twitter. An alert was messaged “tweeted” out and before one could blink there was a video on YouTube with all the outraged responses (nicely done and oh-so-timely by Katja Presnal). Last night it was still possible to see the original ad on the Motrin site, today I can only find it on YouTube. In fact the Motrin brand web page itself has been taken down, I suspect, for re-tooling in light of this marketing fiasco. From ad release to brand web site shutdown — less than 20 hours. Lesson here: be careful with power tools!

It will be interesting to see how Motrin responds to this. How they respond will be make or break for the brand. For more on this story see Fast Company’s take.

For more very short snippets of creativity and innovation news and views, follow me on Twitter: www.twitter.com/greggfraley

Revisiting the Creativity & Innovation of The Beatles

I just returned from spending a couple days in Liverpool, the city of The Beatles. I stayed at the new Hard Days Night Hotel, sleeping below a huge air-brushed portrait of George Harrison. I’ll write more about the hotel, it was, to use a 60’s phrase, a trip. In the meantime, I have a lot of things to say about The Beatles, and their relationship to creativity and innovation. I spent an afternoon at The Beatles Story museum at Albert Dock, which had a great audio tour and memorabilia.

The anecdote that struck me was one told by their producer, George Martin. He recounted hearing the first tape of The Beatles and thinking it was awful. Brian Epstein, their manager, was insistent and George finally said, well, come down to London and let me evaluate them in person. He booked an hour of studio time but had low expectations. They arrived, were pleasant, polite, funny, and played with a lot of verve and energy. After they left Martin remarked to himself how charming and nice the boys had been, how much fun they had playing, and their “wit”. He noticed that after they were gone that he felt “diminished” by their absence. He noted to himself that if he felt this way, what might young people feel? That was the feeling he went with when he signed The Beatles. He remarked that he didn’t know at the time that The Beatles had been turned down by every record label in London, and if he had known, he wouldn’t have signed them.

There are several things about this anecdote that strike me for those seeking to innovate.

1.) Notice how you feel. Martin was self-aware enough to notice that he felt “diminished” by their absence. That was his clue to understanding how they affected their audiences. It takes real thoughtfulness to notice a subtle feeling like “diminished” doesn’t it? How many of us slow down often enough to notice what we are feeling about people and things? He was also impressed by their wit — their sense of fun was part of the reason he thought they had promise. Intuition

2.) New and different almost always seems wrong at first. The Beatles had a new take on pop and at first nobody, that is the experts, got it (one famous comment about The Beatles “guitar groups are on the way out”). They were ruled out by nearly all the experts. Martin was open enough to simply give them a chance and consider what was good about them. Positive evaluation allows for more possibility. Most disruptive innovations lack sophistication in some dimensions; they haven’t been all polished up and featured out. The raw chords of American R&B hadn’t been filtered and refined, it didn’t sound like “good” music to those used to something else.

3.) Persistence matters. Brian Epstein kept making his presentation, he believed in what he had and stayed after it. Most of us would have quit after the first two or three rejections.

4. Consumers know best. The fan base in Liverpool at the Cavern Club and the Casbah knew The Beatles were great two years before the experts did. They were ready for something new, ready for something fun, ready for something to lift their Liverpudlian blues. It’s old news really but it’s a lesson we often forget, consumers know best. If you want to innovate, see what people are doing, particularly those with noting to lose. Notice what those people enjoy, and you’ll find the best clues to market acceptance of virtually any product.

The Innovator’s Guide to Growth…a new bible for Innovation Managers

This post is part of the Post2Post Virtual Book Tour, my Innovise Guy pardner Doug Stevenson is also reviewing the book on The Innovise Guys Blog (the post-tour tour). He’s posting Wednesday, October 1.

I do a bit of reading. I try to have one business book and one fictional book going at all times. This last month my pair has been The Innovator’s Guide to Growth and Salmon Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children. It has proved to be a month of intense learning about innovation – and India! The Innovator’s Guide to Growth, which I am reviewing here, I predict, will become as important a book in the business world as Rushdie’s Booker Prize winning novel is in fiction. Quite simply, IG2G is the new bible for innovation managers and leaders.

Business leaders: do not pass go, do not collect 200 stock options, go immediately to Amazon and buy this book. I haven’t read such an eye opener since picking up Geoffrey Moore’s Crossing the Chasm in the early 90’s.

Business books are often a slog to read. Even those with good content can be sleeping pill substitutes. IG2G is quite dense with information about how to “do” innovation – particularly disruptive innovation. However, it’s no sleeping aid, you are compelled to keep reading because it’s just so damn insightful, fresh, and filled with important advice on all aspects of the innovation puzzle.

I’ve been saying for some time that innovation is a holistic organizational activity; it’s not one thing it’s many intertwined factors. There is no silver bullet! Many business books address some aspect of it, call them silver-bullet-centric; virtually none are holistic in nature. IG2G is the exception, it’s womb-to-tomb about innovation management and process. It sorts out the complexity and removes the mystery for innovation leaders. It’s truly a guide – they didn’t use that word in the title just for the alliteration! Leaders take note: what they say in IG2G – the first chapter – “there is no silver bullet for companies interested in enhancing their organization’s ability to innovate.” IG2G is what managers really need, a full-process tool kit.

Speaking of titles, the subtitle of IG2G is “…putting disruptive innovation to work”. This is key because one of the great things about this book is how it clears up the concept of disruptive innovation. It presents a valuable and persuasive case as to why disruptive innovation is so essential for growth. Growth is the point of innovation after all isn’t it? In watching many organizations continue to extend product lines incrementally it’s clear that they are avoiding the risk of bigger, new-market type innovation. Innovation leaders often fall prey to what I call the Pete Rose trap, that is, settling for singles instead of swinging for the fences (note to international readers: forgive the baseball analogy, it means “not taking enough risk”). Falling for the Pete Rose trap means that organizations fail in the long run. IG2G gives leaders the tools they need to justify, plan, create, and execute a balanced innovation strategy that includes the all-important disruptive element. This book could save your company.

I love that the book is peppered with real world examples. For instance, it tells the story of Best Buy’s development of the Geek Squad service. It’s a great example of disruptive growth through acquisition and development. J&J, P&G, Dow Corning, and Intel are just a few of the many success stories cited to flesh out the books guidance. The team of author’s are Scott Anthony, Mark Johnson, Joseph Sinfield, and Elizabeth Altman. The men on the author team are all part of Innosight a premiere innovation consultancy that uses the concepts articulated in IG2G. Innosight owes a lot of its brilliance to Harvard professor Clayton Christensen, one of the founders, who has done much of the deep research that backs up this book. Indeed, he wrote the foreword to IG2G. Altman is a Motorola strategy executive and adds real world experience in innovation to this guidebook.

This is clearly a book written by experts who know all aspects of innovation. I was paying particularly close attention to what the author’s said about “how” to do the creation part of innovation. Ideation is something I specialize in so I was hoping to catch them out on something! Instead, I read advice on ideation that I’ve been preaching (to mostly deaf ears) for years. I keep saying that ideation takes time, that it can’t all be done in one big brainstorming session. It made me feel good to read that they suggest that a team take “several weeks developing and exploring opportunities.” Amen brothers! They further suggest that if you do an ideation session you should combine fresh groups of people. Good suggestion. I would go one better and suggest you bring in folks from outside the organization and I’ll bet they would agree.

They are also quite insightful when it comes to on-going innovation idea programs. They believe that reinforcement is critical. This is so right, I’ve seen this time and again, where organizations ask for ideas, get thousands, then ignore them.

The only downside to IG2G is simply that it is, like Midnight’s Children, not a glazed doughnut to consume. It’s as dense as a bourbon laced holiday fruit cake – plan on reading it slowly, studying it really, for the next quarter. Perhaps with a nice port…

My Starbucks Idea, A “C” At Best

I keep an eye on Starbucks — as readers of this blog are well aware. I do this not as an investor, but as a student of all things innovative, and as a bona fide coffee lover. Starbucks is a fascinating study because it’s a combination of good practices and not so good practices when it comes to innovation. Their recently slide into hard times and 600 shop closings indicates trouble in paradise; sadly, I see them as an on-going case study in innovative failure at this point. I don’t think they are listening to their consumers, the key to incremental innovation. Nor do I see them making any radical departures, or starting any new ventures, the key to disruptive innovation and growth. Howard Schultz is like a quarterback who’s suddenly been traded to another team. The plays he’s calling are sincere attempts to score, but they don’t fit the team. He may have some plays up his sleeve we don’t know about. If he doesn’t, I don’t see their stock price, or their growth rate improving any time soon.

As I mentioned in my June post on Starbucks (Starbucks is Dead), they put together a website for consumer suggestions called “My Starbucks Idea” (otherwise known as MSI). I saw the site as a hopeful sign that they were listening to consumers and making an effort to re-create the vaunted experience that made them great in the first place.

I’ve been watching the site for about three months now and I’d like to report what a great success it is, unfortunately, I can’t. It seems to be a sincere effort but it’s flawed and therefore it slides into mediocrity.

What’s good about it is a lot of consumers have jumped in and suggested thousands of ideas. Like any unfocused brainstorming session, the ideas range from the sublime to the silly. There is also lively discussion about various hot issues (like Wifi fees, food, and of course the various coffee drinks). This discussion is rich with consumer data, it’s a real asset for Starbucks — if they use it! The problems with the MSI site, in my opinion, are the following:

1. Very, very few of the ideas are actually being taken into action. The site has an Ideas Into Action blog. What I see reading the entries is a great deal of Starbucks spin – usually reasons why they can’t do an idea (and therefore can’t innovate). You read lots of PR-ish statements about new drinks or food items from Starbucks employees — which is not bad information — but it’s not about Ideas In Action. This blog should be about ideas that have been done, or, how to get an idea done, and could be more productively used in that fashion. What’s the use of a consumer site if you don’t move forward with the best ideas? I realize the percentage of ideas implemented will be very low, but there ought to be some winners, and consumers should know what they are.

2. Starbucks Is Not Really Listening. Some key issues, particularly Wifi and Bold Coffee All Day Long (Not Pikes Peak!) get consistent consumer feedback saying basically the same thing: Wifi should be free and there should be a Bold Coffee option all day long. This is Very Clear consumer feedback and I find it amazing that Starbucks would ignore it. In my many visits to various Starbucks sites, it’s clear they are ignoring it. Surely their qualitative research bears out both of these desires, I would be shocked if it didn’t. And yet, these unpopular decisions (charging for Wifi access, and, a weaker non-bold afternoon brew option) remain in place. This is, IMHO, a classic mistake. They are leaving the door open for competitors to provide what they don’t.

3. Poor Convergence Tools. The site makes it easy to enter a new idea, that’s good. The problem is there is no place to easily compare ideas with each other, no rank ordering, no easy way to sort through all the ideas. What it suggests is that Starbucks wants to leave the consumer out of the convergence process. I get that Starbucks needs to make final decisions, of course, but they are leaving a lot of consumer wisdom on the table by not providing better viewing, voting, sorting, and ranking tools.

I’m still hopeful that MSI can evolve into a more meaningful site for consumer-based ideation, but now, I’d have to give it a “C” grade and just barely that. The moderators and site managers are doing the best they can but I get the sense they are not really empowered to take the site to the next level. My suggestions:

1. Focus the ideation on more specific problems. These would be problems that Starbucks really wants solved, and are motivated enough to make real changes. Take control! So, get the ideas for the problems You Want To Solve, pick one, and put it into action. Then tell us about it.

2. Put the discussion of ideas into a separate area. Separate ideation from discussion. Then list ideas in categories so you can see them at a glance. It’s impossible to scan quickly through ideas on the MSI site.

3. Hire the best ideators and pay them. Use the site to find prolific ideators.

4. Improve the convergence tools, and use consumers for convergent activities.

5. Empower the MSI team to do more.

Why Is God Laughing? A Review.

I was recently gifted a copy of Deepak Chopra’s book, “Why Is God Laughing? The Path to Joy And Spiritual Optimism.” I don’t often read books related to spirituality, probably an over-reaction to being inundated with religious instruction as a youth. Frankly, I’m one of those people who believe the more you talk about spirituality the less likely you are actually spiritually connected. I must confess that in the past I had less than an open mind about all things new age, but that’s changed. Chopra’s book helped me make more connections between my expertise area of creativity, and something I am still mystified about, spirituality.

The fact that Mike Myers (yes, of SNL and Wayne’s World fame) wrote the foreward helped me get over myself and start reading.

In recent years I have become more and more convinced that the deepest root in the innovation tree is, in fact, spirtuality. I’ve tried time and again to find a way to say this in a way that people, particularly business people, understand. I see spirituality as the most important part of a person’s creative environment, the source from which all innovation flows. I cite the spirituality of Einstein and Elvis as examples of how that foundation can lead to creative greatness. Still, for most people, it’s a tenuous link.

Why Is God Laughing fills in a lot of cracks in the linkage between the soul and personal creativity. It’s written as a story. The main character is Mickey, a successful stand-up comic who has just lost his semi-estranged father. His father’s character, Larry, reaches back from the dead (I won’t say how here) and finds a way to show Mickey a path to spiritual optimism. In the process Mickey learns more about the nature of fear, the roles we play in life that aren’t who we really are, and how the ego gets in the way of leading a more joyful life. It’s a quick read — only a day or two for most people I suspect, and, it moves quickly and without a lot of new-age double-speak. It’s a light weight story, and it is nonetheless a powerful book.

For me, a key insight is how much fear gets in the way of how we live. I’ve always said that removal of fear, or at least recognition of it, is the first step in creative problem solving. If you are paralyzed with fear there will be no creativity, there will be no innovation. Chopra does a great job of showing how fear is a dead end and provides a way of looking at it that helps remove it from our thinking. Likewise, he does a fine job of showing how ego interferes with authenticity. The learning for me is that recognizing how your ego rules you is the first step in letting that go and the positive result is greater, and more authentic, self-expression.

I would encourage anyone who wants a fresh perspective on the connection of spirituality to creativity, innovation, and joyful living to read this subtly enlightening book.

Ideation First Aid, 7 Ideas to Unblock Yourself

Professional creative people often find themselves needing a brilliant idea -- and simply not having one. We’ve all been there, a deadline is looming, you’ve tried this and that, and you know in your heart it’s not there, you don’t have something you can use. Anxiety, frustration, and fear creep into your being, and the harder you try, the worse things get.

Don’t push the panic button, reach for the ideation First Aid Kit and triage your challenge. Here are seven tools for coming up with an idea under pressure:

1. Think positive. Even if you’ve been stumped for days, even weeks, start telling yourself that you are going to have a great idea, and start believing it. Take a moment and imagine things working out perfectly and explore in your head, in your mind’s eye, what success might look like, how it might feel. Get into as much sensory detail as you can, how does it taste, smell, feel? Don’t know? Make it up! Your brain tends to follow the instructions you give it, even the non-intentional ones. So if you say to yourself “I am having a great idea about the Wesley account,” your brain will give it to you. If you say, “I’m stumped” your brain will stay that way. Brainwash yourself! Allow for all possibilities to emerge.

2. The next thing to do is relax. Do something physical. Shake the anxiety out of your body and shoulders, pretend you’re Elvis for a few minutes. Stretch, do some yoga, go for a short walk, take some deep breaths. If you have time, do something that gets you out of breath or makes you work hard physically. This will help get you “out of your head” and return you to a mental space that is more grounded. The key here is to still your mind.

3. Try looking at your challenge from a new angle. Pretend you are someone else – even a historical person like Frank Lloyd Wright, or Lincoln, or a fictional character like Miss Jane Marple. How would they look at this challenge, how might they address it? To break through to something fresh you have to think differently, so, why not use another persona to start getting imaginative. How would a child see it? Do anything you can to have “fresh eyes” – you’ll then have fresh thoughts. So, leave the past, your habits and assumptions behind and work at being in the present.

4. Seek out the overlooked facts in the situation. Something obvious that you are taking for granted might be re-examined and used as the basis for a fresh idea to solve your problem, to meet your challenge. Make a list of facts and feelings and include the obvious, the obscure, the irrelevant – you’ll get some ideas in the process.

5. Get out of the pattern of having an idea and then immediately critiquing it. You’ll never get into an imaginative flow that way. Instead, make a list of possible solutions and just keep writing up, or doodling/sketching new options, even listing the silly, stupid, obvious, and downright “bad” ideas. If you keep listing options/ideas, a new and fresh idea will eventually pop up, but you have to believe you can, you have to drop all negative thoughts, and just keep listing! Allow yourself to be truly spontaneous.

6. Make a forced connection. To get a fresh idea you can sometimes surprise or jog your mind into giving it up by using a forced connection or association. Look around your workspace or outside the window and pick an object at random. Then ask yourself what, say, an Oak Tree, has to do with your challenge. To help yourself make a connection, list words about the Oak Tree, like, strong, old, flexible, productive, kind, enduring, etc. Then use those “attribute” words as stimulus for ideas about your challenge. Be playful in exploring possible connections and let your mind go, suspend disbelief. Something unexpected and highly useful often arises from forced connections.

7. Final ideation first aid tip: Slow Down. You can’t be very creative when full of anxiety. Be thoughtful, deliberate, focused, and playful with your ideation -- without rushing. Rushing and hurry will put your mind right back into panic or urge mode and nobody works very well in that state of mind. As Napoleon once said to his valet: “Dress me slowly, I’m in a hurry.” When you rush you make mistakes that ultimately waste even more time. Grace under pressure is a hallmark of great leaders – and of great creative people.

Best of luck!

Starbucks - No Longer Innovative

In early June I posted under the title, Starbucks Is Dead. In that post I explored how, for me as a consumer, the experience had changed, and I was walking away from my favorite coffee. I expressed some hope that they would return to innovative greatness under the newly resumed leadership of Howard Schultz, the original founder. Well, things have taken a decided turn for the worse; Starbucks posted its first ever loss last week, and announced the closing of over 600 American stores, and nearly all its Australian ones. Don’t Aussies like coffee?

The closings might be a smart move in the long run. Schultz undoubtedly has gotten that advice from the bean counters (no pun intended). Starbucks has grown awful fast, and the stand-up joke about their locations holds some truth, that’s why it’s funny (”did you hear where the new Starbucks is gonna be…in Starbucks”). Former CEO Jim Donald was a bit growth crazy and has been quoted as saying his big mistake was not growing fast enough in the international market — because it would have balanced the USA slowdown. Perhaps, but for me that kind of thinking is exactly what slow-roasted their quality, their biggest asset.

What bothers me, and what I think bodes ill for them moving forward, is that Schultz says “the experience hasn’t changed.” He blames things on the recession which is having people pinch pennies and not buy expensive coffee. I’m sure his market research department is telling him this is true, and, I would say the research is missing something, is asking the wrong questions of consumers. Small indulgences are what people can afford when times are tough, so, blaming the recession doesn’t ring true to me. I suppose Schultz has to say that for the benefit of the street — admitting they’ve lost their way in providing a great coffee experience would send their stock even lower. Still, how about some transparency, how about returning to the style of game that got them to the level of success they enjoyed for so long. That style was all about really great coffee. Believe it or not, you can go into a Starbucks in the afternoon and not be able to get a fresh brewed cup of bold flavored coffee. It is sometimes a special order, which they will do, but hey guys, the reason people go to Starbucks is for Strong Coffee. If I wanted the middle of the road stuff I could go anywhere.

I also question all the closings. Why not get creative about making those shops more profitable? It would be innovative for them to create a new model for site profitability instead of slam dunking the marginal locations in the poop can. All those shuttered stores are a real black eye for their image as a corporate good guy. Even granting the impact of the recession on stores, I don’t believe they’ve done enough to create new profit centers. If they had been more creative in new product development, if they had worked harder at keeping the experience fresh, fun, and enjoyable, they wouldn’t be in the spot they are now.

Starbucks is not going to slash its way back to the top; the way they win is to re-invent the experience, re-create something surprising and cool. The market isn’t going to reward them with a better stock price until they do. Time to wake up and smell the coffee Starbucks — and make it a bold brew — time to start innovating fearlessly.

Visual Post for a Change

Okay, I'm not the greatest cartoonist. I try. Self expression means doing things you aren't so good at sometimes, just for the fun of it. So, by posting this drawing I'm giving you permission.

Greenpeace - Lost in the Fog

I was in Paris over the weekend for a family celebration. While there we made a side trip to the cities primary tourist attraction, the Eiffel Tower.  It was a Sunday morning and we went early to get in line to go up the tower.  My 12 year old step son had never been and was quite excited, and it was fun for Caroline and I, two jaded old-timers, to be with someone getting such a kick out of it.  

While we waited in line a funny thing happened -- Greenpeace activists somehow unfurled a huge yellow anti-nuke banner. For a few precious moments it time, it was perfectly positioned in the middle of a ring of stars newly posted to the tower celebrating France's leadership in the EU.  The French police shut down access to the tower, cleared the area, and removed the banner.  They were playing it safe and I don't blame them, it was the prudent thing to do. However, we were sure disappointed we couldn't go up, and the sideshow was small consolation.

Putting aside the inconvenience factor it had me thinking about creativity and Greenpeace.

Generally speaking, I support Greenpeace.  I've contributed dollars to them in the past.  I won't in the future -- and not because of this protest.  More because what they are doing is simply uncreative, and ineffective in terms of inspiring any innovative change.

It's easy to be against something isn't it?  Creativity requires that you do something positive, advocate real world solutions, not just be against things.  The thinking as to the practicality and safety of nuclear power is an open debate to be sure.  We've been having it for 30 years haven't we? Because of the efforts of many, nuclear power only makes a small contribution to the world's growing energy needs.  I'm no longer sure this is a good thing.  

We're going to run out of fossil fuels someday, that's a fact. That's why it's hard to imagine a future world without nuclear power.  If that's the case, what's the creative solution?  Probably something along the lines of safer nuclear power, better technology for waste handling, and simply very wise usage.  I believe we can solve those problems -- we really need to solve those problems.  Why can't Greenpeace advocate for those things instead of wasting everyone's time with pointless and ineffective demonstrations? 

I say ineffective because the protest did not make television news in the UK.  Not sure if it hit local news in France, it may have, but certainly this was not a Big Story, more a blip on the radar screen.

In my opinion Greenpeace is lost in the fog.  Lost in negativity and not contributing to solutions in the real world.  

I tried to post a comment on their blog (see: Culture Jamming the Eiffel Tower) and two hours after posting my comment it has still not appeared.  I guess Greenpeace isn't very tolerant of any views that diverge from their own. That isn't very creative either is it?  Perhaps this is another way Greenpeace does "culture jamming!"

Creativity Fun-damentals

I just returned from a long weekend in Paris.  I was there doing a keynote at the CREA Universite conference on creativity "fun-damentals."  I've written a book about creative process but it's clear to me that before a process can be highly effective one must practice the fundamentals.  

What are creativity fundamentals?  Simple things really, here is my list from the talk I gave at the conference:

1. Writing things down in a notebook.
   
2. Keeping lists of ideas.
   
3. Regular review of your ideas to add onto lists, rule out some, take action on some.
   
4. Always seeking new stimuli, to be in constant learning mode.
   
5. An open mind that practices deferral of judgment as a way of life.
   
6. To be an instigator of fun in all you do.
   
7. To take risks and learn from failure.
   
8. To have some way to remind yourself of  all the above.
   

Kudos to Crea Universite and Crea France for putting on a wonderful conference. To quote Joni Mitchell, I felt like "a free man in Paris, unfettered and alive."

New Habits Means More Creativity and Innovation

It's great when you find out something you've been preaching for years is, like, actually true.  What I'm blogging about is the idea that new habits, new stimulus, is a great way to enhance your creative capacity.  Usually I talk about it in connection with the concept of Tolerance for Ambiguity. I advise people to not only tolerate ambiguity but to invite it into their life by always trying new things that "stretch" how you view the world and how you think.  I say that this opens doors for ideas to enter your consciousness.  I have evidence that what I say is true of course, and, it...

turns out I'm not the only one saying this.

A great article was just published in the New York Times that gets into the brain physiology that backs up what I advise.  Janet Rae-Dupree has the byline and she interviews authors Dawna Markova and business colleague and fellow author M.J. Ryan.  Markova wrote "The Open Mind" and Ryan wrote "This Year I Will..." -- both of which are going on my Amazon order list today (so much to read, so little time...).  Markova/Ryan make some incisive remarks about USA education, standardized testing, and new habits.  

Turns out new habits help you lose weight -- something I didn't know, but I'm betting my new habit of drinking porter style beer doesn't count.  Still, I can try.

The article closes with a wonderful quote by Markova "You cannot have innovation unless you are willing and able to move through the unknown and go from curiosity to wonder."  Well said Ms. Markova, let me add, AND "take your wonderment, generate some ideas, and get into action."

Last Night at the Lobster

If you want to read a wonderfully tasty, short, and elegant piece of creative fiction, go immediately to Amazon and order Stewart O'Nan's "Last Night at the Lobster."  About every five years or so I read something so well done, so heart felt, that I can't put it down.  This is it, I only wish it had gone on another 100 pages, it totals about 145.  Sometimes the best things are fundamental, and this book proves it.  A simple premise -- a restaurant manager walks through his last day at the Red Lobster, a place he manages with passion and grace.  Corporate is closing him down and the book is infused with melancholy, and yet, it's hopeful as well.  The co-workers and customers aren't characters, they are people you know. Creative writing can be inspirational when it's this good and therefore good for your entire creative self.  Do yourself a favor and read this succulent novella and nourish yourself.

AC Clarke, Sci Fi Writer, Creative Visionary

A brief post to honor and celebrate the life of the late, great, and highly creative, Sir Arthur C. Clarke.  Clarke died yesterday, March 19, 2008 at the age of 90.  

He is best known for his science fiction writing, specifically the short story, The Sentinel, that led to the seminal film "2001:A Space Odyssey." It is not widely known that Clarke was something of an inventor/technologist having articulated the idea that geostationary satellites would be ideal telecommunications relays -- in 1945. To say that this was a good idea -- as it lead to them actually being used in that fashion and also set up the conduit used by cable television services like HBO to distribute content all over the world. Another prediction he made is the building of a space elevator, which he believed will make space shuttles obsolete. Clarke wrote about 34 novels, over 12 short story collections numerous non-fiction articles, and worked on several notable television programs.

"The only way to find the limits of the possible is by going beyond them to the impossible."

Sir Arthur C. Clarke

International Creativity and Innovation Summit -- ACA Singapore

Roving reporter hat on, I sit in a brilliant white bathrobe in the King Copthorne hotel in Singapore, up early, filing this missive about the ACA International Conference 2008, themed Creativity Across Cultures, "Sowing the Creative Seed".

Imagine those newsroom sounds...do do do do....

ACA is the American Creativity Association and you might wonder why an American group is having their annual meeting here in this red dot of an island nation at the tip of the Malaysia peninsula. Until this event, Austin, Texas was their meeting place of choice. The simple answer is they made a gutsy decision to be truly international, and they are aided and abetted in that effort by Singapore Management University (SMU). After 19 years in the USA I believe this signals that the ACA has taken their game to a new level in furthering their mission of promoting personal and professional creativity, innovation, and problem solving. Kudos to the ACA, they walk the talk of applied creativity and innovation, and they are now walking and talking internationally. No other creativity organization is credibly doing the same, I credit the ACA with showing leadership.

Kudo's to the illustrious thinker Kirpal Singh of SMU who had the idea to bring the conference to his homeland over three years ago. It's a testament to ACA that they were creative enough to let that idea live long enough to see the light of day, apparently they really practice the principle of deferred judgement! In one fell swoop Kirpal has helped establish himself and SMU as creativity and innovation thought leaders in this island nation, and perhaps in the entire region.

There is an impressive array of speakers here. Tony Buzan presented twice yesterday and delighted his audience with a sparkling wit and with fresh research on the interplay of memory and creative thinking. Zainul Abidin Rasheed, a Senior Minister with the Singapore Foreign Affairs office made some intelligent and germane remarks about the role of creativity in furthering the economic interests of a nation that has been a tremendous adaptor of new technologies, but not a great inventor of new ones.

I'm speaking Tuesday afternoon on the Fun-damentals of Daily Creative Behavior, sharing my time slot with Kirpal. I'm honored -- should be interesting.

Attendees come from all around the globe, I personally met people from these countries: Russia (Siberia), Iran, New Zealand, Australia, Nigeria, Israel, the USA, Canada, UK, India, Singapore, and a sizable contingent of folks from China. I'm sure I've missed a few but it is delightful to see people of all colors learning more about creativity and innovation together. The CSTC (Creative Leadership Form) held a short meeting here at the ACA and members got some face time with CSTC organizer Ralph Kerle of Australia. For more on the CSTC see:http://www.thecreativeleadershipforum.com/

The mood here is buoyant and it's floating a lot of optimism and, well, creativity! Buzan had the whole group of over 200 memorize in a matter of moments the names and order of the planets going away from the sun by the use of a highly visual story. He talked about the universal language of all humans which is images, imagination, and association.

Tony LeSorti, an American innovation consultant, gave a terrific summary of current innovation best practice. Particularly revealing were his points on the effective behaviors of organizations with a high level of innovation, citing Teresa Amabile of Harvard and Stan Gryskiewicz. I have to wonder what was in the mind of a Viet Nam Veteran returning to the region where he lead soldiers through the jungle as a young man. My guess, he was delighted to be here make a contribution in such a positive way.

Pavan Choudary with the School of Wisdom in India did a session which was very insightful on how to cope with those who lack integrity. His answer for the innocent is to use creative thinking.

My favorite session so far was fairly low key but dramatic in terms of what it revealed about thinking. Sue Woolfe, a published novelist and professor at Sydney University in Australia, talked about the relationship of writing, creativity, and neuroscience. Essentially she advocates a type of writing where one is in a state of "loose construing". She cited the neurological research to back up her theory, but better than that, she had us all writing and creating compelling characters in a very short time period. For me it was a further demonstration of the power of story, and the importance of getting into a relaxed flow when doing any type of creative thinking.

Much more to come before this meeting ends on Friday, it's a pretty amazing array of thought leaders and experts they've assembled from around the globe. It feels like a community.

If you're a corporate innovation manager, or an innovation consultant/practitioner, you would be well served to keep tabs on this conference and attend next year, http://www.amcreativityassoc.org, and if you get to Singapore, you have to try the Chili Crab -- to die for!

Creative Barcelona, Eyes Up, Hands Down

Just returned from a long weekend in Barcelona. To say that I was blown away by the audacious innovation exhibited there would be an understatement. Specifically, I’m referring to the Gaudi architecture, although the whole city is bursting with beauty. Of course I’d heard of Gaudi before the trip and seen pictures in books and such, but seeing the real thing was an eye opener. His unfinished masterpiece the Sacrada Familia church is breathtaking. Impressive also is the vision of the city to continue building something that won’t be finished until 2030. Travel is one of those not-so-secret keys to enhanced creativity isn’t it? You learn to see with new eyes as a result.

Gaudi’s work is deeply inspirational and it supports my belief that innovation is often underscored by a deep spirituality (see my article on Elvis and Einstein http://www.greggfraley.com/elviseroseinstein.html ) and a relationship with nature. It also supports the notion that expertise is not an inhibitor to innovation. There was a flurry of press not long ago, which essentially said that being an expert would close your eyes to new ideas within your own area. I understand that but have always thought that new combinations often result from knowing thoroughly what you can combine. In reading up on Antoni Gaudi I learn that he studied materials and building crafts from a very early age and he never stopped. The reason he could build La Pedrera (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casa_Mil%C3%A0 ), this amazing apartment building, is because he technically knew how to break the existing rules and get away with it. An imaginative architect without Gaudi’s deep knowledge of materials could have never pulled that off.

Gaudi was impressive. Just as impressive was the level of highly professional crooks that roam the streets! My travel partner, who will remain nameless here, had her purse stolen right off the chair she was sitting on. I’ll use the word audacious again and break a long-standing rule not to overuse that word. These guys were good. We were sitting at a bar eating some lovely tapas and were engaged in a great conversation about the soul of business with a British venture capitalist sitting next to us. Her purse was actually under her coat! Enough of it must have been visible to clue them in unfortunately. Suddenly she shouted, “they’ve nicked my purse” and we looked to the doorway and they were already in the wind. While it’s shocking and inconvenient you can’t help but admire the creativity and expertise. The theft required good fact-finding skills, assessment of risk, intuition about value, quick decision making (convergence) and courage. Our bar neighbors commented later that three men were hovering behind us for a few minutes, then, using the classic technique of a distraction, bumped both the neighbor and lightly grazed my partner. At that moment the coat was lifted and the purse snatched. We were too busy talking to notice but my partner became aware fairly quickly, just not fast enough to prevent or catch these bums.

Barcelona is beautiful, dangerous, and a highly creative city in two directions. Go visit to be enchanted by its beauty but for goodness sake keep your bag in front of you and strapped on.

Personal Innovation

I've always struggled with labeling what I do "creativity" although even with my corporate customers it most certainly is creativity. I struggle because I know that many people will immediately dismiss creativity expertise as something that is touchy-feely (or "airy fairy" if you live in the great white north, that is, Canada). People who have looked into it know that creativity is more than just self-expression, and know that it also is problem solving and decision making. My simple mantra is: you can't have innovation without creative thinking!

Creativity to many managers, unfortunately, means "loss of control" and is therefore not a desirable thing. The term "deliberate creativity" is better because it implies some control, some structure, but it sort of takes the fun out of the word creativity doesn't it? And many people, who believe that creativity can't be controlled at all, will say there is no such thing as deliberate creativity!

The word Innovation on the other hand gives business people a warm fuzzy feeling. It means success, it means new markets, it means exciting new products, etc.

Okay, so call it Innovation when it comes to business, but what do you call it when it's about you, your own life, your own challenges? Since about half the world believes they are not creative (even though everyone has that capacity) I'll coin a new phrase and call it "Personal Innovation." Personal Innovation is creativity applied to the challenges of your life, and it implies action, which I like. Innovation of any kind is not in your head, it's an action you take, it's results.

So, Personal Innovation...you heard it here first people.

Creative Integrity

I know a lot of professional creative people, that is, creativity and innovation practitioners, artists, facilitators, consultants, and marketing types. I've noticed something I want to comment on and I suspect this will be controversial. What I want to comment on is a lack of integrity among some creative professionals.

By integrity I mean simply someone who does what they say they will do.

Creative people sometimes get a pass on being reliable. The excuse that is made for them is that they "flaked out" or they were "keeping their options open," or simply made another choice. Making another choice or changing your mind is excusable, and sometimes a creative act in and of itself. On the other hand, there is no excuse for saying one thing and doing another because it is now to your advantage to do something different. I'm really tired of creative people who hide behind the creative stereotype while they know that what they are doing is just plain lying. Okay, maybe sometimes it's not lying outright, but more of an obfuscation, non-responsiveness to avoid difficult issues, or a painful delay in responding to someone. Call it bad manners, poor form -- it's really not right -- and I'm afraid the classic creative types are some of the worst offenders.

On a more positive note on this subject, I heard the story about George Clooney keeping his word and how powerful that was. Actors in Hollywood routinely break contracts when their star is rising and re-negotiate bigger deals. When Clooney found overnight fame on ER everyone expected he would break his contract. Instead, to everyone's surprise, he kept his word, saying simply that a deal was a deal. I understand that because of that he paved the way for many subsequent great deals -- here was a guy you could trust! He's made himself into a real player in Hollywood beyond his role as a leading man actor. Integrity is something you should hold onto because it's the right thing to do, and, when you do the right thing people notice and it becomes a positive spiral. It certainly enabled Clooney to be creative and make some interesting films that would probably otherwise not have been made, Three Kings, and Syriana for example.

Creative people should pay close attention to the promises they make, and should honor their word. Integrity is a powerful creative force all by itself. It creates confidence, good will, and better environments to create within. If you consider yourself a creative person, put aside the option to flake out and keep your word. Let's change the stereotype and make creativity about truth and honesty as well as imagination and self-expression.

Seven More Creative Job Hunting Ideas

A new year is here and with it probably a recession. News of earlier this week -- the unemployment rate in the USA is already rising. Let's not be gloomy, let's get creative and think of new solutions to our job hunting challenges.

I'm going to list seven new ideas below (for 23 more look at my post of last July!) but before you go to my ideas, understand that the power is when you generate your own. Yes, you are creative, and yes, you can have some great ideas to solve your job finding challenges. Get a notebook just for this purpose. Start listing ideas, thoughts, wishes, facts, feelings, and action steps. If you want to know more about how to do this more effectively, read Jack's Notebook, but do this thinking work and you'll thank yourself for it later.

Alright, here are the seven ideas:

1. Look at at newspaper classifieds. I listed in my blog last July the idea of searching the paper for new business start-up's, and articles that give you a notion of what's going on around you. Don't forget the most obvious, the classifieds. With the web having so much, many people are skipping the good old paper. The thing is, many folks doing the hiring aren't all that hip to Craig's list, etc.

2. Put an ad for yourself on your car. Depending on where you go and what you do, your car is seen by hundreds of people, or more, a week. Why not blow up a business card at Fed-Ex Kinko's and put a banner on top that says your looking for a certain situation, like, "Looking for Design Work" or "Available as of 3/1/2008!" or "Qualified X-Ray Tech", and of course have a phone number and/or email address.

3. Create a Facebook Profile. If you don't have a Facebook profile, get one. Job Finding is about exposure and this is a new way to get a lot of exposure. Some employers and recruiters are browsing for specific types of talent. Put your basic data up there, leave out the personal stuff about your dating life, and give people ideas about what you are good at and what you can do for them. Consider also leaving out your birthday and data that can easily be used for identify theft, do protect yourself! Job-hunt.org has good data on how to protect your privacy and a lot of good advice about how to use the web for job hunting.

4. Do a Special Web Page. Do you have your own website? Why not? It can be very inexpensive and there are several easy to use, create your own page, products out there. For a start post your resume and job desires. Register your personal name, i.e. John Smith, with GoDaddy or another domain management site. You should start behaving as if you are a brand. You don't have to be Tony Robbins to have a website with your own name.

5. Do some Buzz marketing. Create word of mouth by handing out a card to pass on to others. State the kind of job you are looking for at the top, have your phone number/email address. Ask people to simply forward the card to someone who might know of, or be in a position to hire you for your target work. Print up a mess of them, and hand them out wherever you go. When out and about state directly that you are job hunting and you are trying an experiment to find work. Ask for the favor of reading the card and passing it on to someone else if they can't help you. Thank them and move on. Some people will wave you off, some will be nice, and some won't. Ignore the negative and keep passing out the cards. Also, stick them up on bulletin boards, and on counters. I found a house sitter in just this way, by picking up a card at a candy shop near my vacation home.

6. Follow the growth. Consider pulling up stakes and going where the jobs are. Where are the jobs? Where economies are growing. How do you tell? One way is to Google search on "growth cities". I found an article that listed the fastest growing towns -- http://www.talkgold.com/forum/r18698-.html. Move to Texas! Three of the fastest growing cities in the USA are there, San Antonio, Houston, and Fort
Worth. Scan the list, find a city that appeals to you (maybe you have friends there, maybe it's close to where you are now, maybe it has unique opportunities in your field, etc.) and start research jobs in that area. It may seem like a big step, but sometimes you have to be Bold to find work, it may require that you Move.

7. Finally, the government employs a lot of people! The Riley Guide has a website to help you find US government jobs, see http://www.rileyguide.com/gov.html.

Best of luck with your job hunting. Let us know how you are doing!

Being Too Successful on Amazon

It's been a good year for Jack's Notebook. I've received about a dozen reviews on Amazon, all five stars with the exception of one four star. I got an email recently saying that it looked unrealistic and that it wasn't kosher to have all your friends do reviews. I do know about half my reviewers, or at least have met them. The other half were unsolicited, so I'm not sure what to do to look better -- encourage a few negative reviews? See:http://www.amazon.com/review/product/0785221662/ref=cm_cr_dp_all_helpful?%5Fencoding=UTF8&coliid=&showViewpoints=1&colid=&sortBy=bySubmissionDateDescending

I heard recently from a couple of non-reviewing readers who've been inspired to do specific things because of Jack's Notebook. One started a chapter of the American Creativity Association in Greenville, North Carolina. Another asked me to generate ideas for Job Finding, which I posted on this blog. That post stimulated a podcast, several emails, and an invitation to talk about my ideas on a Chicago radio show.

Best of luck to everyone in the new year, let's make 2008 a year of creative and innovative solutions, big and small. All the best...

Facing the Christmas Challenge

23 Creative Gift Ideas
© 2007 Gregg Fraley

It’s a challenge we face every year -- what to do about gifts for Christmas. It’s daunting, it’s complex, and something we find hard being inventive about. Panic, procrastination, and yes, fear, get in the way of creative thinking. Some people give up entirely! Don’t buy something awful just to cross someone off your list; there is no heart or creativity in that.

Here’s an approach and some creative ideas to address the Christmas Challenge. It’s not about money, it’s about creative thinking! Many of these suggestions will work for even the most Scroogian of budgets.

First, get out of panic model. Decide to think creatively. Start by writing down some facts and feelings you have about each person on your list. Keep a little notebook for your creative thinking. Jam ideas at every odd moment of the day, look to those facts and feelings for inspiration. If you stay after your personal brainstorming for a few days, you’ll get breakthrough ideas. Finally, take action now on those good ideas and you’ll get through the season without last minute hysteria. Okay, enough with process, here are some gifts for you, 23 creative ideas for gifts, here goes in no particular order:

1. Write Something Personal in a Well-Selected or Hand Made Card. Christmas cards seem to be diminishing as a tradition but why not make a card a very personal and meaningful gift? Don’t just sign your name, write a real note. If you have time, make a card yourself. I have an old friend that makes a simple card every year from plain old white card stock. He hand draws a design in two colored pens -- and it’s beautiful in its simplicity, and I'm charmed by the personal touch. I look forward to seeing his new one every year. In your note be generous with your love, affection, and acknowledge what that person means to you. Share your heart and you’ll touch theirs.

2. Send Pictures. Pictures are personal and make a meaningful gifts. Find, or create, a really good photograph, tailored for your inner circle. I know the web makes it easy to post pictures for sharing, and you can do that (if you do, try www.flickr.com, it’s so easy), but an old-fashioned photograph is something that is treasured. There are a lot of interesting ways to print photographs these days, so print them on canvas or sepia toned paper. It's also easy to get posters, mugs, or blocks made these days. Matting and framing can formalize the gift further.

3. Create a Cool Package of Themed Stuff. Combine several small gifts into a cool package designed around a persons interests. There are some clever combinations out there. For instance, how about a bag of fine coffee beans, ground to your friends’ maker style, with a mug of their favorite sports team (or fine artist, cat, dog, inspirational message…you get the picture) and some chocolates or nuts? Or create a Euro package of olive oils, fancy pasta, and a bottle of good wine. How about a golf package with some balls, tees, and a new glove for your duffer friends? Go back to that facts list in your notebook and create a personalized combination, it shows thoughtfulness, and they’re fun to create and receive.

4. Give Fine Art. Museum Shops are great places to find small gifts with class. Find out the favorite artist of your gifted. A coffee table book or a pack of cool Monet thank you cards are useful and personal gifts. Student art shows are often great places to buy interesting art at low prices. You have to know your target – to some people fine art is what matches their sofa! If that’s the case you need to know the sofa color!

5. Give Art Supplies. An under-rated place to shop for Christmas gifts is a good art supply store. I mean, who couldn’t use a nice fancy pen? For kids there are a lot of new fangled art supplies like Crayola’s Model Magic – a hipper and easier sculpting media than Play Dough. I’ve seen some really cool rubber stamps that are super low price and a lot of fun. For your pilot friend a cool stamp of an old World War I fighter plane is a near perfect small gift. A box of oil pastels and a high quality paper sketchbook with a set of Faber Castell brush style pens (http://www.faber-castell.us/) is an excellent gift for the artist in your life (hear that Mom?).

6. Help Decorate The Tree by buying gifts of Christmas ornaments. It’s rare they come as a gift; people usually get their own. Keep your eye out for ornaments that match the taste of your gifted and you’ll find something very appropriate for the season, and they’ll think of you fondly every year putting them up. Credit my partner Caroline for this one!

7. Christmas Tree Surprise Party, or, Put up a Tree. Wacky idea, but many people don’t have time to do a tree. If you know somebody who would like one but is short on time, sneak into their pad and put one up for them – you might need to be clever to disguise your intent! Get a small tree, a simple set of bulbs, lights, and frosting. Keep it simple and they can add on to your basics, if they get inspired. Imagine finding a tree all done without the hassle. To build on this idea, time it to be there when they arrive so you can have a glass of eggnog or a cocktail. Call it a Christmas Tree Surprise party. My father and I did this once years ago for a friend of the family and they’re still talking about it 40 years later.

8. Make Your Own Ornaments, go back to that art supply or crafts store and pick up some unique supplies and create something highly artistic and individual. Pick up a bunch of used jewelry at a yard sale and bejewel a standard bulb. Pick up pinecones and spray paint em silver! Harvest buckeyes (or conkers) and string them together with fishing line.

9. Donation in Their Name. Many people have everything they need, and in truth, gifts are pouring gravy on potatoes that are already swimming. Charitable Giving in someone’s name is a way to do something meaningful for those who already have a lot. Find out their favorite charity and make a donation in their name. Find or make a nice card and let them know. If you can’t afford to make a donation of money, how about time? Volunteering time to a worthy cause is a double gift – to the charity and to your friend.

10. Create a Quilt for a Sick Child. Another feel good idea that you can do in your own name, or in a friend’s name, is to create and gift a quilt to a child with a life threatening illness. There is an incredibly cool organization called Sewonderful Quilts that will provide you with fabric (very beautiful sample material otherwise destined for the landfill) and instructions. When done, you send the quilt back to Sewonderful who gifts the quilt to a sick child through children’s hospitals. These quilts are deeply appreciated by the children and their families. Go to www.sewonderfulquilts.com for more information.

11. Give Time. Many of our best friends and family pine for our company, and we for theirs. In our fast paced world we rarely spend a generous amount of time with those we love, we parcel it out in small doses and squeeze it between other events in chock-a-block schedules. Why not gift a juicy chunk of time, an afternoon, or a whole day? Wrap up a small box with a clock inside and enclose a note suggesting a day and do something you both like, on you. A ball game, a museum trip, casual shopping, a drive in the country, a long walk or bike trip. Let them decide what and how, or if you’re confident, get it all mapped out and add the element of surprise.

12. Write a poem. A poem about someone you know is a highly personal and special thing, so get out the pen, get reflective, look into your heart and just write it. Don’t worry so much about rhyme schemes, if that works, okay. Do try to avoid clichés. Just be honest about your feelings and you can’t go wrong. One more tip, write about something very specific that you like or find interesting that will focus your poetic efforts. Then, take some care and package your poem well, maybe combine it with candles and a reading by you.

13. Write a List of Acknowledgements. List 10 things you love about somebody. It’s hard to go wrong when you say out loud what you almost never do, but honestly feel. Somebody did this for me 15 years ago and I still have it in my wallet.

14. Gift a Special Meal. And make it special and all about them. Use your imagination and go the distance with favorite types of flowers, wine, deserts, music – everything. Don’t let them lift a finger.

15. Give a Florescent Fish. Many people are really too busy and mobile to enjoy a high maintenance pet like a dog or a cat. On the other hand there are low maintenance pets like goldfish which provide a lot of enjoyment without anywhere near the trouble. Beta fish are beautiful and easy, only need to feed them once a day. Put together a friendly fish package of a small fish bowl, food, fish, and some decorations. For a more interesting bowl, get a really cool modern vase instead of the classic fish bowl. See http://betafacts.com/ for more information.

16. Share Your Favorite Recipes. My mother put together a small booklet last year with her favorite recipes. She used added pictures and stories about our family. It was a lovely gift and I’ve gotten it out several times for the recipes and just to browse through. Put together a faves compilation for a personal gift. You can get as fancy as you want with it, from a stapled sheaf of several you’ve copied or scanned, to a more elaborate booklet like my mother’s. The more love you put into it, the more it will be appreciated.

17. Share Songs. On the low budget end, you could record a song on your computer, using a free audio package like Audacity (see www.audacity.com) and email an MPG file, or, going another way, buy gift certificates to iTunes for your iPod-loving friends and family. iTunes allows you to buy printable gift certificates, which are a great last minute solution. If you’re ahead of the game you can gift either via email or snail mail. The snail mail varieties have those great Apple designs that add some sparkle. See http://www.apple.com/itunes/store/gifts.html. You can even gift a favorite set of songs, a playlist, nice, I’d love to get a cool new playlist for working out, or for long drives. Maybe your loved ones will too.

Or...call a friends voice mail and sing them a special Christmas song. You will be the only one giving that gift this year!

18. Share an Audio book, a Movie, or a Favorite TV Show. Building on the previous idea, iPods playback audio books, movies, and TV shows as well as songs. It’s easy, go to See http://www.apple.com/itunes/store/gifts.html and they’ll tell you specifically how to do it. Amazon is a great alternative as well for books, DVD’s, and other media.

19. Say it with Flowers. We don’t normally think of flowers as a Christmas gift, and yet, why not? There are lots of ways to give flowers, from a hand-cut bouquet from your own garden, or, by ordering from a florist. Poinsettias are always nice at Christmas but don’t rule out a nice potted plant, or even a bonsai. It’s all online, Google flowers and you’ll find all sorts of vendors.

20. Give Fairly. There are several websites out there with unique gifts from craftsman all around the world. They subscribe to basic Fair Trade Practices and provide fair compensation for these creative artisans. Holly Beck at WireTap magazine has 31 Holiday Gift Ideas for the Socially Conscious, including Vegan Watches and Solar-powered lighting. See also these sites: http://www.orenoque.com/handmade-gifts/ and http://www.ourvoicestogether.org

21. Give Your Heritage. For the older folks reading this maybe this is the time to pass along that ring your great grandmother wore to a younger generation, or that hand-carved butcher block your grandfather made himself. You’ll know in your heart if the time is right. The best things to pass on are those that are somewhat symbolic of your family, or have a great story attached to it.

22. Hand Write a Miniature Book. You may have seen those tiny little blank paged notebooks in a stationary or art store. I’ve seen very nice ones sized about two by two inches with a leather cover and a leather tong that wraps around to tie it shut. Buy one, and fill it with whimsical thoughts you are having around the holidays, and thoughts you have about the friendship or love you have with someone. It can be words only, but with some colored pens you can add the occasional page of little drawings of holiday things like trees and stars, hearts, flowers and other fun, loving and gentle images. I have an idea to do one with only one word per page. Just start and let it flow and have fun, use your mistakes and it will be even more charming. I can practically guarantee that you’ll be the first and only giver of a handwritten book.

23. Gift a Historic Tree. Any tree huggers on your list? I ran across a nursery that has trees that are offspring of Apple trees that Johnny Appleseed planted, Oaks from Elvis’s Graceland, or Mark Twain’s boyhood home in Hannibal, Missouri, Walt Disney’s boyhood home, Steven Foster, trees from various presidential estates, and a wide sampling of trees with all kinds of history around them. A tree is a gift that keeps giving for generations, providing shade, fresh air, and beauty. Here’s the site address: www.historictrees.org.