What is creativity?

We are honored to have recently published Michael Cohen's manifesto, Educated by Design. The summary penned on the back of the book beautifully describes a possible answer for the above question.

"Creativity is about seeing the world differently. It's about coming up with unconventional ways to express ideas and solve "impossible" problems. Creativity is within reach for everyone. Yes. Even you."

So, how do we cultivate and condition our creative capacity?

Everyone has creative potential. For many it lies dormant and untapped simply because it isn’t given a chance to be revealed. Creativity is more than a talent or expression, it is the way one looks at the world, communicates ideas, and solves problems. While art and music can stir the soul, and satiate the eye and ear, it is nothing more than an expression of creativity. I felt it was important for the world of education to be given a book that would set out to concretize one of the biggest buzzwords in education, creativity. The inspiration behind this book encapsulates my own experiences in high school, my struggles in art school, and my experiences in the design industry that ultimately led to my entrance into the world of education. As a classroom teacher, adjunct professor, director and administrator, I constantly reflected on how I was improving the world of education for both my students in person and through the content I created and shared on social media. I saw incredible work happening across the country both in person and on social feeds, and felt that I needed to refine and capture the creative process that I seemingly took for granted and that many seemed to admire. So in October of 2017 I took a risk and shared a manuscript with Dave and Shelley Burgess.

Beyond the tweets, posts, and blogs, sharing this manuscript was something that made me feel vulnerable and anxious. Who was I to write another book about creativity? Even this question was not my own, but one from one of my distant mentors, Dr. Tina Seelig at Stanford. I struggled to identify and document the steps, stages, or whatever those pit stops on the creative journey really were, and how you would know when you got there. Once we got there would we know how we built creative capacity? That is the journey of Educated By Design. The principles laid out in this book focus on how to develop a proper mindset that allows readers and those they mentor to act , sustain, and nurture great ideas into something meaningful. The Educated By Design principles are:

1. How to develop a creative mindset
2. How failure is part of the creative process
3. The importance of empathy in problem solving
4. Collaboration being a prerequisite for innovation
5. How to act on ideas
6. The role of technology as a tool
7. Not waiting for permission
8. Engaging in hands on experiences
9. Putting your soul into it
10. Staying humble

These principles stand on their own, and many before me have dedicated their work to them. What is unique is how the ten principles were curated and the way in which I weave the creative journey into them. The book shares stories, activities, and experiences in my journey as a designer, business owner, and educator. The book guides you through each principle with the goal of building meaningful discussions and experiences that can be purposefully reflected upon. This allows them to internalize each principle so that it can become an asset to them as a collective or alone in their quest to solve interesting problems. Whether it is how to overcome a failing grade, solve an issue in their community, or develop a prototype to help others around the world, these principles will most certainly have a role in their success both today and tomorrow. 

Thank you, Michael, for allowing us to visualize our creative journey and cultivate our creative capacity.  

If you haven't seen this book, do yourself a favor and click the link below. Scroll down to the large cover and click "Free Preview." You will not be disappointed. Not only is the content rich and meaningful but the hand-drawn sketches contained within are mind-blowing. Check it out for yourself.