Zing!

Zing! Is about going to the edge rather than staying stuck in the middle. It’s about exploring freedom and embracing life. This all sounds rather poetic and idealistic, but the truth is that we have all stumbled upon the day in which ideas just don’t seem to flow. There is no perfect mechanism by which we can be creative, no series of steps to follow, but there can be a series of inspirations or starting points by which we can break free from a stale period or problem.

Sam Harrison breaks-up the creative process, or the way in which we approach the coming up with ideas, in 5 steps:

Explore: observe and research
Ask questions, absorb ideas, play 50 questions with your project, visit new places, produce strange questions (i.e., what would nature do?), see sideways, think micro/macro, do it all and then when it is time to stop, stop.

Freedom: brainstorm and visualize
Squeeze and release. Generate lots of ideas, skip the fears and doubts, just generate ideas by the load. Connect the thoughts. Connect the ideas.

Comma: pause and detach
This is when you need to detach for a while, and let the subconscious zing while the conscious mind detaches.

Embrace: edit and select
Edit. Edit. Edit. Be a ruthless judge.

Life: prototype and implement
Breath life in your best idea(s). Plot out your presentation, know and pick your battles, be enthusiastic and believe in your ideas.

In the five chapters you will find, in an energetic style, anecdotes and famous quotes, inspirational messages and small discussions. You will also find brainstorming tools, action steps, list samples and a few exercises that will help the creative juices flow. The book is written in a way that allows the reader to jump right in and read it cover to cover, a few pages at a time, or skipping pages to what is needed right there and then.

See also: www.zingmagazine.com for more zingy stuff.