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Author: David_Marshall, Contributing Editor
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| KEY ELEMENTS OF THE CREATIVE PROCESS
I want to take a short break here and discuss the creative process before we move forward in this workbook. While it is important to identify what your own Ultimate Result is and the outcomes that will lead to that result it is equally important to think about what you want for your own personal creative results. Project Outcomes What is it that you want your project and/or audience to know, think, believe, value, achieve, or be able to do - The Ultimate Result of the project that you want to personally achieve? Project Purpose Strategies that you will use to achieve or improve your project outcomes, including process, assessment, and support systems. For example, maybe you want to interview key people early on to get an understanding of what is important to them. Perhaps you want to take them through a “creative process” of your own similar to this one which will serve to inspire and build enthusiasm in your client as well as yourself. (Utilize questionnaire at end of this section). Project Action Plan Resources you have to work with including, support, equipment, and budget. Since many actions will be relatively fixed, they will influence the set of practices that are appropriate and the outcomes that are achievable in the short term. Model of the Creative Process The above model illustrates several relationships, between 1) Outcomes, 2) Why, and 3) How. Your purpose directly affects the project outcomes. For example, in order to create and improve your ability to empathize, you might place more challenging expectations so that you are exposed to people and cultures outside your comfort zone. Your Actions affect your project outcomes by influencing the outcomes that are achievable. For example, you may be a highly talented and gifted artist but you might exhibit low achievement because you have low levels of results and outcomes. Why? Getting emotionally attached to your outcomes is the key. The more compelling why you have to do something the higher the likelihood you have of achieving it. Attaining high standards may be more of a challenge for you and may require stronger input and improvement strategies. This process can help you help yourself. Understanding why and getting yourself fully associated to your whys is more important than what you want. |
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| Examples of Project Outcomes
What you want people to feel, know, think, believe, value, achieve, or be able to do after viewing or experiencing your project. Information on project outcomes helps answer the question: How are you performing? 1. Self knowledge - Know yourself 2. Creativity development • Self-confidence/self esteem • Motivation • Self-discipline • Interpersonal skills • Physical well-being and health • Inspirational resources 3. Civic competence • Personal values/personal beliefs • Global perspective – how you view the world • Appreciation of cultural heritage • Appreciation of cultural diversity 4. Preparing for your own expectations • Ability to apply creativity to your projects challenges • Skillset literacy After reviewing the examples provided above, consider the following for Your Ultimate Result Action Plan 1. What project outcomes do you think are most important for your desired result? 2. What actions do you think are most important for your outcomes? Ex. interviews, assessment, brainstorming, etc. 1.1 Identifying Specific Outcomes, Why and How This exercise will help you identify specific Outcomes and related How’s for your Brainstorming exercise that you completed in Step 1. Complete this exercise for each outcome. 1. If you have several outcomes, work on them in order of their priority. Write down the outcome you are currently working on. 2. Discuss the specific purpose (why) that is implied by your outcomes, and then record them. 3. Discuss the most important actions (how) that are related to specific outcomes. Which actions will help you achieve your outcomes? What outcomes are likely to influence the actions that are appropriate and achievable in the short term? 4. Repeat this exercise for each outcome you have identified. Example: Ultimate Outcome/Result:_____________________________________________ Outcomes (Be as specific as possible)____________________________________ Why: (Why do you want to do this) ____________________________________________________________ How: (What steps must you take? Be as specific as possible) _____________________________________________________________ 1.2 Evaluating Your Outcomes, Why and How This exercise will help you evaluate whether the relationships you identified in exercise 2.1 are strong enough to carry you to success. Complete this exercise for each outcome. Review the following questions and note any revisions you would like to make to your set of related Outcomes, Why and How. 1.If you have several outcomes, work on them in order of their priority. Write down the outcomes you are currently working on Outcome:_________________________________________________________ 2. Can you be more specific in describing the actions that are implied by your outcome? ________________________________________________________________________ 3. Are you sure that the project outcomes you have identified will help you improve or achieve your Ultimate Result? Which of your identified actions are most strongly linked to your outcomes? ________________________________________________________________________ 4. Which of your identified outcomes, why’s and how’s are valued or emphasized most by your project? Which ones would your audience be most interested in knowing something about? ________________________________________________________________________ 5.Are there any outcomes or actions that are receiving attention by your project-because they are recognized either as a challenge or as a potential solution - and that should be reflected in your work or outcome? ________________________________________________________________________ 1.3 Finalizing Your Related Outcomes, Whys, and How’s This exercise will help you narrow your list of related outcomes and How’s to the most important ones and record them in priority order. Complete this exercise for each outcome. 1. If you have several outcomes, work on them in order of their priority. Write down the outcomes you are currently working on Outcome:_________________________________________________________ 2. Review your notes on worksheet 2.2 eliminate or modify any of the outcomes and how’s you identified in exercise 2.1. Record your final selections in priority order. Specific Project Outcomes ________________________________________________________________________ Related Creative Outcomes: Related How’s: |
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| Step III. COMMIT - time, resources and responsibilities
This exercise will help you figure out how much time you will want to commit to this project. How many hours and minutes you will commit to each action. This is not a schedule, you are only assigning the amount of time to each action not a specific date and time. Look at each action and assign either: 1. Urgent and Important (UI) 2. Urgent but not Important (U not I), or 3. Not Important and not Urgent (Not U not I) The level of success that you experience is directly related to the level of “where” you spend your time. Stress is an addiction to the emotion of urgency. For example, the phone rings and you experience the urgency of having to answer it, even though the conversation your having with your spouse or your child is truly so much more important. “Why can't we all transform challenge into triumph? Lifetime results come from great truta and even greater adveristy” Urgent and Important: In any given project their are those things that cannot be planned for, such as an emergency requesting your attention. Those things become urgent and important and must be dealt with. Although the goal is to anticipate those things that are important before they become urgent so you don’t experience the stress of urgency, it cannot always be planned for. Being proactive and spending time anticipating doing those important things, however, can lessen the amount of time you spend in the area of Urgent and Important. Urgent but not Important: People who spend most of their time in this area are constantly “reacting” and making “to-do” lists of all the things that have to be done. And sometimes, when you think you have a plan, you’re interrupted by the demands of others around you doing things that create a sense of urgency, but are not truly important in terms of achieving the Ultimate Result of the project. Spending time in this area will only lull your senses into believing that you have all these “to-do’s” to accomplish while keeping you from doing the more important and fulfilling actions of the Ultimate Result. Not Important and not Urgent: This is basically and quite literally the area of distraction. This is where we go when we’re stressed and want to do something that requires no thinking. This is the consummate “Dead End.” Here you can guarantee zero accomplishments and where you will feel unfulfilled but not quite unfulfilled enough to do anything about it. “How did we first learn to connect with others? Taught to love and dance, we are finally coached to live.” Creativity is affected by how you feel. Creativity is 80% emotion and 20% skill. My hope is that you think about this whenever you start to feel stressed. Stress comes from feeling like you are out of control. You can always control what things mean to you. IV. SCHEDULE IT - assign dates and times to each action This is it folks. Get out your daily planner and get ready. This is where you assign specific days and times to your How’s. After committing time to action you can realistically schedule the actual day and amount of time you spend on your actions. Hint: 1. Schedule those things that cannot fluctuate. For instance, phone calls, meetings, etc. These actions must occur at a specific hour and day. Schedule those actions first. 2. Next, schedule the times to work on your outcomes. Until you schedule your How items they remain only dreams. Committing scheduled time will give you the drive to make it happen. This will also give the sense of control over your project. Ultimate Result:_________________________________________________________ Regardless of the type of daily planner that you use you need to keep in mind the above format when you are scheduling. |
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| V. REWARD YOURSELF - This is very important, rewarding yourself is critical
It is good to really note your progress at the end of each week and project and ask yourself, “What did I really accomplish that mattered this week? What am I happy about with this project? What were some of my breakthrough moments?” This will help you understand some of your patterns. You will be able to determine whether you had a strong enough purpose (why) to achieve your outcome. Or, maybe you just had more outcomes on your list than were realistic for the week or project. Ensuring the Quality of your Ultimate Result Action Plan It is important to step back and examine your plan with a critical eye. The plan should • Be valid • Be reliable • Be fair • Connecting you to your purpose • Address your creative needs, wants and ideas • Address the project needs If your plan is not valid, reliable, or fair, you will likely make unsound judgements and act in ways that are inappropriate and even detrimental to your Ultimate Result. Additionally, your plan can sometimes create unintended incentives. For example, setting unrealistic outcomes can create pressures to get things done for the sake of getting them done with no real purpose attached to them - this is called “reacting.” In some cases, certain actions can adversely affect the quality of the process and ultimately the end result. For instance, overemphasis on less important actions can delay the progress of the project and ultimately be the cause for missed deadlines and opportunities. Address your creative needs, wants and ideas Your creative needs, wants and ideas are what keep you inspired and motivated. Creativity can feel like a “stroke” of timing and luck which can add tremendous pressure and uncertainty to your creative confidence, particularly if you hold a position where being creative is a daily requirement and expectation of your responsibilities. Creativity is a teachable and measurable process and you can gain control of the creative process by implementing a system like The Ultimate Result Action Plan. The ability to create is already inside of you, you own it and posse it and this process gives you a map to tapping into it on a consistent basis. The key to tapping into your creativity is understanding your purpose and getting fully associated with why you want to achieve your outcomes. To help avoid the “creative block,” you can take the following steps: • As you review your list of outcomes it is easy to feel overwhelmed. Focus on why you are doing things, why you want to achieve these outcomes and take them one at a time. This process will change both your motivation and the quality of your actions. • Think about why you feel creative in the first place. Document the reasons why you were chosen. • Give yourself permission to acknowledge your gifts. |
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| RECAP - Section 1
Step I. Brainstorm Ideas, Wants, and Needs 1. Brainstorm: What needs to get done for this project? What are the most important outcomes, that I need to achieve in order make this project successful? Step II. Ultimate Results Action Plan 2. Must Outcomes: What is the Ultimate Outcome that I need to achieve? What is the RESULT I want to produce? 3. Why do you want to do this? What is your ULTIMATE PURPOSE? To support who or what? What is your real purpose? What will it give you to accomplish this? How will this make you feel? In order to achieve what you want you must have a compelling enough reason why you want it. Without a compelling why you will likely lose interest and give up. This exercise is emotional. Get fully associated with all the emotions associated with why you want it and what will you feel like if you don't achieve this outcome. 4. EMOTIONAL OUTCOMES: What are the EMOITONAL Outcomes I must achieve in order to produce my ULTIMATE EMOTIONAL RESULT? What will it give me to accomplish this? How will it make me feel? CREATE YOUR Ultimate Results Action Plan 5. OUTCOME: What is the first “must” outcome that I must complete in order to achieve my ULTIMATE EMOTIONAL OUTCOME? (take this from the outcomes your created in question 4 - you may refine the language) In order to measure your progress toward achieving what you want, you will need to first clarify the specific outcomes you are interested in measuring and then to identify the most important actions that contribute to them. By identifying specific outcomes and related action steps, you will establish a sound action plan that provides you with a rich source of information for your performance and identifying why you are making progress. This step is taken for each action taken for each outcome you identify. What are the most important emotional outcomes (results) that you need to produce? What emotions do you want to produce? What aspects of the project do you want to begin or complete? What do you want to create for this project? 6. WHY: Why do I want to do this? To support who or what? What’s my REAL PURPOSE? What will I really get out of doing this (emotionally)? How will it make me feel? 7. HOW: How am I specifically going to achieve this result or outcome? Who specifically could I call? What specific action can I take? (i.e. brainstorming, calling, interview, etc.) 8. Creativity is 80% emotion and 20% skil. The same is true of actions. Mark those actions that are absolute musts - 20% of your actions will make 80% of the difference. So be sure that your actions are on target. Make them count. 9. How long will each action take (add up the times to find out how long these actions will take combined. 10. What is the second “must” outcome that I must complete in order to achieve my ULTIMATE OUTCOME? (take this from the outcomes you created in question 4 - you may refine the language) Repeat questions 5-11 until you have exhausted all of the outcomes you must achieve Step III. COMMIT - time, resources and responsibilities 12. When will I commit time to do this which month, week, or day? How many hours (or minutes) do I want to commit, which resources can i utilize Step IV. SCHEDULE IT - Do the time. 13. When is the exact time (month, week, or day) that I will work on this? Schedule this in your daily planner Step V. REWARD YOURSELF 14. What did I accomplish during this project? Did I achieve my most important outcomes? What roles did I fulfill? Who was I this week? (cross off any items that are done and carry over to the next day or week or month those that need to be done.) 15. What did I learn from doing this project? What did I achieve that I am most proud of? 16. Is this project now a way that I can utilize to achieve other goals? |
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