Think Inside The Box
Blog URL www.johnarmato.com/blog
Located Sacramento, California USA
Tags creativity, ideas, thinking, writing, brainstorm, innovation, marketing
Essays on the creative process, communications and a life of ideas
Latest Blog Posts
- The Monkeys, the Mule and the Muse on May 4, 2009 in Writing Thinking Reading and Books Creativity
I HAVE MONKEYS IN MY HEAD. At least that’s what I’ve come to call the voices of self-doubt and anxiety that pester me, and I suppose everyone to some degree. Mine are particularly chatty when I’m trying to create. “You’r...
- Music in the time of Malaise on Apr 16, 2009 in Music Creativity New York
PEOPLE JUST WANT TO FEEL GOOD. Maybe that’s as basic an explanation as you need for why so many creative people produce paintings, sculptures, dances, plays, photographs, songs and more. These things have the ability to make us feel good. That can...
- A Tiny Way to Make a Big Point on Apr 14, 2009 in Creativity
IN MY “THINK INSIDE THE BOX” creativity training sessions I frequently talk about a variety of techniques for posing questions that generate focused but productive brainstorms. One of these techniques is “Dramatize and Showcase.R...
- Can’t Beat Imagination with a Stick on Nov 8, 2008 in Thinking Creativity
THREE YEARS AGO IT WAS THE CARDBOARD BOX. THURSDAY IT WAS THE STICK. And I was glad to hear it. The National Toy Hall of Fame inducted the stick into its showcase of classic toys this week. Media around the world ran the news. Curator Christopher Ben...
- What’s the Small Idea? on May 17, 2008 in Thinking Creativity
NOT ONCE IN MY 20 YEARS IN COMMUNICATIONS has a client ever asked me to come up with a small idea. I can count on every briefing or brainstorm to exhort me to deliver a “big idea.” It can be exasperating, partly because it’s such a...
- What’s the Meaning of This? on May 10, 2008 in Thinking Creativity
MATH IS NOT MY FRIEND. It is at best an acquaintance, at worst a nemsis, and nearly always an awkward guest in my home. We sit across the room from each other, nervously crossing and uncrossing our legs, searching for something in common to talk ab...
- Absurdity: Steve Leveen’s Doorway to Innovation on Dec 1, 2007 in Thinking Creativity
FIRST IN A SERIES A Guest Essay by Steve Leveen, CEO and Co-Founder of Levenger WHEN THINKING ABOUT HOW PRODUCTS MIGHT BE DIFFERENT I like to imagine absurdities. I like to imagine the worst way to solve a problem. Imagine something you know couldn...
