Sorry for the delay this time.
Busy working on the next e-book!
Yours truly,
Amir
In this issue:
(a) New 50 Creative Ideas Service
(b) Creative ideas for...
(c) Creative tool - Role Swap
(d) New on Best100Ideas.com
(e) Recommendation of the month
(a) New Tailored 50 Creative Ideas Service!
Everyone needs creative ideas sometimes. Some may need it for a new product or service, others may wish to to celebrate an occasion or an event in a special way, or even just to break the normal routine.
A new and unique service from Best100Ideas.com now offers you the chance to get 50 Creative Ideas written especially for you for just $1 for an idea!
So if you need to come up with powerful and effective creative ideas in a hurry, simply request this service, and you will get the ideas in up to 7 days!
To learn more about this service and request 50 ideas on any subject check out this page: http://www.best100ideas.com/50ideas-service.shtml.
(b) Creative Ideas for A Special Anniversary
Coming up with ideas to celebrate a special anniversary is no easy task. You could go for the romantic dinner at home or in a restaurant, on the one hand, or throw a big party with friends and family on the other hand. However, if you are looking for ways to celebrate it just the two of you, and would like to make it a meaningful event, here are some suggestions that may help you on your way to that special day. I tried to choose ideas that are more then just a gift idea, yet are easy to produce by yourself, and should not be too hard or expensive to realize.
Hey - if you do get it rolling - make sure you send me a photo to prove it!
- Cherishing past moments: Make a list of several important events that you shared over the time that you are together, and plan how you may "relive" them. This may include moments or events that had a special influence on your relationship, places you've been to, or people you have met. The way to recall them may be through producing a home-made book or movie with your "story" together, planning a game of "treasure hunt" following hints and symbols from the past, or unraveling memoirs from the past in different boxes around the house or the neighborhood.
- A day to combine your favorite activities: Think of the 2 or 3 things that each of you likes to do most on your own, and another 2-3 things that you enjoy doing together. Plan a day during which all of these personal pleasures get answered in some way. For instance, if your favorite things include horse-back riding, Italian food, action movies and classical music, begin the day with a ride in the park, ending in a picnic of Italian dishes, to the sounds of classical music, then head back to see the latest action movie in a local movie theater. Obviously, the nature of this day will differ according to your favorite pastimes so simply think of ways you can combine them together to make an absolutely perfect day.
- First steps towards your dreams: An anniversary is a chance to start something you've dreamt about for a long while. This should make the anniversary not just a celebration of the time you've spent together in the past, but a celebration of the time you are going to spend in tears to come. The best thing may be to do so with a dream that you both share, but you may also add a couple of more dreams that each of you have for yourselves. If the thing your partner is always talking about is learning to play a musical instrument and never gets around to do it - make the first lesson in that day. If you've talked about taking Samba dance lessons for years - go out and make it happen.
(c) Creative Tool: Role Swap
Sometimes the thing that is blocking you from making a breakthrough is the fact that you are looking at things from the same point of view that you have been used to. It may be worth while to break away from that limiting viewpoint and look at things in a whole new way. A technique that may help you do so is "Role Swap". It may not be easy to implement at first, but in time you may learn to use it regularly and almost automatically, and it may prove to be one of your most powerful thinking tools.
Here is an outline for using it. I will use a personal example to make it clearer:
- Understand your point of view: Ask yourself through which "glasses" are you looking at the situation. What are your interests in it, why are you set on certain ways to do things, etc.
Example: A few years ago I built business plan for starting up a company to train workers and managers using board games.
- Identify other points of view: Use a large piece of paper to draw other points of view on the subject. This should include people or groups that are influenced by the subject or that might have a say on it.
Example: I met several potential investors to discuss this idea and examine options for running the project together. I had to face their questions and consideration which proved to be quite different than mine.
- Play the role of another point of view: This is probably the toughest part of the technique. You need to get into the mood and mind set of one of the people you listed on step 2, and to truly represent their interests and considerations. Start by stating the two or three thing which are most important to them, then go on to interpret the situation according to these considerations. If you want to make this stage even more fruitful, try to play the role of more then one person involved.
If you find it difficult at first, you may ask someone to listen to your "role-playing" and give you feedback if you are succeeding in making a true representation of the other side's point of view.
Example: Examining the points of view of the investors, I realized that some parts of my plan were not well thought through. I had to reconsider some of the basic assumptions behind the business. I actually tried to think like the investors - what would I do if someone approached me with the same idea?
- Decide on a practical change to your approach: In order to make the insight you should gain on step 3 more than philosophical adventures, make at least one decision based on what you've learn. Decide to change the way you act on the subject that would be in line with a different point of view. Make sure you give this new approach sufficient time to prove itself and produce new directions and opportunities.
Example: I finally decided to make a more cautious approach to the project. I found a way to test this project as a part of my next job - and tried out how it worked. I found out that some of my calculations were indeed wrong, and that I had to find a different business model if I wanted to make it work.
As I mentioned above, this newsletter came out a bit late because I was busy working on the next 100 Creative Ideas E-book.
Although the project is still in it's initial stages
I do wish to share it with you and receive any feedback you might have on it.
The next 100 Creative Ideas E-book is going to be "100 Creative Team Building Ideas". It will include important aspects and concepts of team building, as well as practical ideas for different team situations.
If you find this subject relevant, please consider writing me an email telling me what you would like this book to solve for you, and what kind of ideas you need for building teams - either as a team member or as its leader.
Send me an email to: info@best100ideas.com.
Thanks,
Amir
The Big Idea is MSNBC's website on Invention and Innovation. It includes special reports on the latest inventions, interesting stories on innovation related activities, and valuable information and links for inventors. I especially like their inventor profiles section, letting you see who are the people behind the breakthroughs of science or the latest gadgets on the market.
If you are looking for a bit of inspiration, this may be a good place to look for it. Try to find the common things in the latest inventions and think of new ideas that are based on similar principles. Read through several inventor profiles and see if you have what it takes to become one. Go through their interactive activities on patents and or quizzes that test your innovation knowledge. Enjoy and good luck!
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