possibility…

Facing challenges at work or elsewhere in your life? You’re in good company. Personally, my response is to put my head down and to try to work harder… or at least work longer. For me, this is “playing it safe” rather than boldly initiating change. So far, this strategy hasn’t been as successful as I’d [...]

According to research at Cornell University, “Many older adults experience decline in mental processes. But this need not be a handicap, because they largely can compensate by relying more on their strong emotional functioning, which doesn’t decline with age.” Joseph Mikels, a psychologist at Cornell, says emotional skills may compensate for short-comings in memory and [...]

According to Christina Shalley, professor of organizational behaviour at Georgia Tech and Jill Perry-Smith, assistant professor of organization and management at Emory University, relationships outside of the workplace can increase team creativity.
Shalley and Perry-Smith write: “Specifically, we propose that diverse personal ties outside of the team shape and strengthen individual team member’s creative muscle, and [...]

One of the most powerful creative thinking strategies I’ve found involves assumptions. While this technique sounds simple and requires no more than some quiet time to think and a pen and paper, it is deceptively difficult. I first began to consider reversing assumptions as a strategy after reading Michael Michalko’s book, Thinkertoys: A Handbook of [...]

Photo: Judith Broug
www.missyredboots.com
How do you peel a sugar mandarin? You know those teeny minature mandarin oranges that are full of amazing flavour. I was reminded of this week’s change-ability tip when I watched my partner break open a sugar mandarin and then simply peel the skin off the two halves–no fuss, no muss. [...]

Photo: Kevin Connors
We’re approaching mid-January and I’ve been thinking of that old Greek philosopher, Heraclitus. It’s hard to imagine that way back in his day (he lived from 540 BC – 480 BC), things were unsettled enough to prompt his famous quote: “Nothing endures but change.” But when you think about it, Heraclitus and [...]

Happy New Year everyone! I think it’s telling that my last blog post was called “Do you know about inertia?” and was posted way back in September. Today is the first day of a new year and I’m resolving to wrestle inertia to the ground this year … or at least to look it in [...]