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The imagination survey. Tom Wujec on what inspires us.

 

Tom Wujec is doing some very inspirational work in creativity and visual collaboration. 

Wujec has been a thought leader in the emerging practice of using images, sketches and data-driven infographics to help businesses solve complex problems.

The adage "you can't manage what you can't measure" can be easily amended to "you can't manage what you can't visualize."

When his book Return On Imagination (co-authored with Sandra Muscat) came out a nearly a decade ago, it inspired me to try a little alchemy -- to transform data and words into graphics that enriched and communicated the ideas on a more visual and intuitive level.

Here is an example of the visualization of a survey Wujec and Muscat did asking individuals what factors encouraged their personal imagination.

 

The use of visual relativity reveals which factors truly had impact. 

Time. Conversation. Freedom. Meditation. And reading were the factors most frequently mentioned in the survey. 

In text or even in a prioritized list, these factors would appear equal in how our brain perceives the information.

So, looking at the graphic, compare the reality of what you’re doing with the big five.

Are you taking the time to disconnect from the day to day or from business as usual?

Are you having conversations beyond your inner circle and among different silos?

Are you giving yourself freedom to think the unthinkable?  What freedom do you really have within your job or organization?

Another big question is whether or not your organization is organizing information in ways that inspire comprehension and interaction?  If not, why?

The Business Innovation Factory (BIF) in Providence is doing some remarkable mapping for information for health care and education.   The result is that people are seeing the same information with fresh eyes.

http://www.businessinnovationfactory.com/

Posted on Wednesday, June 30, 2010 at 04:37PM by Registered CommenterCreativity Central | CommentsPost a Comment | References19 References

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