Out of the Box: 101 Ideas for Thinking Creatively

by Rob Eastaway

Break free from the patterns of habitual thinking--and enter a new world of out-of-the-box ideas, imaginative solutions, and creative satisfaction. These 101 techniques will help you find original... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1844834115
• ISBN13: 9781844834112
• Release Date: March 2007
• Publisher: Duncan Baird
• Length: 144 Pages
• Weight: 0.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.1" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

"Out of the Box: 101 Ideas for Thinking Creatively," pages of Aha! moments

In his book, Rob Eastaway writes, "Creativity is about AH!, AHA! And HA! HA!" And so is his lovely little (approximately 5 inches x 6.5 inches) book, big on ideas--101 to be exact. Trying to solve the nine-dot puzzle at the beginning of the book is a concrete example of just how tight the bars and chains on our cerebral cortex can be. Indeed, a few of Eastaway's suggestions will, at very least, help loosen some of the steel. Eastaway first defines creativity. Then he uses examples to illustrate a creative attitude. "Turning whines into problems," for instance, is an exercise that helps fish out the actual problem from the emotional root. He says, for example, to substitute "Why can't they fix that noisy photocopier" into "How can I find out who's responsible for the photocopier." This is a practical and proactive approach. Next, Eastaway shows the reader how to think about a problem, generate ideas, be creative with others and make things happen. About halfway through the book, he adds, "Interlude: the messiness of creativity." This is his out-of-the-box look at the sometimes down side of walking the creative beam. Under the "generating ideas" section, the author incorporates the idea of the "spider diagram"; an old-time favorite technique among teachers (like myself) that delves into the right brain juices by employing a brainstorm session on paper. Most of the problem-solving strategies in the book are by no means revolutionary principles; some, in fact, are so utterly simple, instead of "Aha," it is more like "Duh!" For instance, in illustrating a creative attitude in the form of breaking out of the dieting box, the author recommends stopping the negative, berating (I'm a whale. I always will be a whale.) talk. How? Hide the scales and decorate the cupboards with a few encouraging sticky notes. Elementary, my dear. Too bad that, generally, to change a lifestyle pattern, it takes a bit more than an affirmation or two. Overall, the writing is simple and straightforward. Inexpensively priced, the book would make a good gift for someone in the face of life's little challenges. Too bad the publisher didn't have the wherewithal to create a book cover that was not box-shaped...an oval, perhaps? Now, that out-of-the-box concept would have driven the points that the book makes home. Whether "Out of the Box: 101 Ideas for Thinking Creatively" will be a major life-changing resource, each reader, of course, needs to determine on an individual basis. Magical thinking aside, it does offer some substantial fodder for the noggin's cannon. Stacy Lytwyn Maxwell, Author/Book Reviewer/Teacher CONSUMMATE CONNECTICUT: DAY TRIPS WITH PANACHE