Creative Emergence Newsletter
November 2011
In This Issue
Conference Re-cap
Mountain Retreat
CreativiTweet Links
CreativiTweet Musings
Our Services

Hi everyone! The 2011 Creativity in Business Conference was awesome! So many generous people came together to make it a life-giving event. I still feel overflowing with gratitude. See the articles below for more on that, along with links to blog posts about the day and other things juicy.

This year was filled with los of generative events for CCE - huge gratitude for sure. Next year, I look forward to moving into product development around core creative emergence principles and practices. More on that soon. Happy Thanksgiving!

Warmly,

Michelle 

Creativity in Business Conference Re-cap

I am so delighted that the sold-out Creativity in Business Conference struck such a positive cord in those who attended. I think this participant feedback reflects what a juicy, alive day it was. Everyone really stepped up, took risks, pushed their edges, had fun and engaged fully. Thanks to amazing and artful photographer, Alexander Morozov of Photography by Alexander, we have some great pictures of the event.

  

The day kicked off with introducing the Principles of Creative Engagement for the conference: Yes-And, Make everyone else look good (both from improv theater), Creativity in Messy and Have fun! Participants were invited to leave with more questions than answers, and use the day to intentionally explore their passion, aliveness and curiosity...and applicability of what they learn into their work and business.

  

At any given time, participants had 4 options - 3 breakout sessions or a panel - for that time period of 75 minutes. The 12 breakout sessions were rich in both innovative content and creative experience - for many they were transformational. They each engaged different aspects of whole brain integration, including storytelling, improv, embodiment or visual thinking. Tweeting was not encouraged during the breakout sessions (nor was having laptops) so participants could be immersed in the full-on experience of the session. These were not sessions for sitting back, taking notes and reporting out...each session was about discovery by undistracted engagement in real time, trying new things, engaging the whole brain and the body. Low on recording, high on presence and engaging.

  

The morning began with breakout sessions from Corey
Michael Blake on Breathing Life into
Improvisational Storyteller session 
Your Story
, Kat Koppett on The Improvisational Storyteller and Bill Smith, PhD on Your Creative Power followed by Gregg Fraley on Holistic Innovation, James Jorasch on Hacking the Hippocampus and Cathy Salit on Performance of a Lifetime. The afternoon included sessions by Dr. Win Wenger on Creative Solution Finding, Carol Sanford on Whole Systems Creative Change and Jack Ricchiuto on The Power of Narrative followed by Sean Kelly on Visual Brainstorming, Leilani Henry on Movement Anthropology, and Michael Margolis on Reinventing Your Bio as a Story.

  

Social Media & Creativity Panel 
The 4 panels were thought-provoking and audience-interactive. There was no distancing 4th wall between expert and participants - anyone could contribute. Awesome Graphic Recorder, Diane Cline of Over the Horizon Consulting, was capturing the juicy content from the 4 panels - click on the panel links to see the detailed graphic recordings of that panel. The Creative Leadership Panel included John Hagel, Robert Richman, Annalie Killian and Rita King. The Creative Work Cultures Panel included Carol Sanford, Steve Dahlberg, Kristi Faulkner and John Hagel. 
 The Social Media & Creativity Panel included DC-based 'tech titans' Jesse Thomas, Peter LaMotte, Shashi Bellamkonda, Maxine Teller and Jen Consalvo. And the Emergence & CoCreation Panel - which I had fun moderating - included Peggy Holman, George Por, Bill Smith and Jack Ricchiuto.

  

The Storytelling Plenary Session was ripe with compelling stories from pioneers John
Closing Session 
Hagel, James Jorasch, Rita King and Annalie Killian, each of whom shared their personal creativity in business journeys which made them meaningful and accessible. You can see the themes that emerged from their stories captured in Diane's graphic recording here.

  

I facilitated the Nonverbal Creativity Closing Session accompanied by musician extraordinaire, Anthony Hyatt of Moving Beauty, who masterfully put to music participants non-verbal expressions of the day. Each group of 8 produced a moving sculpture that was magnificent to behold - both visually and energetically. The music fed off of them and they fed off the music in a lovely feedback loop.  

  

The day ended with an incredibly fun and frolicky Improv-Imagination Festival led by top-notch improvisers Kat Koppett and Cathy Salit from New York. Imagination, Play, and Improvisation were the main themes of the Festival - and that is what people did! Not just watching from the sidelines, participants were the creative action.

Afterwards, there was time to connect over savory hors d'oeuvres provided by incredible caterer and cook, Leigh DuWolf, and Patrice Bolton Corbin.

  

The Thankfulfor display - created and curated by Jen Consalvo of Tech Cocktail - was in full force, with
Jen Consalvo with Thankfulfor display 
participants posting what they were thankful for at any given moment throughout the day. With 160 people in "gratitude energy" a wonderful appreciative field was created. To keep the good juju going, you can go to Thankfulfor.com.

Soundscape Designer/DJ
Rasul Sha'ir, President of Cnvrgnc, kept the music flowing to add to the creative atmosphere - loved his
diverse and eclectic mix! 

The Conference Team, led impeccably by Tya Bolton of Exceptional Business Solutions, was amazing at helping everything run smoothly. Huge thanks to Tya and the entire conference team!

Conference Links 


> What people are saying here
> Pictures are here
> Blog Posts by Corey Blake, Melanie Sklarz, Patrick Ross, Shashi Bellamkonda
   and Annalie Killian are here
> Social Media
    - Conference Facebook Page
    - Twitter group list (let me know if you want to be added)
    - Hashtag: #cibc11
> Participant list is on the eventbrite page. If your twitter name is not on there
   and you want it included, email me.   


Recommendations


After seeing them in action - and experiencing the awesome results - both at the 2009 conference and this one, I highly recommend Alexander Morozov of Photography by Alexander for your photography needs; Diane Cline of Over the Horizon Consulting for graphic recording; Roger Telshow of Ecoprint - a pioneer in environmentally conscious printing; Timothy Flatt of Timothy Flatt Studio for graphic design (he did the conference logo and brochure); and Tya Bolton of Exceptional Business Solutions for business administrative support - from virtual assisting to event support and more. They are all totally professional, warm, all-around good people who are also easy to with with. :-) Thanks, also to CDIA for providing a wonderfully creative venue for our creative event. And thanks to our sponsor, Kwikpoint (visual language translators), who is a leader in using visual communications to bridge cultural gaps and save lives. You all rock! 

Post-Conference Presenter Retreat at Kayser Ridge
After the conference, several of the presenters enjoyed some down time at Kayser Ridge, located on 20 acres of wilderness in the stunningly beautiful Shenandoah Mountains in West Virginia. We were fortunate to be there during the peak foliage week and it was breathtaking. It also so happened that were there to behold the fluke occurance of the Northern Lights in the night sky. Wow! That "never" happens in this area so it took us a while to process what it was. This is what it looked like. Seemed like a perfect way to cap off a wonderful time of creating and connecting. Huge thanks to our gracious host Cliff Kayser, creator of Kayser Ridge, for providing the most perfect atmosphere - along with great food! - to commune and unwind.  

CreativiTweet Links    

Every issue I include some of my recently tweeted links - articles, videos, and other creativity-related links of interest. I hope you find something of value within them. Come join me on Twitter anytime at @CreatvEmergence  


1.
   8 Secrets To Creative Thinking | Co. Design: http://bit.ly/vmaFDm
2.   The One Question to Ask - Are Your Having Fun? by Gregg Fraley: http://bit.ly/rORw74 
3.   Social innovators and design thinking | McKinsey & Company: http://bit.ly/uEXgFM 
4.   Stillpower: The True Path to Flow, Clarity, and Responsiveness: http://bit.ly/vjUXfb 
5.   Creating Soclal Change Through Laughter, Play and Celebration: http://bit.ly/sUjkJ9 
6.   How to Create and Tell Great Stories that Sell: http://bit.ly/n7iVyc 
7.   Biomimicry: Biz Solves Problems by Looking to Nature: http://bit.ly/n5SDwq 
8.   Answers and Inspiration in your Dreams | SciAm: http://bit.ly/ruDG19
9.   Radical Connectedness and the Evolution of Business: http://bit.ly/uFTe7h 
10. Intentional Environments: Designing a Culture of Co-Creation: http://bit.ly/r00Kix 

CreativiTweet Musings 

Every issue I also include some of my own musings in 140 characters or less. These are some of my recently tweeted thoughts about creativity and emergence:  

 

1.  There are as many ways to engage the unknown as there are to  
     create...more fun when not limited to left-brain only   

2.  Nature thinks in terms of life-creating more than problem solving -
     generative thinking!
3.  1 cure 4 fear of mistakes is improv theater. Improvisers "mess up" publicly all the
     time...becomes no big deal.
4.  When diverging in the creative process --> But: blocks. Yes: accepts. Yes-and: generates
5.  We can buy into drama of what's happening around us or we can create a new foundation
     for something new to emerge - our choice.
6.  By adding "...or not." to the end of every statement we currently hold true, we open up to
     new possibilities.
7.  Emergence...disparate threads weaving together to create themselves into a new 
     coherent tapestry.
8.  We can view disruption as an insult to what is, or an invitation to create what can be
     - our choice.
9.  If you're totally "fearless" chances are you haven't bumped up against your creative
     edges yet. Feel the fear...and create it anyway.
10. The difference between the unknown which leads to confusion and the unknown
      which leads to emergence is intention with creativity.
11. Aliveness does not have a shelf life.
12. Saying "Creativity includes..." is more accurate than saying "Creativity is..."
     No matter how much we define it, it's always larger. :-) 

Our Services

The Center for Creative Emergence is a creativity consulting, facilitating and coaching company dedicated to integrating inspired creativity, meaning, organizational culture and business for a happier and more productive work life and a richer bottom line. We cultivate breakthroughs and emergence with entrepreneurs, teams, and organizations. CEO Michelle James has a mission to engage people into their full humanness via whole-brain (and body) creative process for innovative work, positive social change and consciously creating a generative, life-giving future.

Our Services include creativity and emergence coaching and facilitating, whole-brain corporate and public workshops, conference presentations, creativity events and Quantum Leap Business Improv

Coaching Clients
include Entrepreneurs who want to discover their calling, develop their signature approach, products and services, or create their new future story; Leaders who want to draw out and focus the creativity of their work force; Pioneers who are forging new territory or creating new models; Facilitators who want to create new programs or workshops; Business Partners and Teams who want to co-create or establish a creative work culture. 

Organizational Clients
have included Panasonic, Deloitte, Microsoft, GEICO, RAPP, Kaiser Permanente, Inova Health System, Teach for America, Hands On Network, Cable & Wireless, National Institutes of Health, The World Bank, Invest Northern Ireland, Service Employee International Union, American University, Search for Common Ground, Center for Nonprofit Advancement, Teach for America and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration among others.

Blog: is The Fertile Unknown at www.creativeemergence.typepad.com.
Web:  www.creativeemergence.com  
Conference
: www.creativity-conference.com
Twitter: CreatvEmergence 
Facebook:
Michelle James
Email:
 [email protected] 
Phone:
703-760-9009