Purposeful Play – From Pamela Meyer

March 16th, 2010 | No Comments

One of the common misconceptions about play is that it is necessarily purposeless, and therefore can’t possibly have any place in business. Harvard scholar and jazz pianist (and mentor) Frank Barrett calls improvised play a form of “disciplined imagination” reminding us that play can also be wildly productive and innovative.
Pamela Meyer wrote a new book, [...]

The Art of Stapling

March 10th, 2010 | No Comments

The next time you pick up your stapler and mindlessly staple a stack of papers together, why don’t you give that stapler a closer examination and really think about your technique?
Are you really as handy and dexterous with its use as you think you are?
Are you ready to go up against Baptiste Debombourg staple for [...]

Buy Inventions: Build on the Genius of Others

March 8th, 2010 | No Comments

Are you always coming up with great ideas or tinkering in your basement developing your next invention but don’t know how to bring them to market? Or are you involved in new product development and are interested in tapping into some great brains who don’t happen to work for your company? Well, IdeaConnection is a [...]

Fill In The Blanks – Fun With Meetings

March 5th, 2010 | No Comments

 
Here’s a very easy and fun way to start a meeting, using the talents in the room to redesign the environment and give it some pizzazz.
 
Assignment: Draw the missing half of a face of a person.
Allotted Time: 5 minutes

Go through a bunch of magazines and cut out interesting photos of people.  Make sure that they [...]

Using Environment to Enhance Meeting Productivity

March 2nd, 2010 | No Comments

Why do people say that they need a change of environment or some fresh air when they feel that they’re getting caught in a rut, a routine, stuck on a problem that they can’t seem to be able to solve?  Because a new environment has the potential to take the mind to a wondrous place [...]

Shoulder Toss Energizer

February 26th, 2010 | No Comments

Here’s a quick energizer game that you can play at your next day-long meeting that helps get the blood flowing again. It’s especially good mid-afternoon, when the after-lunch drowsiness is setting in. The whole point of energizers is to get people moving and laughing, clear the brain a bit. There’s no need to tie it [...]

Play: Electric Slide

February 24th, 2010 | No Comments

A group of Columbia University students have a good time reinventing the playground as a place to harness all that youthful energy.

By: Marc Kristal
Illustrated by: Mike Perry, Jim Stoten
Location: New York, New York
Published in: Dec/Jan 10 Dwell Magazine

For something that’s meant to celebrate the pleasures of childhood, the playground sure has gotten old. The essential [...]

Gain a New Identity and Break the Ice at Your Next Meeting

February 17th, 2010 | No Comments

Sometimes the best ideas can be found in children’s books. For example, you can find a great icebreaker by reading “Captain Underpants And the Perilous Plot Professor Poopypants,” by Dave Pilkey. One part of the story pertains to the evil Professor who forces everyone to assume new names. Now, who couldn’t use a new identity [...]

Interview with Pamela Meyer, author of “From Workplace to Playspace”

February 15th, 2010 | No Comments

Name:
Pamela Meyer
Title of Book:
From Workplace to Playspace: Innovating, Learning and Changing Through Dynamic Engagement
What are some of the main themes of your book?
The main theme of the book is reflected in its title; From Workplace to Playspace is about a shift in mindset. The book focuses on the everyday space we create to foster [...]

Stop Playing with Legos and Put them to Work in the Kitchen

February 12th, 2010 | No Comments

Stop Playing with Legos and Put them to Work in the Kitchen

The next time you run out of ideas of what to build with your Legos and have a few extra hours to kill, why don’t you just turn them into a kitchen island and be the envy of all your friends and neighbors?
Not only [...]