The Sideways Commandments

Some suggested steps to finding personal paths to creativity
(not in any particular order and based on previous sections of this class - we may or may not do the things listed below, but even if we don't you can)
or
The Sideways Commandments

• Take an everyday object and try to do something unusual or surprising with it (the egg)

• Give yourself over to random chance and use what you encounter as a starting point or a direction for creative experimentation (bible dipping)

• Grapple with a huge abstract concept and explore it from different angles (time)

• Ask questions (what if)

• Try to answer a question you did not ask (what if redux)

• Explore how you encounter and interact with the world (senses)

• Work with other people to generate ideas (brainstorming)

• Look to other areas of inquiry outside of your normal realm of experience (what the bleep)

• If you agree or disagree with something, ask yourself why (what the bleep)

• Give yourself some time and freedom to be yourself (bliss)

• Examine what it is that excites or inspires you (inspiration)

• Research someone or something and see what you can incorporate from that into your own work (research project)

• Solve a problem in a different way (red light mental exercise and taking a break in our chairs)

• Explore your motivation and understanding of concepts and ideas (questioning your inspiration)

• Ignore your first idea and try multiple approaches (roadblocks)

• Be willing to compromise (roadblocks)

• Stop just thinking about things or coming up with ideas and go do something. (final project)

• Don’t be afraid to play (take the rest of class and do something fun)

• Share your ideas/successes/failures/musings (blog)

• Exchange ideas (discussions)

• Listen to yourself

• Listen to others

• Explore what is important to you (what moves you)

• Judge ideas by your own measure

• Experience as much as you can

• Question rules

• Humor is not frivolous

• Stop expecting inspiration to come from outside yourself

• Stop expecting someone else to give you all the answers

• Stop being afraid to fail

• Don’t be lazy (too often)

• Give up preconceived notions of how to learn

• Do what works for you

• Don’t disregard creative exploration as unimportant or something you will do “if you find the time”

• Make the time to practice creative thinking

• Set your own goals

• Try to attain

• If someone laughs at you or disregards your idea then smile along with them but keep to your own goals

• Try again

• Build on your successes

• Cherish your failures

• Learn from everything

• Know your motives

• Become friends with your inner (or outward) 5-year-old

• Wonder and wander

• Don’t be too cynical

• If you are cynical don’t be too bitter

• Be proud of your ideas

• Not all ideas or projects are very creative

• Sometimes mediocre is OK

• But don’t settle for mediocre very often

• If you find yourself doing something the same way more than a few times try doing it a different way next time

• Even if you are finished with a project are you sure the project is finished with you