Yes, we are having text as well as video on Lateral Action. Today I begin an introductory series of posts that explain the background to the videos about Lou, Jack and Marla and outline the future direction of he site.

The first post is called Innovate or Die: Why Creativity Is Economic Priority Number One.

The series will run for the next two weeks. I won’t be blogging about the whole series on Wishful Thinking so if you want to know:

• why Lou is screwed
• the problem with creative thinking
• how focusing on productivity can be unproductive
• why you’re an entrepreneur (whether you like it or not)
• how to be creative and effective instead of just ‘busy’
• the secrets of Marla’s success

Then make sure you grab the Lateral Action RSS feed or sign up for updates via e-mail (link on the home page).

The final introductory video from Lateral Action is online now. Find out why Everybody Loves Marla and why she loves what she does.

And if you’re wondering where all these videos are leading, there will be a change of pace on Lateral Action next week… to receive the latest updates as they happen  grab the feed or sign up for e-mail updates - e-mail link on this page.

The next Lateral Action video is online now: Jack’s Smirking Revenge.

Jack doesn’t have Lou’s organisational skills - in fact, his inbox is a bit of a mess - but he does have something Lou doesn’t…

To find out what it is, have a look at the video.  (Some of you may recognise the voiceover artist on this one…)

To get the next video and further updates from Lateral Action make sure you grab the feed or sign up for e-mail updates - e-mail link on this page.

Right, it’s time to unveil the secret project I’ve been working on…  It’s a new website about creativity and productivity called Lateral Action, which I’m creating in partnership with Brian Clark and Tony D. Clark.

The site launches today with the first of three short animated films: Lou Needs a Clue.

As the name suggests, Lateral Action is about combining creative thinking with effective action.

It’s all very well thinking ‘outside the box’ but it doesn’t mean anything unless you make things happen as a result.

And as Lou is finding out, there’s no point being productive unless you are producing something original and valuable.

I’m delighted to be working with Brian and Tony on this project. To many of you they will need no introduction - Brian is the founding editor of the phenomenally successful Copyblogger, which is essential reading for anyone trying to make a living online.  Tony is a man of many talents, whose great cartoons and knowledge of creative business are on display at Success from the Nest.  I’ve learned an enormous amount from both of them, on their blogs and at Teaching Sells, the acclaimed online training programme they launched last year.

To see why I’m so pleased to be working with them, have a look at the launch video.  Brian has written a very sharp and funny script and Tony has performed what I can only describe as visual wizardry to bring it to life.

You’ll be hearing from me on Lateral Action shortly…  In the meanwhile enjoy the first video and  make sure you subscribe to the feed to receive future updates for free.

Following on from the success of my e-book ‘Time Management for Creative People’ (45,000 downloads and counting…) I’ve developed it into a practical seminar which has been going down really well.

Like the e-book, the seminar is designed to help creative professionals deal with the following challenges:

• Struggling to find time and mental space for creative work
• Priorities swamped by day-to-day tasks
• Constant interruptions breaking their creative focus
• Overflowing e-mail inboxes
• Demanding clients expecting instant responses
• Important commitments being lost or forgotten
• Information overload and digital distractions
• Having to deliver more with fewer resources
• Being ‘busy’ instead of creative and effective

Download more details of the seminar  ‘Time Management for Creative People’.

At the moment I’m just offering the seminar to organisations, although I may do some public seminars at some point.

• Creative companies - if you are interested in booking the seminar for your creative team(s) please contact me for a no-obligation confidential discussion about your needs.
• Small agencies - if you think your people would benefit from the seminar, you might like to share costs by booking it in partnership with one or two other small companies. With the right mix of people this could also be a valuable opportunity for creative cross-fertilisation. Let me know if you’re interested in exploring this idea.
• Freelancers - I’m afraid I’m not offering the seminar to individuals right now but if you’d like to be informed if/when this happens, please let me know. N.B. you will not be added to any general mailing lists - just the list of people who want to know about this seminar.

(In case you were wondering, this is not the secret project I’ve been hinting about - all will be revealed very shortly…)

Do you work in the UK creative industries? Would you like to broaden your creative and cultural experience by working for a creative business in another country - maybe even on another continent?

If so, check out the British Council’s International Placements for Creative Entrepreneurs, a scheme that offers the chance to work in a creative business abroad for three months. If you like what you see then download and complete the application form - but don’t hang around, the deadline for applications is 19th September.

I learned about the International Placements scheme recently when I was invited by Kat McMann to listen to a group of returning creative entrepreneurs recount their experiences of living and working in Singapore, South Africa, Nigeria and the Netherlands. They all seemed to have gained a lot from their placements - personally, professionally and creatively. If I didn’t have so many irons in the fire right now I would be tempted to apply myself.

More details, including an application pack and application form are available on the Cultural Leadership Programme website.

If you are successful in landing a placement please let me know - maybe you would like to tell Wishful Thinking readers about it on your return…

I’m off to Birmingham this weekend to meet up with other bloggers at WordCamp UK. It’s based around WordPress but I’m sure they’ll let you in if you use a different blogging platform.

It should be a great opportunity to meet other bloggers in ‘real life’ as well as learning from the presentations. I’m particularly looking forward to hearing Chris Garrett talking about ‘Making a living from your blog’ - a subject close to my heart.

There are still tickets left - let me know if you’re coming, it would be great to see you there.

I’m the latest poet to appear on Poetcasting, an innovative site featuring recordings of contemporary poets reading their work. Visit Poetcasting to hear me read four of my poems.

Thanks to Alex Pryce for featuring me and for creating such a great resource. She has assembled a great collection of poets and I’m proud to take my place among them.

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Did I mention I’m working on a new project for you? It’s all very hush hush for now, but I can tell you it will be in partnership with one or two other people you may have heard of.

If you like Wishful Thinking I think you’ll enjoy this…

The best thing about this job is the opportunity to work with talented and inspiring creative people. Some of them have been kind enough to write me client testimonials, which I’ve just added to this site. Many thanks to them for sharing their experience of working with me.

Things have been a bit quiet around here recently. Sorry about that. The good news is I’ve been working on something special for you, which will soon be ready for launch.

Watch this space…

Regular readers of Wishful Thinking will know that I hold the work of Roger von Oech in high esteem. Roger was one of the original sparks behind the creative revolution in business; his books and card decks, and more recently his blog and Ball of Whacks, have brought inspiration to thousands of people worldwide.

Roger’s classic A Whack on the Side of the Head is always the first book on creative thinking I recommend to clients. So when he e-mailed me a few weeks ago to let me know he had prepared a revised 25th Anniversary Edition of A Whack on the Side of the Head, I couldn’t resist asking him for an interview. Roger kindly agreed - you can read his answers to my questions below.

Regarding the book itself - if you haven’t yet read Whack, this is definitely one you should have on your creative bookshelf. It’s a thoroughly good read - funny, challenging, useful, unsettling and inspiring. If you already own a copy, then you’ll be pleased to know the new edition is still recognisably the same book, with all the old favourites still in place - but with new ideas, techniques and ‘Whacks’ added for good measure. My experience of reading the new edition was an enjoyable combination of familiarity and surprise. I was also delighted to see that I make a cameo appearance in the book - in a footnote on p.115 (I won’t spoil the surprise by telling you what it’s about).

1. A Whack on the Side of the Head is a classic. Why is that?

Roger von Oech: Whack is about the ten “Mental Locks” that prevent most people from being more creative. These locks include such beliefs as: “There’s one right answer,” “To err is wrong,” “Don’t be foolish,” Avoid Ambiguity,” and “That’s not my area.” These ideas make sense for a lot of what we do, but when we’re trying to be creative they can get in the way. Most people have an intuitive understanding of these ideas, and so it’s easy for them to think about them.

Whack has a lot of unusual and off-beat stories and anecdotes. It’s got weird drawings that capture our imagination. Also, Whack is an accessible and interactive book. People seem to like that. There are a number of exercises in it. I think that we improve our ability to be creative by using our creativity, not by being lectured at. Whack is also fun. I guess people respond to all of these things.

2. Why change a classic book?

I’ve always considered Whack to be a living book, that is, one I could update and revise over time. This 25th Anniversary Edition is actually the fourth edition I’ve done since it first came out in 1983. The last previous edition, however, was in 1998, and there were a number of insights, exercises, and stories I wanted to add and I’ve gone ahead and done so. I hope that it reaches a new generation of creative people! Read the rest of this entry »