Status
Available
Call number
Collections
Publication
New York, NY : Warner Books, c1983.
Description
Puzzles, anecdotes, exercises, cartoons, questions, quotations, and stories help readers break through mental blocks and unlock the mind for innovative problem solving and creativity.
User reviews
LibraryThing member aethercowboy
This book opened up my eyes to being more creative and thinking in a more creative way. von Oech brings forth a bunch of rules of business that stifle creativity, and one by one, he tears them down and shows how they do more harm than good when trying to be innovative (but hold an important place
Did you know that you're more likely to be creative if you consider yourself creative?
Did you know that the QWERTY keyboard was designed to slow down your typing speed?
Did you know that the Fool of the ruler was put in place to let the king hear something from someone who wasn't a "yes man"?
Applying the knowledge gleaned from this book, you too could be just a bit more creative, and get your process out of the dark ages and into the next century.
Recommended for people who need a little help being creative (though, in the end, the thing that makes one more creative is yourself).
Show More
when it comes to critical systems).Did you know that you're more likely to be creative if you consider yourself creative?
Did you know that the QWERTY keyboard was designed to slow down your typing speed?
Did you know that the Fool of the ruler was put in place to let the king hear something from someone who wasn't a "yes man"?
Applying the knowledge gleaned from this book, you too could be just a bit more creative, and get your process out of the dark ages and into the next century.
Recommended for people who need a little help being creative (though, in the end, the thing that makes one more creative is yourself).
Show Less
LibraryThing member VVilliam
An amazing book about how to become more creative. Roger von Oech is clearly a master of creativity and litters this books with many exciting tales of innovation. I'm definitely going to reread this book and make notes that I can quickly refer back to daily. Highly recommended.
LibraryThing member francie
I must say that intitally this book did not appeal to me. But after conversing with the author, I was forced to take a second look. While it may not be the right book at this stage of my creative development, I will definitely add it to my creative library for future reference. It includes many
Show More
creative exercises and inspiring quotes. Show Less
LibraryThing member RichardHollos
Note: I read the 1990 version of this book.
I learned about this book in the bibliography section of Seth Godin's Linchpin. It's aim is to stimulate you to be more creative. I found it very helpful.
What is the point, you may ask of being creative? Creative people stand out from the crowd, sometimes
What happens if you're not at all interested in being creative? This quote (in the book) from physicist Tom Hirshfield summarizes it well: If you don't ask "Why this?" often enough, somebody will ask "Why you?".
My favorite quotes from this book:
The best way to get a good idea is to get a lot of ideas. (pg 28)
The metaphor is probably the most fertile power possessed by man. (Ortega y Gasset, pg 44)
Some people are so closely married to their ideas that they put them up on a pedestal. It's difficult to be creative when you have that much ego tied up in your idea. (pg 94)
A man's errors are his portals of discovery. (James Joyce, pg 154)
...two benefits of failure. First, if you do fail, you learn what doesn't work. Second, the failure gives you an opportunity to try a new approach. (pg 160)
What concerns me is not the way things are, but rather the way people think things are. (Epictetus, pg 162)
I learned about this book in the bibliography section of Seth Godin's Linchpin. It's aim is to stimulate you to be more creative. I found it very helpful.
What is the point, you may ask of being creative? Creative people stand out from the crowd, sometimes
Show More
make things possible that didn't seem so, may increase productivity, or maybe just make life more enjoyable. Some examples are Albert Einstein, Johann Gutenberg, Isaac Newton, and William Shakespeare.What happens if you're not at all interested in being creative? This quote (in the book) from physicist Tom Hirshfield summarizes it well: If you don't ask "Why this?" often enough, somebody will ask "Why you?".
My favorite quotes from this book:
The best way to get a good idea is to get a lot of ideas. (pg 28)
The metaphor is probably the most fertile power possessed by man. (Ortega y Gasset, pg 44)
Some people are so closely married to their ideas that they put them up on a pedestal. It's difficult to be creative when you have that much ego tied up in your idea. (pg 94)
A man's errors are his portals of discovery. (James Joyce, pg 154)
...two benefits of failure. First, if you do fail, you learn what doesn't work. Second, the failure gives you an opportunity to try a new approach. (pg 160)
What concerns me is not the way things are, but rather the way people think things are. (Epictetus, pg 162)
Show Less
Language
Original publication date
1990 (Revised Edition)
Physical description
xvii, 141 p.; 27 cm
ISBN
0446380008 / 9780446380003