infinite possibilities - frontend conf ch 2016
TRANSCRIPT
Possibilities Infinite
Denise R. Jacobs Front End Conf CH | Zurich, Switzerland 2 September 2016
@denisejacobs #FEC16 @FrontEndConfCH
#infinitepossible
Get the slides, y’all! Creativedo.se/FEC16-ip
Grüezi Y’all! Photo: Denise Jacobs
In case you didn’t know
Photo: Denise Jacobs
Photo by Derek Kearney
From Front-end Dev à Creativity Evangelist?!
Clients can be…special http://www.flickr.com/photos/clairity/154640125/
Projects started feeling like this http://www.flickr.com/photos/44085287@N05/4052943367/
And then there’s these people
My true love: speaking/training/teaching
à Founder + CEO/Chief Creativity Evangelist http://TheCreativeDose.com/
So frontend devs/designers, much respect! https://metrouk2.files.wordpress.com/2015/07/bow_down1.gif
1,1,2,3…https://www.flickr.com/photos/bdunnette/143567420
It’s the new Black http://www.flickr.com/photos/designandtechnologydepartment/4771136128/
IBM CEO Study, 2010 https://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/31670.wss
Time Magazine Creativity Poll, 2013
http://business.time.com/2013/04/26/the-time-creativity-poll/
Survey of 684 Developers https://www.flickr.com/photos/ter-burg/8812567121
“The web can and should be a vibrant medium for creative expression.” – Andy Clarke, “Art Directing Web Design”, FrontEnd Conf CH 2016
https://twitter.com/purzlbaum/status/771263711373688836
We have it. Then we lose it.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/carbonnyc/3135103537/
This is Water. https://www.flickr.com/photos/seotaro/2101165162
Whether you are a designer or a developer
Photo: Denise Jacobs
You are powerfully creative http://www.designyourway.net/diverse/4/ux/brainy.jpg?e8a293
Masters of strategic simplificationCan translate complex
information & data into accessible visualsEvoke emotion & provoke thought
Make the mundane beautiful
Gifts of Designers
Passion for accuracy Analytical
Learn quicklyProblem-solvers
CuriousThinking critically
Gifts of Frontend Developers
You design + build + guide the web… http://www.flickr.com/photos/spyndle/474122586/
Now’s the time to value yourself
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mcgraths/3277839203
“The new scarcity: the time, energy, and brainpower of bright, creative people.”- Mary Poppendieck, “Think For Yourself”
How to move forward?
It starts with One http://www.flickr.com/photos/33498942@N04/6009639079/
(Thanks, Andy!) Photo: Denise Jacobs
The pattern of nature
We are part of this pattern
https://www.flickr.com/photos/124263610@N08/14201837570/
The Golden Ratio https://www.flickr.com/photos/gdvan/14910785913
Everything comes from this divine unfolding
https://www.flickr.com/photos/rammorrison/2718543921
The Dark or the Light
What direction should you go?
Making one solid choice is the beginning
The paradox of choice
http://www.flickr.com/photos/x1brett/2279939232/
Let’s take a look at how this can work https://twitter.com/sbruggm4nn/status/771304309795332096
CHOOSEhttps://www.flickr.com/photos/buttersponge/4955768144
Non-Creative or Creative?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/barretthall/3036598475/ & http://www.flickr.com/photos/carbonnyc/3135103537/
Who here is creative?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kosmotesto/3794445313/
“Creativity is all about making connections and seeing patterns.” Bruce Nussbaum, Creative Intelligence
Child, please. http://www.flickr.com/photos/mahalie/276780530/
My response:
Internal fears = Inner Critic Photo: Denise Jacobs
Creativity Denial https://www.flickr.com/photos/42186300@N07/3891508982/
In Tibetan, creative = natural
https://www.flickr.com/photos/norte_it/2340805781
Creativity ≠ Trying to be Creative http://www.theprofessionalcreative.com/take-the-first-step-to-become-creative/
Trying ≠ Practicing
http://www.wallpaper4me.com/images/wallpapers/do_or_do_not_w1.jpeg
“Try not. Do, or do not. There is no try.” – Yoda
“If I try to be creative, rather than just accepting that I am creative, I fail.” Andrew J. Epstein
Not about effort
More like breathing http://www.flickr.com/photos/guiniveretoo/1573049301/
Like breathing, you can build http://www.flickr.com/photos/miguel77/2728104156/
Get in tune with the process https://www.flickr.com/photos/flavijus/566174947
What’s your creative frequency? http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sine_waves_different_frequencies.svg
Listen/tune in
Filter out the background noise https://www.flickr.com/photos/alt_design_summit/6724420849/
Frequency: Occurrence https://www.flickr.com/photos/joelanman/367425390
Frequency: Practice https://www.flickr.com/photos/wwworks/275200051/
Become an idea machine
Challenge/Homework: Ten Ideas a day https://www.flickr.com/photos/evaekeblad/15294401442
“Deciding for creativity does not guarantee that creativity will emerge, but without the decision, it certainly will not.” – Robert Sternberg
Decide upon Creativity. Choose it.
Then, amplify your creative frequency.
Fixed or Growth Mindset?
Mindset, by Carol Dweck
http://mindsetonline.com
Which looks more familiar?
Fixed mindset https://www.flickr.com/photos/bethscupham/7328405210
PerfectionTalentAbility
AccomplishmentComparison
Fixed Mindset focused on
“Maybe I don’t have enough talent.” “What if I fail?” “If I don’t try, I can protect my dignity.” “It’s not my fault. It’s something/someone else’s.”
(Sounds an awful lot like the Inner Critic, no?)
Perfectionist much?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/diepuppenstubensammlerin/7648792510/
Growth Mindset http://www.flickr.com/photos/argonne/4441693270/
LearningWillingness to fail
CuriosityExpansion
Being self-referential
Growth Mindset focused on
Embrace and enjoy learning
How do you change from Fixed to Growth? http://www.flickr.com/photos/f-oxymoron/5005673112/
1) Listen for your Fixed Mindset voice http://www.flickr.com/photos/theory/3193684632/
2) Recognize that you have a choice https://www.flickr.com/photos/cjsmithphotography/6804513809
3) Talk back to it with a growth mindset voice
“I can learn to do this with time & effort.” “Most successful people have had failure along the way.” “If I don’t try, I automatically fail.” “If I don’t take responsibility, I can’t fix it.”
4) Take growth mindset action
Growth Mindset Actions http://www.flickr.com/photos/onegiantleap/4124211492/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/seandreilinger/959867550/ &http://www.flickr.com/photos/seandreilinger/959864706/
Adopt a beginner’s mind
Release the Tyranny of the Expert
https://www.flickr.com/photos/64540855@N07/5878418781
Rediscover the familiar
https://www.flickr.com/photos/77654185@N07/8428225936
Re-learn something from a friend https://www.flickr.com/photos/ribbitvoice/2339351666
Learn something entirely new http://www.flickr.com/photos/13723940@N04/2648317554/
In my own life: learning Improv Photo: Denise Jacobs
Learning from experience is key
“I don’t divide the world into the weak and the strong, or the successes and the failures…I divide the world into the learners and nonlearners.” – Benjamin Barber, Sociologist
Approach everything with openness and eagerness.
Continue to increase your knowledge and expand
yourself.
Blocked or in Flow?
Creative blocks?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/99301367@N00/8497106802/
Fears https://www.flickr.com/photos/tom_lin/3193080175/
“[We have] An unwillingness to take risks, for fear of criticism or failure.” – Andy Clarke, “Art Directing Web Design”, FrontEnd Conf CH 2016
https://twitter.com/frontendconfch/status/771257405464195078
Creative Flow http://www.flickr.com/photos/7730492@N03/4958540694/
Is @ the Sweet Spot
Enjoy + Good at + Feeling Empowered http://www.flickr.com/photos/h-k-d/3310336516/
= Empowered Play http://www.flickr.com/photos/anieto2k/8216666102/
Aka
Your brain on Flow https://www.flickr.com/photos/arselectronica/13994747444
Flow banishes the Inner Critic!
The Flow “Afterglow” http://www.flickr.com/photos/fuzzylittlemanpeach/4633972431/
How do you reach Flow?
“You can’t force yourself to get into (creative) flow, but you can set the conditions for it.”– Ted Neward, “Managers are from Mars, Developers are from Venus”
1) Get in touch with your brilliance http://www.flickr.com/photos/jonathan_hamner/3386076488/
Embrace your super-power http://www.flickr.com/photos/89927155@N00/2144275209/
“I realized that I was more of a writer than a designer.” – Heydon Pickering, “Test-Driven,HTML”, FrontEnd Conf CH 2016
Photo: Denise Jacobs
2) Have clear goals
3) Uninterrupted, focused time
“How to ruin (developer) productivity”
My Father built airplanes in his spare time
Photo: Deloria Jacobs
(Instill the Headphones Rule) https://www.flickr.com/photos/thomashawk/9824922293
Helps create space for ideas
https://www.flickr.com/photos/creativedc/2939649520
4) Balance of risk & challenge http://www.flickr.com/photos/librarianavengers/2495352933/
The Flow Channel exits between the two
5) Immediate feedback http://www.flickr.com/photos/anieto2k/8124124586/
Find your Flow to dispel fears and experience
continuous creative growth.
Taker or Maker?
…Has little regard for their potential to
shape the future or ability to take action
on issues that truly motivate them.
A Taker…
…A maker’s work is characterized by morality, creativity, craftsmanship, and purposed problem solving. They view their work through the lens of service.
A Maker…
“….Makers choose their work based on impact and happiness.” Jason Cavnar, "Why developers should start choosing conscience over profit"
http://venturebeat.com/2013/02/18/developers-choosing-conscience-over-profit/
Up-level your Makership-ness
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fragmented/2734290118/
1) Stay a passionate problem-solver
http://www.flickr.com/photos/argonne/4435608143/
2) Make “Bug” Lists https://www.flickr.com/photos/acerriteno/3484407240/
3) Cultivate a healthy disregard for the impossible
4) Be clear on your “Why” http://www.flickr.com/photos/zlz212/198759134/
“When your ‘whys’ don’t line up, the project will go horribly wrong.” – Rob Farr, The Last Responsible Moment, DPM Summit 2015
Infuse meaning https://www.flickr.com/photos/stuckincustoms/5932362950
What are your objectives? https://twitter.com/marclounis/status/771331407029338112
Whom are you aiming to help? http://www.codefevermiami.com/
5) Choose bigger, more creative problems to solve
6) Spur creative thinking at scale http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monsters,_Inc.
By using this:
Like folks at Pixar
Make things that matter – to both you and others.
PROGRESS
http://www.flickr.com/photos/harryharris/381154280/
What do you get? http://www.flickr.com/photos/dlaughland/3475448568/
Life is complex and so are decisions
Two tracks
CREATIVITY GROWTH MIND
FIND FLOW BE A MAKER
Guidelines; stars to navigate by http://www.flickr.com/photos/anieto2k/9255191990/
“Clarity brings about purpose, purpose brings about action, action brings about change.” – Joel Yeo
CREATE LEARN
FLOW CONTRIBUTE
Mobilize a dormant creative confidence
http://www.flickr.com/photos/badastronomy/4179773749/
While we can’t predict the future http://fusible.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/crystal-ball.jpg
Because of the unknown
http://hub.salford.ac.uk/energymonitoring/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2012/01/known-knowns1.jpg
Instead, we have an alternative
“We are the creators of the future.” Umair Haque, “How to Have a Year That Matters”
You are Master Creators
Remember how powerful you are https://www.flickr.com/photos/dingatx/4794442002/
“[We] can create the magic of what the web can be.” – Una Kravits, “Practical Blend Modes”, FrontEnd Conf CH 2016
https://twitter.com/frontendconfch/status/771279224292466688
Making them should be easier
http://www.cdmdirect.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Choices.jpg
Critical
Not creative Fixed mindset
BlockedTaking what you can get
We’re all too familiar with these
“The decisions that most designers make are based entirely on guesswork.” – Andy Clarke, “Art Directing Web Design”, FrontEnd Conf CH 2016
CREATIVITY GROWTH MIND
FIND FLOW BE A MAKER
Release your inner Intrepreneur
https://twitter.com/KilianSSL/status/771623377198919680
ProactiveCommitted
IntegrityOpen-mindedCourageous
ResilientAdaptive
Emotionally Intelligent
Authentic
Encourages Intrapreneur qualities
Respect yourself (and recognize)
“We all are both Designers and Developers.” – Heydon Pickering
Photo: Denise Jacobs
This is your compass
Creativity is your True North
Work that is more creatively satisfying http://www.flickr.com/photos/anieto2k/8127201319/
All of space-time started with a singularity
1,1,2,3…
Just as the Universe is expanding, so are we
An reiterative process
Photo: Denise Jacobs
Our choices should flow out from each other https://twitter.com/ChristinaWeibel/status/771311547368943617
Now you have a framework
“Art direction is the gravity that pulls atoms together.” – Andy Clarke, “Art Directing Web Design”, FrontEnd Conf CH 2016
Creativity is the “gravity” of your work https://www.flickr.com/photos/jeronimooo/9640105244/
The choice is clear https://www.flickr.com/photos/matias3000/253871344/
“You need to trust yourself and your creativity and make a leap.” – Eva-Lotte Lamme
https://twitter.com/blueforce1/status/771306174935281665
Choose
http://www.flickr.com/photos/designandtechnologydepartment/4771136128/
Get the slides, y’all! Creativedo.se/FEC16-ip
THE CREATIVE DOSE A Creativity + Innovation Collective
Work Better. Create More. Create Betterness.
Creative Thinking & Problem-solving Applying an Innovation Mindset
Creative Collaboration Team Communication & Cohesion
TheCreativeDose.com@thecreativedose
Banish Your Inner Critic
Get on the list! DeniseJacobs.com/InnerCritic
Identify and Eliminate Mental Blocks to Unleash Creativity
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Photo used with permission: http://www.flickr.com/photos/aarronwalter/4629078087/
Thank You! http://www.flickr.com/photos/qqjawe/6511141237/