Stefan
Latest posts by Stefan (see all)
Since the dawn of PM-time, there has been an emphasis on creativity as part of our daily routine. Creativity is the Goldmine that powers a lot of what PM’s do. It lets us keep an open mind to what could be out there – beyond what already is. It is the best, most pure form of leadership – by inspirational vision. It brings us back a form of self fulfilment that is detached from the chores of everyday PM’ing. Creativity need not be bound by long prioritization meetings that cripple what was once good into a mere shadow of an idea, or technical realities and available technologies, that allow only for a sliver of functionality form what was a wholesome creative vision.
Creativity matters! It powers so many elements of being a good PM.
Above all, in my experience creativity drives respect for being human, having a brain, and not being bound to the confinements of our otherwise pretty dull set of tasks to drive forward the existence of our species. We can step outside of these bounds, and think of how we make our time more pleasant, more effective, explore new worlds, or just improve the live of others.
Sometimes it is the small (DIY) projects that make me the happiest!
DIY has been a part of my life since I got my first set of Matador blocks [1] (wooden blocks that can be connected with a variety of wooden dowels to create arbitrary constructions). Another profound moment was when I dismantled our old kitchen radio. Oh the smell of old, dusty circuit boards and used up transistors, I will never forget you. It is the only thing that comes even close to new-car-smell. And obviously the day I received my first set of Lego Technic [2], with a battery powered motor. Boy that day was good. Immediately I concluded that, for my Lego to become a flying matching, I would need to get lighter Lego bricks. I never managed to get the thing to lift off, but the different designs we tried kept us buys for weeks.
Oh the smell of old, dusty circuit boards and used up transistors […] is the only thing that comes even close to new-car-smell.
These days it is my little workshop that keeps me engaged in solving problems with all kinds of tools and devices at hand. It is a more free, less ‘boilerplate’ way of answering needs, and helping solve customer challenges. Mainly for my family. The dog loved his doghouse, but not as much as I loved designing it, and coming up with more ways to get a terrace on top of it. My favorite day was when he flung himself up there, and used the terrace (for a mere 2 minutes, but hey, it worked!!).
It is incredible what it does to me when I can close a full ‘creative to physical thing’ loop. I mean, it gives me thrills down my spine, holding an odd shaped piece of wood that I just plugged together to cut another piece of wood, with a lever on top. I can’t help it. I have to call my wife to ‘come and see, now’. She looks at me often, startled, with a puzzled look on her face that says ‘I love your enthusiasm, but I don’t know what to look at here.’ It is these moments that act almost like a slingshot moment, where I catapult myself into a new area of energy for the next iteration, the positive fatigue from doing something physically, that opens the creative space for the brain to move to the next thing. Maybe it is the ‘closure’ that comes from putting something into the real world, and touching what we have created, that causes that creative opening for the mind. Whatever it is, I try to do more of it, and get inspired by others who do.
Some of the things I recently completed include:
- A jumprope.
- A stand to cut wooden logs (It is for hot plates and coasters, duh!)
- A hotplate.
- An outside table.
- An outside bench.
- A wooden spoon – hand carved.
