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Dr. Roger Firestien’s Blog, Innovation Espresso ®
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Innovation Resources
More Innovation Espresso ®
Talk to your dog if you want to get creative
by Ashley Cournyea I spend a lot of time talking to my bulldog, Tucker. Whether he understands me is not important, but how he responds is. If am brainstorming for a personal challenge, I tell Tucker everything I come up with. Guess what he does? He defers judgment....
Want to get new ideas? Set a quota.
How many ideas do you need to get a good one? Do you have to come up with hundreds of ideas to get a breakthrough? It all depends on the kinds of ideas you want. If you want to find ways to improve the way you are currently doing business, you will need fewer...
Video: Innovation in Agriculture with SK Herefords hosted by Dr. Roger Firestien
Creativity is desperately needed in agriculture. There’s too much of this of the wine cellar mentality always whining about complaining about too hot too cold out. No no no no. Stop the complaining. Let’s focus on solutions. Let’s be creative. That’s what makes things work. So, it could be used on every farm in this country.
Mastering the Inside Moves of Creative Problem Solving Facilitation at CPSI 2018
Dr. Roger Firestien will be leading a one-day program on June 19 at the 2018 Creative Problem Solving Institute (CPSI). The program, Mastering the Inside Moves of Creative Problem Solving Facilitation is for anyone who wants to improve their ability to facilitate the Creative Problem Solving Process.
Keynote at the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus Research Discovery Day
Dr. Roger Firestien will be delivering the keynote address at the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus Research Discovery Day on May 3 in the Jacobs Research Institute on the BNMC Campus.
Proof Creativity Training Works: More Fun and More Productive
While pursuing my doctorate, I became very interested in the effects of Creative Problem Solving training on the communication behaviors that occur in small groups. In organizations, it is in the small group where new ideas are born and, in many cases, where new ideas die.
Innovation In Medicine with Dr. Robert Gatewood
Meet Dr. Robert Gatewood. Robert is board certified in Cardiovascular Diseases and Internal Medicine, a Clinical Associate Professor at the University at Buffalo; author of more than 50 presentations and co-author of two books. Dr. Gatewood took one of my Creativity courses at the International Center for Studies in Creativity at SUNY Buffalo State.
Innovation in Educational Administration with Susan Whittaker hosted by Dr. Roger Firestien
Meet Dr. Susan Whittaker principle of the Summit Academy in Getzville, New York. I conducted a Creative Problem Solving workshop with all 300 staff members of the Summit Academy. This session lead to a year- long project that was designed to infuse Creative Problem Solving methods into the academy.
Innovation in Economic Development with Jane Fischer hosted by Dr. Roger Firestien
Meet Jane Fischer. Jane is Chair of the Local Economic Development Initiative of the Northern Chautauqua Community Foundation in Dunkirk, New York. Jane hired me to lead a Creative Problem Solving workshop with about 100 members of the Northern Chautauqua Community Foundation Local Economic Development Initiative at their annual summit.
Video: Innovation in Education with Mary Bennett hosted by Dr. Roger Firestien
Meet Mary Bennett unit director of the Summit Academy in Amherst, New York. Mary took one of my Creativity courses at the International Center for Studies in Creativity at SUNY Buffalo state and was then instrumental in bringing me into the school to infuse Creative Problem Solving methods into the organization.
Never Run Out of Ideas with Dr. Roger Firestien from Disrupt HR
Creativity isn’t some mysterious ability that only a few people possess. Creativity is a skill. Just like you learned to ride a bicycle, you can learn how to be creative. You can turn on your creativity at will instead of waiting for ideas to happen.
The Evolution of the Creative Problem Solving (CPS) Process
Dr. Roger Firestien, Senior Faculty Member at the International Center for Studies in Creativity at SUNY Buffalo State speech at the Creativity Expert Exchange, October 2017. I fell in love with creativity in 1977.
Want to get creative? Then practice.
Great sport teams practice. Great symphony orchestras practice. Fire departments practice. They practice so that when they must perform at peak effectiveness under extremely stressful conditions, they can execute extremely well.
Don’t be a slug. Read weird stuff.
A number of years ago, Dr. Donna Hamlin at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute did a study on the reading habits of scientists. She grouped the scientists into three categories. The first group was labeled “innovative”; these scientists exhibited the highest...
VIDEO: Applying Creativity and Innovation to Community and Economic Development
Dr. Roger Firestien, Innovation Consultant – Keynote address at Northern Chautauqua Community Foundation Economic Development Summit, May 2017. Creativity and Innovation isn’t just for corporations. It is for anyone looking to improve their community—whether in business, government, nonprofits, or education.
VIDEO: DISRUPT HR – Buffalo New York – Roger Firestien
This program took the audience of the Disrupt HR community on a five-minute innovation “excursion” that was designed to help them come up with new ideas for solving a problem that was confronting them. Try it. Watch the video and take a five-minute creativity...
Igniting Creativity Around the World
I was honored to be able to provide the voice-over for the 50th-anniversary celebration animation video for the International Center for Studies in Creativity that debuted at the Creativity Expert Exchange conference at SUNY Buffalo State, October 13-15. Watch this...
Fort Collins Innovates
As a native Coloradan, it was my honor to deliver the keynote address and facilitate an innovation session for the City of Fort Collins, Colorado on September 28. The group generated thousands of ideas for dealing with issues of affordability and growth in Fort...
Podcast: Facilitating Creative Problem Solving with Roger Firestien
I recently had the pleasure of joining my friend, Amy Climer of Climer Consulting on her podcast. Listen to the podcast here, or on your favorite podcast service.
The Power of the PPC
After you have generated lots of ideas and then selected the best ideas for solving a problem, how do you evaluate those ideas to build the idea instead of destroying it in the process of evaluation? The method that I have used for years, and invented with my...
Watch out for Gunslingers when hiring an Innovation Consultant
An Innovation Consultant applies a process that is designed to help an organization increase its innovation output. Put another way, an Innovation Consultant helps you solve the toughest challenges facing your organization. So, what is innovation output? It depends on...
Roles in a Creative Problem Solving Session
Clearly defined roles are one of the most important aspects when applying Creative Problem Solving in a group, just as clearly defined roles are essential for a rescue squad or a sports team. There are three essential roles for an effective CPS session: client, facilitator, and resource group.
Don’t talk to the same people you always do!
Every year we host a holiday party at my house. We invite clients, friends, students and interesting people that have become friends. Al comes to our party. Find out why.
The 4 P’s of Creativity; or a working definition of Creativity
There have been many attempts to define creativity. In 1961, a researcher named Mel Rhodes set out to find the single unifying definition of creativity. He couldn’t do it, and that’s probably a good thing. Otherwise, we would continually judge ourselves against one...
The Biggest Gambler in the World is… A Farmer.
I spent the first 22 years of my life on this land. It was the place where I learned to drive tractors and trucks, irrigate corn and spread manure for fertilizer.
What did you do when you were growing up that helped you to be creative now?