I normally don’t like posting videos two weeks in a row, but this video came out last week and I thought it could be a great thought or conversation starter. This is part 4 of a video series called “Everything is a Remix”. It’s a short video series on creativity and where great ideas come from. If you haven’t seen any of the earlier videos, I’d encourage you to check out Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

The video is a little on the longer side but it is very interesting and will go by quickly. Take a few minutes to watch this then I’ll have a couple comments on the flip side.

Ok, I’ll start off by saying the flow of logic at the beginning from Evolution to Social Evolution isn’t necessarily something I believe it, but I understand the point he is making. And I really think he is making a great point. The point isn’t that the system has failed us…(which we could have an argument on all day) the point is that it’s OUR responsibility. If the system has failed us, it’s our fault. We created and contribute to the systems.

So, my question is simple. What are you doing to take responsibility of with what you create, and with moving our culture forward? 

My favorite example of how people have been trying to help change this is in the music industry. Some of the best music (and most original) that I’ve been hearing is being made by friends and acquaintances. And guess what…most of the time they give it away for free. This is because they understand that the influence is worth more then the immediate gain.

Don’t get me wrong, money isn’t wrong and we need to learn how to make a living. Just make sure that what you are offering is greater then what you are expecting. Give more then what you take. Be responsible with your ideas, your creations, your songs, your art.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this. Are you giving more than what you are taking? Are we beings of “taking” or “creating”?

When engaging in the creative process and implementing ideas tools can go a long way. We all have tools at our disposal. Computers, cameras, instruments, paint, our ideas, how we teach, books, the list can go on and on.

A lot of times when we have ideas we try to spice them up with tools. What can often happen though is we lean on them to heavily to make our idea better. That’s usually not best, and others notice when you do that. Check out the video below to get an idea of what I’m talking about.

Now, obviously these guys go over the top with how to use all these tools wrong, the main focus being on the PowerPoint slide show. But, we’ve all been in that presentation, or church sermon, or concert where the person using the tools was doing it all wrong. So, here are a few questions to ask yourself when deciding on that “creative element” to help your ideas sink in.

1) How does this tool help punctuate the point? – This is a serious question to ask. So often people (me included) use a tool because we think it will be cool and add a “wow” factor to what we are doing. Most times it does add that “wow” factor. But, do you want people to remember the wow or the what? Make sure you use tools that help punctuate your point.

2) What’s it going to cost you? – A second question you should ask is what’s it going to cost you? Sometimes we can come up with this crazy, out of this world idea to help support another idea. The problem is, the cost to execute that supporting idea won’t pay off. Cost can be anything from money, time, energy, anything that could take away from developing the main idea first. Again, it’s not bad to use something that will cost you, just make sure it will be worth the cost.

Just to make sure I’m clear. Using tools aren’t bad. They are actually great! The problem that we usually run into is that we use great tools to help support a not so great idea. In effect, killing the greatness of the creative tool we are using.

So, the next time you are doing that guitar solo and you add all the delay to make it sound better, work on nailing the guitar part first. Add the delay to sweeten it. Or, maybe you build a 50 slide presentation so that the crowd doesn’t look at your nervous teaching style. Slides aren’t bad, but working on the way you present will have the best results. Make sure your idea gets the attention it deserves and that your tools aren’t getting in the way.

What tools do you struggle to use well?

Welcome to my first Full Disclosure post. I gotta be honest, I got this great idea from Kevin Mahan. He did a series of posts called Full Disclosure last year that were filled with great information. I’ve been wanting to write a few posts on how I use some different tools (separate from the Best Practices posts) and thought this would be a great way to make it happen. To start, I thought I’d hit up Evernote. Evernote is an app that I’ve been learning about and implementing into my workflow more and more each day. Recently, I’ve been getting a number of questions from friends on how I use it. So, let’s jump right in!

If you don’t yet know what Evernote is, check out this quick video.

How I Use It

I really use Evernote for a quite a few things. First, I rely on it for the storage and retrieval of creative ideas. I tend to find myself in a lot of meetings where I’m trying to come up with ideas. Most of the time, meetings don’t lend themselves to creativity. On top of that, creativity can be totally random and happen whenever. What I try to do when I come across ideas I find online or ideas that pop in my head is to clip them into a creativity notebook in Evernote. I do my best to tag the note with a few words that tie into the theme of the idea. That way when I’m looking for ideas for “teaching about money”, I can just type that in and see if I have anything saved yet.

The second thing I use Evernote for is ideas and content for my blog. When I’m disciplined I take some time to schedule ahead on what I’ll be writing about. (see image below) I’ll type that up in Evernote so it’s there ready to go. Also, if I come across content or ideas that inspire a post I’ll clip them in Evernote and again tag them so they are easy to find.

A third way I use it is to take all my notes from conferences or things that have made an impact on me and scan them into Evernote. Typically, I write everything into a Moleskine, even notes when I’m at a conference or meeting with a mentor. These notes are things I want to remember. So I’ll scan them into Evernote. The cool thing about Evernote is that it searches text in images as well! So, if there is a quote from a conference I can remember but not who said it, I can type it in search and it will bring up the notes I scanned in from that person.

Those are just three quick ways I use Evernote. For the sake of keeping this short I’ll stop there for now. The key to using it well is creating a system to organize it in a way that will work for you. Use folders, tags, sub-folders, etc.

How about you? Have you ever tried Evernote? If so how do you use it? If not, what questions do you have? Let me know below! 

Inspiration. Sometimes it seems like it comes and goes like the wind. Other times you can feel it like the sun hitting your back. It obviously comes in cycles. Some of us have probably learned ways to keep it around longer. Make the most out of it. Those who can do that seem to also be able to bend it to their favor.

For those of us who can’t seem to get any inspiration can get frustrated watching others have a cup overflowing of it. That’s what this post is for. Those of us looking for inspiration. I obviously can’t tell you what inspires you, but I can ask a simple question.

When was the last time you felt inspired? What was that one thing? An Instagram picture? A note played on a cello? That one book you were reading? That one, incredibly designed website? A warm sunny day? That last movie you saw? Or maybe it was the view out of your last plane ride?

That’s the thing. Inspiration can come from anywhere. I’ll give you two examples of where I’ve recently been inspired.

A book. It’s called “Communicating For A Change” and is written by Andy Stanley. I wanted to brush up on my communication skills, but I’m finding I’m finishing this book inspired and wanting to impact people’s lives with what I have to say.

A Dobro guitar. Also can be known as a resonator guitar. This past weekend at LCBC someone played one. They played it really well. It was incredibly inspiring and moving. I walked away from the gathering changed a little bit because of that instrument.

Those are two simple examples that moved me deeply. They have brought me some inspiration. Now it’s my job to make the most of that inspiration while it’s here. To be a steward of it.

Stewarding inspiration can be just as important as finding it. What we do with an idea, a song, a different way of working, really matters. I often think that the way you are inspired is dependent on the way you steward inspiration. (I could be wrong on that, but I think I’m finding it to be true more often then not)

I’d really love for you to take a minute and think of the last time you were inspired. What was it that inspired you, and what did you do with it? How are ways that you can look for that inspiration in similar places again?

Feel free to share any inspiration you have had or any thing you have done with the inspiration below. Link to that inspiration if it’s online!

(Photo Props)