Rather than asking “what is creativity?”, Eric Weiner asks the question“where is creativity?” as he seeks the underlying conditions, often unexpected, that make a golden age shine. In a word, in his book Geography of Genius, he explores the question of whether a specific area or region can be an incubator for a culture of […]
Make your Life and Work Poetic
I think of innovation as adding poetry to life. To be POETIC requires the expression of feelings and ideas by the use of distinctive style and rhythm. This is what I call innovation in life. In the case of innovation, that distinctive style of living and working “poetically” means doing things differently. Using POETIC as […]
What Does a Contrarian Have to Do with Innovation?
We all have one….and it is usually one….the individual in the group that finds distinction by being the contrarian voice in the discussion. And while the investigation of opposition and a full 360-degree view of a topic is essential to good decision-making, in the social setting of a committee or board meeting, such a voice […]
Personal Mission Statement
Recently I decided to create my own mission statement for my work as a choral director. I had worked through the process of defining a mission statement with our ACDA membership for our work as an Association, and I thought it would be interesting and informative to try the same thing for my own choral […]
ACDA Visits Choral Canada and Podium 16
Innovation Sometimes Means Taking a Risk
Most mature individuals have a built-in radar when it comes to taking on risk. That radar seems to become more and more highly tuned the older we get. The problem is this: when it comes to playing it safe, we may think we know more than we really do about safe behavior, since uncertainty faces […]