Comments on: From playtime to no time http://www.in-lusio.com/2008/from-playtime-to-no-time/ on play Fri, 21 Nov 2008 23:14:42 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3.1 By: theije http://www.in-lusio.com/2008/from-playtime-to-no-time/#comment-22 theije Tue, 22 Jul 2008 14:39:22 +0000 http://www.in-lusio.com/2008/from-playtime-to-no-time/#comment-22 Hi Tj'ièn. It's certainly a hell of a job to get people off their daily state of mind and routine. Question is: is the concept of Playtime or PlayDay an educational one (to stimulate the creativity beyond existing bounderies) or is it an experiment based on free time to see what people like to make without de pressure of the usual targets? When it's an educatonal setup there must be a teacher. When is een ezxperimental setup there must be an observer. Anyway, your readiness to broad the focus of yourself and your colleagues is admirabble, busy as your job already is withouth these initiatives. Have a good time anyway! Theije Hi Tj’ièn. It’s certainly a hell of a job to get people off their daily state of mind and routine. Question is: is the concept of Playtime or PlayDay an educational one (to stimulate the creativity beyond existing bounderies) or is it an experiment based on free time to see what people like to make without de pressure of the usual targets? When it’s an educatonal setup there must be a teacher. When is een ezxperimental setup there must be an observer.
Anyway, your readiness to broad the focus of yourself and your colleagues is admirabble, busy as your job already is withouth these initiatives.
Have a good time anyway!
Theije

]]> By: Tj'ièn Twijnstra http://www.in-lusio.com/2008/from-playtime-to-no-time/#comment-21 Tj'ièn Twijnstra Tue, 22 Jul 2008 12:48:28 +0000 http://www.in-lusio.com/2008/from-playtime-to-no-time/#comment-21 Hi Theije. Thanks for the comment, I hope you don't mind me translating it to english so non-Dutch reading people can read it too. It is true that people could create their own goals, and that's certainly a question I could ask them. But it takes a lot of time and knowledge to be able to create your own goals. For each profession it takes experience to be able to set goals at a creative level. When searching for new ideas within our company we either do not have the time for waiting on people to set their own goals or to guide them in this process. What we can and will do next is return to the first idea of PlayDays - have two days to create an idea/prototype - and create more focus and boundaries to stimulate the creative process. Things like a definite goal, peer presure in the form of friendly rivalry, and clear boundaries are added and the actual goal of these PlayDays will extend beyond its traditional scope. I have good hopes that the new PlayDays will give us the results were after and otherwise we'll just have to keep on searching for other ways to unlock the creative potential of my colleagues. Hi Theije. Thanks for the comment, I hope you don’t mind me translating it to english so non-Dutch reading people can read it too. It is true that people could create their own goals, and that’s certainly a question I could ask them. But it takes a lot of time and knowledge to be able to create your own goals. For each profession it takes experience to be able to set goals at a creative level.

When searching for new ideas within our company we either do not have the time for waiting on people to set their own goals or to guide them in this process. What we can and will do next is return to the first idea of PlayDays - have two days to create an idea/prototype - and create more focus and boundaries to stimulate the creative process. Things like a definite goal, peer presure in the form of friendly rivalry, and clear boundaries are added and the actual goal of these PlayDays will extend beyond its traditional scope.

I have good hopes that the new PlayDays will give us the results were after and otherwise we’ll just have to keep on searching for other ways to unlock the creative potential of my colleagues.

]]> By: Theije http://www.in-lusio.com/2008/from-playtime-to-no-time/#comment-20 Theije Fri, 18 Jul 2008 08:45:44 +0000 http://www.in-lusio.com/2008/from-playtime-to-no-time/#comment-20 Het is goed dat je zo kritisch kijkt naar dit experiment om de creativiteit te vergroten. Ik denk dat je gelijk hebt dat het meer tijd en voorbereiding vraagt om zoiets op poten te zetten. De menselijke psyche is geneigd zich aan patronen vast te maken en zich daarin veilig te voelen. Mensen uit vaste werk- en creativiteitspatronen te halen is een lastige klus. Het betekent mensen uit hun vertrouwde omgeving halen, te vergelijken met een plotselinge verhuizing. Verwarring, onzekerheid zijn dan de eerste reacties, bepaald niet de beste uitgangpunten om nieuwe ideeën te ontwikkelen. Toch denk ik dat het idee in de grond goed is. Iemand leren zwemmen doe je in een zwembad en niet in een oceaan. Wanneer mensen zeggen: ‘wat is de doelstelling van dit gebeuren?’, dan moet je als het ware drie stappen verder zijn en weten: deze vraag had ik verwacht, men is onzeker en zoekt houvast. Antwoord: de doelstelling is je eigen doelstelling te vinden. Veel tijd zal dus geïnvesteerd moeten worden in het losmaken van bestaande patronen. Ik hoop wel dat je ermee doorgaat, want de kern is goed en absoluut van grote waarde voor de ontwikkeling van nieuwe ideeën. Bevinden alle vernieuwende ideeën zich immers niet in het land ‘achter de horizon’, ofwel: moeten we niet altijd dingen zien die er nog niet te zien zijn? Veel succes! Theije <strong>English translation of Dutch comment:</strong> It is good that you have a critical look at this experiment to boost creativity. I think you are right that it takes more preparartion time to get something like this from the ground. The human psyche tends to stick to patterns and to feel safe with them. Getting people out of their regular work and creativity patterns is a difficult job. It means getting people out of their safe environment and is comparable to re-locating. Confusion and uncertainty are the first reactions, not really the best starting points to develop ideas. But still I think the idea has a solid basis. You learn someone swimming in a pool and not in the ocean. When people say: 'what was the goal of this?', you have to be three steps ahead and know: I expected that question, people are uncertain and are looking to hold on to soemthing. Answer: the goal is to find your own goal. Much time should be invested in trying to cut the chains of existing paterns. I hope you continue with this, because the core is good and of absolute value for the development of new ideas. Don't all new ideas come from the land 'beyond the horizon', or shouldn't we all see things that aren't to be seen? Good luck! Theije Het is goed dat je zo kritisch kijkt naar dit experiment om de creativiteit te vergroten.
Ik denk dat je gelijk hebt dat het meer tijd en voorbereiding vraagt om zoiets op poten te zetten. De menselijke psyche is geneigd zich aan patronen vast te maken en zich daarin veilig te voelen. Mensen uit vaste werk- en creativiteitspatronen te halen is een lastige klus. Het betekent mensen uit hun vertrouwde omgeving halen, te vergelijken met een plotselinge verhuizing. Verwarring, onzekerheid zijn dan de eerste reacties, bepaald niet de beste uitgangpunten om nieuwe ideeën te ontwikkelen.
Toch denk ik dat het idee in de grond goed is.
Iemand leren zwemmen doe je in een zwembad en niet in een oceaan. Wanneer mensen zeggen: ‘wat is de doelstelling van dit gebeuren?’, dan moet je als het ware drie stappen verder zijn en weten: deze vraag had ik verwacht, men is onzeker en zoekt houvast. Antwoord: de doelstelling is je eigen doelstelling te vinden.
Veel tijd zal dus geïnvesteerd moeten worden in het losmaken van bestaande patronen. Ik hoop wel dat je ermee doorgaat, want de kern is goed en absoluut van grote waarde voor de ontwikkeling van nieuwe ideeën. Bevinden alle vernieuwende ideeën zich immers niet in het land ‘achter de horizon’, ofwel: moeten we niet altijd dingen zien die er nog niet te zien zijn?
Veel succes!
Theije

English translation of Dutch comment:

It is good that you have a critical look at this experiment to boost creativity.
I think you are right that it takes more preparartion time to get something like this from the ground. The human psyche tends to stick to patterns and to feel safe with them. Getting people out of their regular work and creativity patterns is a difficult job. It means getting people out of their safe environment and is comparable to re-locating. Confusion and uncertainty are the first reactions, not really the best starting points to develop ideas.
But still I think the idea has a solid basis.
You learn someone swimming in a pool and not in the ocean. When people say: ‘what was the goal of this?’, you have to be three steps ahead and know: I expected that question, people are uncertain and are looking to hold on to soemthing. Answer: the goal is to find your own goal.
Much time should be invested in trying to cut the chains of existing paterns. I hope you continue with this, because the core is good and of absolute value for the development of new ideas. Don’t all new ideas come from the land ‘beyond the horizon’, or shouldn’t we all see things that aren’t to be seen?
Good luck!
Theije

]]>