CREATIVE STARTUP PEOPLE (Number 4 of a series) : Do you have what they have?

Today I'll move on to the next trait on the list for creative people, applying it to startups (see the introductory note at the end of this blog). The quotes are from the book cited in the endnote.
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TRAIT NUMBER 4: “Creative people alternate between imagination and fantasy at one end, and a rooted sense of reality at the other."

APPLICATION:  Awesome startup leaders are visionary realists who start with a BIG unsolved world-class problem. Then they deliver a clever FOCUSED solution that amazes the world that says "Why didn't I think of that! Wow!".

"Great art and science involve a leap of imagination into a world that is different from the present. The rest of society often views these new ideas as fantasies without relevance to current reality. And they are right. But the whole point of art and science is to go beyond what we now consider real, and create a new reality. At the same time, this 'escape' is not into the never-never land. What makes a novel idea creative is that once we see it, sooner or later we recognize that, strange as it is, it is true."

"[In response to psychological testing, such as Rorschache inkspots,] the more creative artists gave responses that were definitely more original [than normal people gave]. . . but they never gave 'bizzare' responses, which normal people occasionally do. Creative people, it seems, are original without being bizzare. The novelty they see is rooted in reality."

"Most of us assume that artists like musicians and painters are strong on the fantasy side, whereas scientists and businesspeople are realists. But when a person begins to work creatively, . . .the artist may be as much a realist as the physicist, and the physicist as imaginative as the artist."

A. thinks about an giant unsolved problem in targeted advertising far beyond Google. To us less creative it sounds too hard to even begin to start thinking about. A few weeks later we are amazed as we see the prototype before our eyes on the computer screen.

E. thinks about a huge unsolved legal investigation problem calling for doing the impossible with terabytes of digital data. She starts a company that begins delivering solutions in less than an year. Leading edge lawyers jump to use her technology and then the media of the new domain acknowledge her company is the leader of a new market segment.

A. and T. imagine a world of worlds more constructive and far beyond the shoot'em up mass player games. They set off on their adventure and emerge a few years later with a mind-boggling game world. Strategic partners leap to get them into their press announcements and at their game developers conferences.

P. sees the need for a new kind of venture firm able to combine the best of the great VC firms while delivering resources for the new breed of global thinking startups. He teams up with a co-founder and delivers a series of startup winners.  Institutional investors increase their pool of funds. Top tier, experience entrepreneurs join as partners. Word spread around the planet.

BOTTOM LINE: There is a process for converting an idea into a world-class startup. Serial entrepreneurs have done it. I have written about it in my books. Venture community professionals know about it. So you can learn it. Then your fantasy will work with your reality and what will emerge is your startup. When you can master that process, you'll add an amazing power to building your unfair advantage.

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NOTE OF INTRODUCTION TO THIS SERIES ON CREATIVE STARTUP PEOPLE

Creativity.

That's a desired skill that stands out in great startup people: Founders, management, leaders, and employees. I also find it outstanding in the venture community: Angels, venture capitalists, bloggers, media reporters, lawyers and finance staff.

On the less positive side, creative people are also a challenge to manage (often "a pain in the neck" and worse).

I am often questioned about creative startup people, so I've decided to discuss them in a series of blogs, who they are, how to spot them and what to do about them.  The series should be about ten blogs in length, spread out over the next three weeks.

I decided begin with this question: "How creative are you?"

To help you answer that question, I'll list the traits of a creative person and let you compare yourself. I expect you to be surprised (I was).

My source for the list is a mind stretching book by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi entitled Creativity. He is professor and former chairman of the Department of Psychology at the University of Chicago, and author of several books including the bestseller, Flow. The quoted item that I use are from Creativity.

Today I'll move on to the next trait on the list for creative people, applying it to startups (see the introductory note at the end of this blog). The quotes are from the book cited in the endnote.
========================================================================================

TRAIT NUMBER 4: “Creative people alternate between imagination and fantasy at one end, and a rooted sense of reality at the other."

APPLICATION:  Awesome startup leaders are visionary realists who start with a BIG unsolved world-class problem. Then they deliver a clever FOCUSED solution that amazes the world that says "Why didn't I think of that! Wow!".

"Great art and science involve a leap of imagination into a world that is different from the present. The rest of society often views these new ideas as fantasies without relevance to current reality. And they are right. But the whole point of art and science is to go beyond what we now consider real, and create a new reality. At the same time, this 'escape' is not into the never-never land. What makes a novel idea creative is that once we see it, sooner or later we recognize that, strange as it is, it is true."

"[In response to psychological testing, such as Rorschache inkspots,] the more creative artists gave responses that were definitely more original [than normal people gave]. . . but they never gave 'bizzare' responses, which normal people occasionally do. Creative people, it seems, are original without being bizzare. The novelty they see is rooted in reality."

"Most of us assume that artists like musicians and painters are strong on the fantasy side, whereas scientists and businesspeople are realists. But when a person begins to work creatively, . . .the artist may be as much a realist as the physicist, and the physicist as imaginative as the artist."

A. thinks about an giant unsolved problem in targeted advertising far beyond Google. To us less creative it sounds too hard to even begin to start thinking about. A few weeks later we are amazed as we see the prototype before our eyes on the computer screen.

E. thinks about a huge unsolved legal investigation problem calling for doing the impossible with terabytes of digital data. She starts a company that begins delivering solutions in less than an year. Leading edge lawyers jump to use her technology and then the media of the new domain acknowledge her company is the leader of a new market segment.

A. and T. imagine a world of worlds more constructive and far beyond the shoot'em up mass player games. They set off on their adventure and emerge a few years later with a mind-boggling game world. Strategic partners leap to get them into their press announcements and at their game developers conferences.

P. sees the need for a new kind of venture firm able to combine the best of the great VC firms while delivering resources for the new breed of global thinking startups. He teams up with a co-founder and delivers a series of startup winners.  Institutional investors increase their pool of funds. Top tier, experience entrepreneurs join as partners. Word spread around the planet.

BOTTOM LINE: There is a process for converting an idea into a world-class startup. Serial entrepreneurs have done it. I have written about it in my books. Venture community professionals know about it. So you can learn it. Then your fantasy will work with your reality and what will emerge is your startup. When you can master that process, you'll add an amazing power to building your unfair advantage.

=========================================================================================
NOTE OF INTRODUCTION TO THIS SERIES ON CREATIVE STARTUP PEOPLE

Creativity.

That's a desired skill that stands out in great startup people: Founders, management, leaders, and employees. I also find it outstanding in the venture community: Angels, venture capitalists, bloggers, media reporters, lawyers and finance staff.

On the less positive side, creative people are also a challenge to manage (often "a pain in the neck" and worse).

I am often questioned about creative startup people, so I've decided to discuss them in a series of blogs, who they are, how to spot them and what to do about them.  The series should be about ten blogs in length, spread out over the next three weeks.

I decided begin with this question: "How creative are you?"

To help you answer that question, I'll list the traits of a creative person and let you compare yourself. I expect you to be surprised (I was).

My source for the list is a mind stretching book by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi entitled Creativity. He is professor and former chairman of the Department of Psychology at the University of Chicago, and author of several books including the bestseller, Flow. The quoted item that I use are from Creativity.