Who is a Beyonder?
A Beyonder is someone who has a "Creative Operating System" (cOS). This includes a creative mindset, heart-set and doing-set. An individual who has a cOS thinks about, engages with, and responds to life creatively.
Do you want to introduce creativity into your life in an authentic, significant, and sustainable way? You have to start by developing a creative mindset and heart set within yourself.
Start by taking a moment and think about the individuals in your life who you would describe as “being creative.” In this instance, go beyond the artists in your life, and think about those who were good problem solvers. As you think about these “creative” individuals there are probably a number of characteristics that they share in common. It is quite likely that they are curious, imaginative, willing to try new things, and surprising in their ability to look at things in new ways. They may share some other traits too – they might be playful and courageous. You have probably seen them taking micro risks in their life. And when they make mistakes, they look at it as an opportunity to grow. They might also often seem to be driven by a sense of purpose. These individuals embody what it means to be creative. By observing them and in particular by studying the traits they exhibit and share we have been able to start to define what comprises a creative mindset and heart set.
Do you want to introduce creativity into your life in an authentic, significant, and sustainable way? You have to start by developing a creative mindset and heart set within yourself.
Start by taking a moment and think about the individuals in your life who you would describe as “being creative.” In this instance, go beyond the artists in your life, and think about those who were good problem solvers. As you think about these “creative” individuals there are probably a number of characteristics that they share in common. It is quite likely that they are curious, imaginative, willing to try new things, and surprising in their ability to look at things in new ways. They may share some other traits too – they might be playful and courageous. You have probably seen them taking micro risks in their life. And when they make mistakes, they look at it as an opportunity to grow. They might also often seem to be driven by a sense of purpose. These individuals embody what it means to be creative. By observing them and in particular by studying the traits they exhibit and share we have been able to start to define what comprises a creative mindset and heart set.
The Matryoshka nesting doll offers an apt analogy for the framework for being creative. At the heart, the innermost doll represents the core creative skills of being open, curious, and original. These are the essential creative skills. Without the ability to suspend judgment, actively seek novelty, and a genuine desire to explore one would not be able to truly harness the power of deliberate creative processes.
The second doll represents the heart set. The attitude with which a creative individual engages with the world around them. The three elements of the affective skill set are being mindful, playful, and optimistic. When we augment the core creativity skills with the power of awareness, humor, and hopefulness we develop our inner resilience which allows us to foster a sustainable effort for change.
The outermost doll represents transformational skills. These are the skills that create change. They transform ideas into outcomes. This skill set comprises of being deliberate, driven, and courageous. A productive approach to thinking and doing creates results. A connection to a meaningful purpose fuels the drive required to undertake and sustain the creative effort. Taking the first or even the next step as we embrace something new and creative requires a tolerance for uncertainty and risk. We have to embrace vulnerability and ambiguity courageously in order to be creative. The outermost layer of the being creative framework is where the rubber meets the road. Together all of these skills comprise the Creative Operating System.
As you grow from being a creative individual to become a creative leader, this framework for being creative becomes even more important. We know that it is more effective to show rather than tell, to model the behavior we want to see rather than demand it. When we start working on our goal of changing others by first embodying the change we want to see – we create the authentic, significant, and sustainable growth we are hoping to see in the world around us.
The second doll represents the heart set. The attitude with which a creative individual engages with the world around them. The three elements of the affective skill set are being mindful, playful, and optimistic. When we augment the core creativity skills with the power of awareness, humor, and hopefulness we develop our inner resilience which allows us to foster a sustainable effort for change.
The outermost doll represents transformational skills. These are the skills that create change. They transform ideas into outcomes. This skill set comprises of being deliberate, driven, and courageous. A productive approach to thinking and doing creates results. A connection to a meaningful purpose fuels the drive required to undertake and sustain the creative effort. Taking the first or even the next step as we embrace something new and creative requires a tolerance for uncertainty and risk. We have to embrace vulnerability and ambiguity courageously in order to be creative. The outermost layer of the being creative framework is where the rubber meets the road. Together all of these skills comprise the Creative Operating System.
As you grow from being a creative individual to become a creative leader, this framework for being creative becomes even more important. We know that it is more effective to show rather than tell, to model the behavior we want to see rather than demand it. When we start working on our goal of changing others by first embodying the change we want to see – we create the authentic, significant, and sustainable growth we are hoping to see in the world around us.
Learn about Being Creative
Sign up for the 7-day Creativity Challenge to receive a daily email that contains a micro lesson and a creative challenge for the day. Use the daily challenge as a way to jumpstart your creative engine. Each email will take no more than two minutes to read and you have 24 hours to try the challenge and reflect on what happens. Each challenge presents an opportunity to engage with the world around you in a creative way that is designed to create shifts in the status quo. At the end of the week, you can continue to use the activities to spark creativity in the world around you.
The skills included in the 7-day challenge are the core creativity skills of:
The skills included in the 7-day challenge are the core creativity skills of:
- Being Open
- Being Original
- Being Curious
Our research and experience shows that an individual with a Creative Operating System exhibits a certain mindset and heart set that contribute to their Being Creative. In our work with educators we find that one of the key aspects of bringing creativity into the classroom is the need for the educator to model creative behavior. This card deck was designed to facilitate the reawakening of the educator as a creative leader. This deck of contains more than 50 different activities and prompts for reflection designed to develop the 9 critical elements of a creative mindset and heart set:
- Being Open
- Being Curious
- Being Original
- Being Playful
- Being Optimistic
- Being Mindful
- Being Deliberate
- Being Driven
- Being Courageous