Thursday, December 9, 2010

Riddle Me This

What’s a five letter word for “incites?”

I don’t know, because I’m not a crossword puzzler, but give me a little time. Trying to figure it out could help me land on a great answer to my next big conundrum.

Courtesy of Northwestern University (Go Cats) via The New York Times comes compelling findings concerning the power of puzzles to help people solve other challenges. Good news for those of us in the business of convincing people to trust their creative instincts and use them to solve problems in unconventional ways.

For all of you out there thinking about how to solve your current vexing challenge—I’m talking to you, marketers, cosmetologists, cosmonauts, animal husbandry professors, pizza twirlers and highway surveyors—yes, all of you, anyone in the business of coming up with ideas: take heed. This is a shot across your bow if you don’t believe in the power of using creative solutions to get to new creative solutions. Getting your brain into the ready state to show it’s stuff. Drawing order from chaos.

The next time you march into conceptual war, arm yourself with some unconventional yet highly effective tools of the trade: A good knock-knock joke, or a tough Sudoku. Get your synapses into a positive mood. According to these wily Wildcats, it’ll lead to better problem solving.

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