I have found there are two types of people in the world…people who come up with lots of ideas and people who don’t. The people who come up with lots of ideas can be categorised further – into people who act on their ideas and people who can’t or don’t. However, as with most defined categorisations, I also believe that my initial or embryonic categorisation in this instance is deeply superficial and flawed.

Firstly, I actually believe all humans are capable of both coming up with and executing their ideas.

Secondly, even if people think they can’t or are unwilling or unable to think of ideas or bring them to life, there are awesome processes like Design Thinking, Human Centred Design, The Wonder Mindset which are all methods or processes that help you come up with ideas to solve epic problems or design customer centric solutions. Great processes help guide people from Idea to execution.

The first thing you need to do is define the problem, opportunity or space you want to come up with an idea around. This can be anything from “I want more money” to “I want to build better services for my customers” to “I want to design a product that will change the world”. Whatever your starting point, the next thing you’ll do is understand the start point, diagnose, empathise and figure out the real problem that you’re trying to solve…. trust me, there is always a presenting problem and a ‘real problem’… the data will help guide you. You’ll then frame it and then it is time to think of ideas.

As I said, some people find this easy – some find it super tricky. Just a quick google of “how to come up with ideas” will provide you with *cough* lots of ideas… on how to come up with ideas….

Once you have come up with ideas, I think it is really important to be able to map the maturity and viability of your ideas, and so, inspired by the International Journal of Innovation and Technology Management’s idea maturity model, I have created a simple Idea Maturity Model to help you categorise your ideas :

You see, not all ideas are ‘good’ ideas (feasible, viable, desirable) and not all ideas are ready to be ‘born’ or delivered into the ‘real world’. You should have come up with a list of ideas, so understanding their maturity and then further ranking their desirability #favourites. When it comes to prioritising and ranking ideas, there are lots of methods for selecting promising ideas, narrowing, ranking and scoring the ‘BEST’ ideas but within each category again it is important to understand how mature the groups of ideas are.

Where you focus your time when it comes to selecting and prioritising lots of ideas is really important…choosing ideas that are really to be prototyped and that will ‘work’ and solve the problem or customer need is key. Some ideas are amazingly epic, but not ready to be prototyped or brought into the real world…yet. They may be highly desirable but not actually feasible or highly feasible but not overly desire-able – so the skill of lensing ideas and choosing the ‘best’ ideas for now and the future is an important skill to master.

Understanding, defining, lensing, prioritising and filtering are key skills for taking an idea from an embryonic concept to actionable and deliverable innovation.

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“The intellectual roots of critical thinking are as ancient as its etymology, traceable, ultimately, to the teaching practice and vision of Socrates 2,500 years ago who discovered by a method of probing questioning that people could not rationally justify their confident claims to knowledge.”

Before we start – lets look at the definitions of THINKING and MAGIC to understand how we might think magically.

thinking/ˈθɪŋkɪŋ/Lnoun

1. the process of considering or reasoning about something.”the selectors have some thinking to do before the match”

adjective

1. using thought or rational judgement; intelligent.”he seemed a thinking man”

magic/ˈmadʒɪk/nounnoun: magic

1. the power of apparently influencing events by using mysterious or supernatural forces.”suddenly, as if by magic, the doors start to open”
   • mysterious tricks, such as making things disappear and reappear, performed as entertainment.”his parents bought him a magic set for Christmas”
   • a quality of being beautiful and delightful in a way that seems remote from daily life.”the magic of the theatre”
   • INFORMAL exceptional skill or talent.”he’s been working his magic on New Zealand movies for the past two decades”

adjectiveadjective: magic

1. 1.having or apparently having supernatural powers.”a magic wand”, “confidence is the magic ingredient needed to spark recovery”
2. INFORMAL•BRITISH wonderful; exciting.”it was a great time, magic”

Our ability to reason, to use thought to create rational judgement or discover correct insights or solutions is one of the things that has allowed our species to evolve. When was the last time you thought about thinking?

You may be aware of your Myers briggs type indicator, a self-report questionnaire to understand how people perceive the world and make decisions – but it is certainly not an all encompassing profile of how you may think.

Now before we go on, I think we should do a little research to understand some of the ‘styles’ or ‘types’ of thinking.

1st Principles thinking – “A first principle is a basic assumption that cannot be deduced any further. Over two thousand years ago, Aristotle defined a first principle as “the first basis from which a thing is known.” First principles thinking is a fancy way of saying “think like a scientist.”
Critical thinking – “Critical thinking refers to the ability to analyze information objectively and make a reasoned judgment. It involves the evaluation of sources, such as data, facts, observable phenomena, and research findings.”
Creative thinking – “Creative thinking is: A way of looking at problems or situations from a fresh perspective that suggests unorthodox solutions (which may look unsettling at first). Creative thinking can be stimulated both by an unstructured process such as brainstorming, and by a structured process such as lateral thinking.”
Analogy thinking – “Analogical reasoning is any type of thinking that relies upon an analogy. An analogical argument is an explicit representation of a form of analogical reasoning that cites accepted similarities between two systems to support the conclusion that some further similarity exists.”
Philosophical thinking – “Philosophy is a way of thinking about the world, the universe, and society. It works by asking very basic questions about the nature of human thought, the nature of the universe, and the connections between them. The ideas in philosophy are often general and abstract.”
Systems Thinking – “Systems thinking is a holistic approach to analysis that focuses on the way that a system’s constituent parts interrelate and how systems work over time and within the context of larger systems.”
Convergent Thinking – “Convergent thinking is a term coined by Joy Paul Guilford as the opposite of divergent thinking. It generally means the ability to give the “correct” answer to standard questions that do not require significant creativity, for instance in most tasks in school and on standardized multiple-choice tests for intelligence.”
Divergent Thinking – “Divergent thinking is a thought process or method used to generate creative ideas by exploring many possible solutions. It typically occurs in a spontaneous, free-flowing, “non-linear” manner, such that many ideas are generated in an emergent cognitive fashion. Many possible solutions are explored in a short amount of time, and unexpected connections are drawn. Following divergent thinking, ideas and information are organized and structured using convergent thinking, which follows a particular set of logical steps to arrive at one solution, which in some cases is a “correct” solution.
Design Thinking – “Design thinking refers to the cognitive, strategic and practical processes by which design concepts (proposals for new products, buildings, machines, etc.) are developed by designers and/or design teams. Many of the key concepts and aspects of design thinking have been identified through studies, across different design domains, of design cognition and design activity in both laboratory and natural contexts.”

So how might we think more magically?

We are all capable of different styles of thinking and we are capable of learning new processes for considering, reasoning or coming up with solutions to problems. I have loved Design Thinking as a way of considering, reasoning or coming up with solutions to problems. I love magical thinking as a way of ensuring that the solutions and considerations are above average… or magical to be more precise. So what is magical thinking?

Well, I made it up. First I looked at what thinking is, took time to understand “the first basis from which a thing is known.” I looked at the different styles and processes (critical thinking) for considering, reasoning and coming up with solutions to problems and I thought about the experiences I have had over the last 8 years as a Design Thinking coach (using analogy thinking) and then I allowed my mind to wander to think about how I might mash together the ‘best of’ the thinking styles to unleash the wonder (because really magic is just novel/uncommon/unexpected/out of the world/off the planet sort of wonder)… (creative or divergent thinking) to philosophise or think about what the future of thinking may invite… and I came up with this:

1. Define the starting point – really define it, remove bias, understand the meaning behind the start point.
2. Analyse inputs that may influence or inform your judgment – research, read, put some information in your brain.
3. Give yourself permission to think creatively and in a fresh and unorthodox way!
4. Let yourself bring analogies and stories into the mix.
5. Allow free flowing thoughts.
6. Collapse the particles down in a serious convergent show down to discover some answers or insights…

There you go…. a formula for magical thinking… enjoy.

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The notion of design as a “way of thinking” in the sciences can be traced to Herbert A. Simon’s 1969 book The Sciences of the Artificial, and in design engineering to Robert McKim’s 1973 book Experiences in Visual Thinking. The evolution of design thinking can be explored in this epic article <read article here>

Design thinking refers to the cognitive, strategic and practical processes by which design concepts (proposals for new products, buildings, machines, etc.) are developed by designers and/or design teams. Many of the key concepts and aspects of design thinking have been identified through studies, across different design domains, of design cognition and design activity in both laboratory and natural contexts.^[1][2]

Design thinking is also associated with prescriptions for the innovation of products and services within business and social contexts.^[3][4] Some of these prescriptions have been criticized for oversimplifying the design process and trivializing the role of technical knowledge and skills

Design Thinking is famous for the solution focus and the framing of the problem, specifically using ‘how might we’ questions to invite your brain to solve particularly wicked and epic problems.

In my experience, the frame you put around your insights and points of view determines the success of your solution. Just like any process, there are lots of tips along the way to ensure success, but the how might we frame for launching brainstorms is one of the simplest but most powerful tools for creating epically creative and innovative solutions. When we take a moment during the construction of the HMW statement, we challenge our bias and also self locate in the process to see whether we have truly digested and understood the data captured to this point. It can be such a powerful tool for capturing insights and getting you closer to a feasible, viable and desirable solution.

What is framing? In social sciences, it is the collective framing comprises a set of concepts and theoretical perspectives on how individuals, groups, and societies, organize, perceive, and communicate about reality.

Framing can manifest in thought or interpersonal communication. Frames in thought consist of the mental representations, interpretations, and simplifications of reality. Frames in communication consist of the communication of frames between different actors.^[1]

In social theory, framing is a schema of interpretation, a collection of anecdotes and stereotypes, that individuals rely on to understand and respond to events.^[2] In other words, people build a series of mental “filters” through biological and cultural influences. They then use these filters to make sense of the world. The choices they then make are influenced by their creation of a frame.

The same goes for the Design Thinking or Appreciative Inquiry Methods for Epic Problem solving. The choices we make influence the frame and the frame influences the way we make sense of the world.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Framing_(social_sciences)

Stanfords D.School is particularly well known for the power of framing questions to launch brainstorms https://dschool.stanford.edu/resources/how-might-we-questions

The frame we put on the problem space invites very different ideas. Being creative, scientific, open minded and playful whilst crafting your epic and juicy HMW questions is part of the fun of Design Thinking and Appreciative Inquiry. In Appreciative Inquiry – The Constructionist Principle, derived from ‘Social Constructionist‘ theory, states that the language we use shapes our social reality. Meaning is made in conversation, and what emerges as knowledge is a broad social agreement created among people through communication, ‘words create worlds’ and so to does a how might we question shape the invitation to the brainstorming to solve the EPIC and WICKED problems.

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Whether you’re a CEO or a business owner leading a small team, the art of getting humans to go from A-B consistently is more than just managerial goodness. Sure hygiene factors go a long way when it comes to maintaining good performance – but that lights on, follow you anywhere, do anything for you, bounce out of bed in the morning sort of leadership is still as rare as they come. I do believe we can manufacture it and I don’t believe manufacture is a dirty word.

People don’t turn up wanting to do a bad job. Capability, commitment, capacity all play a role in how our people show up. Whether they are missing some key skills, not feeling it or are affected by circumstances impacting their capacity – there is always something going on, like it or not. What is the secret sauce that gets people to push through barriers and really against all odds move from just getting by the flying high?

We don’t have to look very far to see the ingredients of a truly inspirational or evolutionary leader…whether in a crisis or just leading large troops on a journey, the things we remember about the best leaders we have ever worked for tend to fall into key themes… they were:

• Brave – they were courageous and took risks
• Empowering – they empowered people through trust
• Non-Prescriptive – they empowered people to find solutions
• Visionary – they painted a picture on where the team was headed
• Values led – their values were transparent

Sure there are plenty more, but I wanted to illustrate something… they were not ‘on time every day’, they were not ‘risk adverse and always playing by the rules’, they were not ‘afraid to speak up’. Inspirational and evolutionary leaders seem a little bit like they don’t give a care – but they do, they just know where to care and when and for who.

I believe that the best way to create sustainable and systemic change is through human connection. The ‘Best’ Leaders of our time have a few simple things in common. They had vision, they connected and inspired people to follow and they got people from where they were to where they wanted to or aspired to be. There are epic leaders who are truly moving the dial in organisations but they are not getting the cred they deserve because they are missing a few simple tools to take them from good to great.

You can wake up one day and decide “I want to be an incredibly inspiring and evolutionary leader” and you can start today. You can demonstrate you care and start to challenge those around you to think and behave differently so that the whole team can evolve.

The Emoji Check-in is a simple tool to get into a rhythm of showing that you care at the right time and for the right people. It doesn’t take long and in the long run is a really epic tool for avoiding those issues that can sometimes arise when you don’t have your finger on the pulse when it comes to your people. A quick check in (and it can be done remotely), this tool is designed to encourage connection, conversation and also start to establish psychological safety. Psychological safety is one of those lesser spoken about golden keys of epic leadership. When your team are psychologically safe – all sorts of magic starts to unfold. Teams are capable of having courageous and robust conversations without worrying about hurting each others feelings, teams are able to check-in and be there for each other when inevitably environment and relationships inside or outside of work create conflict. It is easier to create and more powerful than you realise.

“Psychological safety means that team members feel safe to take risks and be vulnerable in front of each other.”

“To feel safe, to take risks, and to be vulnerable in front of others, team members need to trust other team members. Therefore psychological safety is about trust. … By opening up towards each other, they can build a relationship, which leads to increased trust. Openness and trust thus are related.” <read full article here>

Psychological safety, like Leadership, should be treated as a journey…

The Emoji Check-In can be a powerful safety norm to empower people to get to know each other and show slow vulnerability to establish and maintain psychological safety.

Why slow vulnerability? There are alot of awesome articles and resources out there explaining why leaders of the future must learn how to be vulnerable – but we believe in slow vulnerability.

“Being Vulnerable Allows You To Be Open To Change No matter how much you want to change, you can’t actually change until you’re willing to put in the work. And that work requires vulnerability — no matter how hard it can be. Let’s say you have a bad habit that you want to break, like eating too much candy.”

Slow vulnerability means slowly expose yourself for who you really are, no pretending and no hiding behind a mask for safety or protection. Why slowly? Because if you expose yourself suddenly and to the extreme – people will wonder who you have become and begin to wonder why you have changed so drastically! Slow vulnerability is about maintaining connection, trust and communication while you reveal who you really are and what you really think.

The next tool that we adore when it comes to fast empathy and slow vulnerability is a thing called ‘the line’. The line is a tool for ‘self locating’ which is the art of reflecting and positioning ourselves at any point in time – where am I right now? What am I thinking? What am I feeling? Why? Why am I thinking this? Why am I feeling this? What factors are influencing my location right now?

The Concious leadership group bring a radical new conversation around evolutionary leadership to play and explain the line in this video:

Start checking in with yourself – are you in the wonder zone?

Email us sarah@wonderandwander.com if you’d like us to run a session!

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/ɪnəˈveɪʃ(ə)n/

noun – the action or process of innovating. “innovation is crucial to the continuing success of any organization”

Similar: change, alteration, revolution, upheaval, transformation, metamorphosis, reorganization, restructuring, rearrangement, recasting, remodelling, renovation, restyling, variation, new measures, new methods, new devices, novelty, newness, unconventionality, modernization, modernism, a break with tradition, a shift of emphasis, a departure, a change of direction, a shake up, a shakedown, transmogrification, a new method, idea, product, etc.

plural noun: innovations – “technological innovations designed to save energy”

Organisations know that they must focus on transformation, change, new measures, methods, ideas ways of working to stay relevant in the rapidly changing and fast evolving world that we live.

I have often said, if an organisation is only investing in one capability for their entire business it should be MINDSET. The power of mindset to navigate complex change, to build culture, to think of ideas and execute ideas is truly a magical thing.

Growth Mindset – “In a growth mindset, people believe that their most basic abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work—brains and talent are just the starting point. This view creates a love of learning and a resilience that is essential for great accomplishment.” ( Dweck, 2015)

Innovation Mindset -“In an innovation mindset, people explore ideas, look for better ways of doing things and create better outcomes”

Wonder Mindset – “In the wonder mindset, people remove bias, return to a state of childlike awe where everything is wondrous and curious and anything is possible.”

When it comes to innovation, there are many different processes, methods and ways of stimulating ideas, ranking ideas and bringing ideas to life. The Wonder Mindset, our innovation method looks at unleashing the mindset behind the method – but regardless of the method – it helps to understand the drives for agenda to truly reap the rewards that can come from ongoing innovation practices and processes in your business.

Some common innovation drivers:

• Profit
• Sustainability
• Impact (social, community, environment)
• Customer Satisfaction
• Shareholder return
• Employee Engagement
• Innovation/Novelty

The drivers shift the perspective, perception and framing of any potential problem and solution – so an understanding of drivers and an ability to remove bias and navigate complex drivers is a key for sustainable innovation – which is why mindset is EVERYTHING.

So how might you use growth mindset, the innovation mindset and the wonder mindset to unleash the best ideas? It starts with asking the right questions.

Curious to know more? sarah@wonderandwander.com +61407521849

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Wonder and Wander have created a digital toolkit for sustainable innovation to move from managerial leadership to evolutionary leadership. Simple tools, worksheets, processes and games to create sticky and sustainable shifts in structure, function and behaviour for employees and organisations.

The 3 Cs triangle (an original Wonder and Wander tool) is a useful tool to help us self locate and navigate change alongside awesome tools like the PROSCI change management process…. Instead of following the full Prosci change management process today, we will adapt a simple triangle to help us identify and ‘lens’ the proposed changes or innovations/ideas and understand the environment in a quick and easy way.

1. Capability – we ask – do ‘we’ or ‘i’ have the capability (skills/resources) to make and sustain this change?
2. Capacity – do ‘we’ or ‘i’ have the capacity (space/time) to produce and sustain this change?
3. Commitment – are we actually committed to making this change? No amount of time, resources, skills or space can sustain change if we are not committed to it.

If one of the ‘sides’ of the triangle is missing, we identify an area for us to consider as we move forward with proposed changes. If we don’t have the capability, we can upskill, if we don’t have capacity we hire or make time/space and if we don’t have the commitment – we may need to shift our mindset or reframe the changes to understand the leverage points/buy in to create sustainable change.  We can use the triangle to create a high level change impact assessment to quickly vision the idea or impact and understand the potential energies at play.

It is worth looking at the Prosci change management process that you may be familiar with as a more detailed process to manage complex change.

We find that the language we use when managing change is part of the change itself. Building on the Core Principles of Appreciative Inquiry, which describe the basic tenets of the underlying Ai philosophy, were developed in the early 1990’s by David Cooperrider and Suresh Srivastva (Cooperrider’s advisor at Case Western Reserve University) and serve as the building blocks for all AI work. The five original principles are: Constructionist, Simultaneity, Anticipatory, Poetic, and Positive.

– From Cooperrider, D.L., & Whitney, D. A Positive Revolution in Change: Appreciative Inquiry. Taos, NM: Corporation for Positive Change, 1999.

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Somewhere between trying to navigate this tension, we have failed to acknowledge that the two really are interdependent – a great leader will cope with and lead change but they will also make sure the organisation can still function. We can argue the differences however I think it is a better use of all of our time to focus on developing tools for leading complex change in a digital world.

Why? Because unless you’ve been living under a rock, the professional world has shifted dramatically in the last 5 years and the system needs an overhaul. By ‘the system’ I mean the ‘human system’ and the humans in it need to install a few upgrades.

In the last 100 years laws have continued to be created and refined around ‘fair work’, minimum wage, human rights, professional right and as a result the human resource function has evolved from policy and payroll to risk management and human upgrade hub. 

There are tools galore for leading and managing people available these days – from Peoplesoft, Salesforce, HRIS, Flare to leadership or outcome based frameworks like Agile, Design Thinking, ADKAR, Six Sigma or The Wonder Mindset, however leaders and managers alike still require new capabilities to empower Leaders and Managers to evaluate external evidence and stakeholders needs and preferences, understanding context and local environment and practically understanding the experience and judgement to even make a decision that is fitting for the most appropriate tool or framework to upgrade their human system. The humans need an upgrade.

My Dad, Martin Nally recently coined the term ‘Real Time People Management” – he is an HR futurist and guru and it certainly stuck when he said it to me. Our human leaders and managers must get better at applying theory, measuring, evaluating in the moment – the human lag in this rapid and fast paced reality that we all currently lead and work is just not cutting it.

I am a huge fan of evidence based leadership and have always sought to create processes that apply, measure and evaluate to ensure that we capture data that tells a story to either validate or challenge the process. Whether that is looking at KPIs and whether they actually improve individual and organisational performance or Design Thinking and whether that actually saves the organisation money, time or creates more innovation ideas that create greater value for the organisation – the key to sustainable organisational change is measurement and evaluation.

Sure, I talk about WONDER and Innovation – but I have always sought to seek and create sustainable impact. For the impact to be sustainable – it needs to be measurable!

The future is demanding a more wholistic and integrated version of self at work and at home. 

So recently; when seeking to create a WONDER MINDSET leadership framework, a future focussed and user friendly framework that is beneficial to leaders at work and in life, my challenge to myself was to create a framework that was inspirational but also measurable.

I wanted the capabilities to be simple and the commitments/statements that brought the capabilities to life to feel accessible and easy to self rate and self measure. I wanted the framework to create a human upgrade.

I believe the key to future organisational development lies in creating authentic and engaging learning that enables and empowers our leaders to self manage and develop self awareness. 

I challenged myself to steer away from words like ‘strategic’ and ‘decision making’ and used research around the skills for the future to think about the building blocks we all need to focus on to help prepare us for a future we can’t even imagine yet.

We deliver this framework already with some of our clients and we love the self awareness, ownership, communication and accountability that those using the framework are self reporting.

If you’re looking for a Leadership Framework to implement in 2020, speak to us about how we can support your roll out.

We share our frameworks and ideas as open source as we believe the greatest way for us to upgrade the whole system is through collaboration, open-source and trust. We trust you’ll credit us with this framework if you choose to implement it without our help.

Your Chief of Wonder – Sarah Nally

sarah@wonderandwander.com

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Rahaf is one of those curious and wondrous humans who finds humour, intrigue and facination everywhere she goes. her ability to see beyond the norm affects her in a deep and profound sort of way, which is why her life commentary and the way she works to change the world is just so magic.

Rahaf has kindly shared the introduction to her book “Hustle and Float” a book that she was still writing when she gave a talk entitled the same at Wired for Wonder. Download it here (PDF)

Sarah & Steve, Co-Founders of Wonder and Wander

Hustle and Float: Introduction

Recently, I’ve seen a few examples of daily routines that focus on the notion of a “side hustle” or finding the time to work on a passion project, side business, or some other venture outside of your job.

Last year, Digg founder, Kevin Rose, posted his own advice, pointing to television, social media, video games and texting, as giant time wasters that could get in the way of writing that novel or building that app you’ve been thinking about.

The Internet has plenty of helpful infographics showing you how to eke out even more out of your day by identifying pockets of underutilized time, along this line of thinking:

We all know that pursuing a goal requires intentionally making time. And, while much of this advice is well-meaning, it overlooks some important considerations that come from blindspots rooted in privilege, or having a certain level of socio-economic security that enables you to break down your day in this manner.

The Math Doesn’t Add Up

Both of these images have the following allocations: 2 hours for working out/self-care, 7–8 hours of sleep a night, and 8–9 hours of work. This leaves between 4–5 hours a day that technically could be used to work on a side project.

You know what I don’t see here?

Getting ready for work. Commuting. Running errands. Grocery shopping. Cleaning the house. Doing laundry. Filing. Childcare. Spending time with your significant other or family. Hanging out with friends. Resting (outside of sleep). Additional family obligations (like care giving for an elderly family member). Eating. Using the washroom.

Where do all of these tasks fit into the above breakdown?

Often, the successful people we idolize have support structures like cleaners, assistants, nannies, and cooks who free up time. Maybe they have a partner who handles most of the domestic/child rearing duties.

Either way, I don’t think this reflects real life for most people.

I know I have enormous productivity privilege. I don’t have kids. I work from home. I have full control of my time. I have a husband who equally shoulders domestic chores, and we are fortunate enough to be able to afford a cleaning service. I live in an urban area where everything I might need is less than a five minutes walk away. Even with these enormous advantages, I also have a hard time pursuing a passion project.

Why?

Because time is not the right metric here.

We’re Measuring the Wrong Thing

Ok, I do agree with Kevin Rose that social media can be a huge time suck. So let’s say you could find 4–5 hours a day to work on your project. That assumes that after hitting the gym and working for 8–9 hours, your energy levels are still pretty high. If that’s the case then, that’s amazing, and I envy you.

I can only speak for myself, but after a full day of working, especially on highly cognitive tasks like writing or working with clients, I am mentally depleted.

The time might be there, but the energy is not.

I need to recharge and rest. Let’s not forget that these two suggested time allocations are advocating for pursuing a project on top of working a full day. 10–14 hours a day working will take a toll on your mental and physical health. Is this what we’re telling people to do?

Productivity was a performance metric that was designed during the industrial revolution to measure the output of standardized tasks. It assumed a consistent amount of time and energy spend for a well-defined period of time. As a measure to evaluate assembly line performance — it worked well For all of us Productive Creatives that are balancing knowledge work with unstandardized tasks, that type of system doesn’t make sense of the type of work we do.

We are not machines who can simply produce, produce, produce. Not every free minute has to be associated with “output.”

Considering that even in the industrial era, there was a push for 8 hours of recreation, I don’t think productivity was meant to be used as a means to pressure people into working non-stop.

Stop the Productivity Shame

I’m not saying we shouldn’t encourage each other to find time to pursue goals or projects that we’ve always wanted to do. I’m pointing out the unspoken assumption embodied in these types of graphics: if you’re not utilizing or “optimizing” every second, then it’s a personal failing.

And that’s just not true. More importantly, it’s not helpful, or compassionate, or kind. For me, trying to stuff every extra moment with “productive work” landed me with burn-out, complete with insomnia, hair loss, and depression.

It didn’t get me any closer to my dreams.

Instead, of human productivity, I’d like to talk about humane productivity: the pursuit of ambitious goals without sacrificing your health or your sanity.

Here are a few things that worked for me:

• Expand your time horizons: When I wanted to write my novel, approaching it from a daily standpoint didn’t work for me, as I’d already spent the day writing for work and was exhausted. Instead, I looked at my time in terms of my month, which made it a little easier to set aside a chunk of time to work on it. A four-hour Sunday writing session every other week was way more efficient than forcing myself to do an hour of writing every day. Don’t over-stress about doing something daily if it doesn’t work for you.
• Manage your Energy Cycle: Pay attention to the activities that replenish you. After a full day of work, reading a fun novel or watching a great TV show helps me recharge. Even Social Media, used with intention, can be a great way to connect to others. Recharging activities are just as important as doing the work itself because it will influence the quality of what you produce.
• Every little bit helps: For my novel, when I was too tired to sit at my computer, I would just dedicate some time to think about my story and my characters and jot down any notes that came to mind. I tried to devote some of my attention to this project every day, even if it was just for a few minutes while washing the dishes or walking my dog. I discovered that doing this made my actual writing sessions more effective, and it wasn’t a huge demand on my time. Progress happens even with the tiniest of steps.

Let’s stop torturing ourselves with unrealistic productivity expectations and focus on living healthy and happy lives. Even Beyonce, the gold standard of creative productivity, suffered a bout of burnout so severe in 2011 that she had to take a year off to mentally and physically recover.

Yes, we all have 24 hours in a day, but some of us have a lot of help that enables us to do more in those hours than others.

And we should be honest about that.

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