I don’t know about you, but I love it when art and science dance together. I’m really looking forward to this upcoming movie, The Heart is a Drum Machine.

Check out the trailer:

Link to the video: The Heart is a Drum Machine

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It’s cleanup week here at Mildly Creative. I’m rethinking categories, repairing links, polishing up my sidebars, and so forth. I’m trying to be a little more reader and search engine friendly before I move ahead.

In the meantime, you might enjoying reading some of my posts from the past. I’ve selected one from each month since I began the blog in May of last year. I hope you enjoy this trip down memory lane.

10 Posts from the Past

May 2009: Make Today Your Grand Opening

June 2009: The Lousy Service at the Idea Cafe

July 2009: Take a Break from Being Excellent and Become Something More

August 2009: What’s Fun Got to Do With It? What Mary Poppins Was Trying to Tell Us

September 2009: The Top 10 Ways to Ruin a Good Idea

October 2009: Persistence for Writers – Stand Up Seven Times. Sit Down Eight.

November 2009: Why You Absolutely, Positively Have to Share Your Gifts

December 2009: Too Much Information – A Mildly Creative Poem

January 2010: The Wisdom of Wite-Out – How to Make Something New By Taking Something Away

February 2010: 7 Playful Ways to Overcome Your Page Fright

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Today just has that feel about it. I can tell it’s going to be a cool one, so why not add to the coolness with another round of 5 Cool Things?

Cool Thing #1: 7 Ways to Do Great Work

Michael Bungay Stanier, creator of the popular 8 Principles of Fun video, has done it once again. He’s opened up his Box of Crayons and colored outside the lines in order to help us think differently about the work we do.

Stanier says there are three types of work: bad work, good work, and great work. Of course, it’s the latter he thinks we should be focusing on, and he’s put together a nice presentation of 7 ways to do so, most of them counterintuitive.

Check them out and start thinking about your work in great new ways.

The Presentation: 7 Ways to Do Great Work
The Presenter: Michael Bungay Stanier

Cool Thing #2: The Ta-Da List

Lisa Sonora Beam, author of the fabulous book, The Creative Entrepreneur, is a most colorful guru when it comes to getting unstuck. Recently, she posted a gem on her blog about the importance of giving ourselves credit for what we’ve accomplished.

We have a tendency to look at our to-do lists and note all the things we’ve yet to check off. Lisa’s asking us to turn that upside down and put together what she calls a Ta-Da List, a proud record of all the things we’ve started, finished, and put out into the world.

Read more about this terrific idea and give yourself a well earned pat on the back.

The Exercise: The Ta-Da List
The Inventor: Lisa Sonora Beam

Cool Thing #3: Idea Paint

A coworker once told me about a rather creative study technique his father used in law school. He wrote all his notes on the walls of his room.

The night before an exam, he would simply pace around and let the walls speak to him. Afterwards, he would paint over his notes and start anew.

That idea always captured my imagination, but the lazy man in me hates that kind of painting, never mind the repainting.

Then someone told me about Idea Paint. Basically, it turns any surface into a white board, which means you can write and draw on it, then erase it when you’re ready to start over.

It’s a little pricey, but not that bad when you consider the fact that one coat will do ya. I plan to order some soon, and I’ll show you how I’m using it once I do.

Take a look for yourself.

The Product: Idea Paint
The Inventors: John Goscha, Jeff Avallon and Morgan Newman

Cool Thing #4: Avalanches of Fun with Old LPs

The members of The Avalanches, an Australian electronic music group, stumbled upon stacks of old LPs while searching for musical instruments in junk stores.

Then an idea was born. They started sampling and remixing the audio from those old recordings to create something completely new.

The results are hip, fun, and entertaining. Here’s one of their most popular creations, Frontier Psychiatrist. Enjoy.

The Album: Since I Left You
The Band: The Avalanches

Cool Thing #5: Charlie and the Planner Factory

When I began this journey, time simply wasn’t a factor. I was wandering, meandering, and exploring. It was delicious.

But now I’m entering an equally delicious phase, one where I have some real objectives. I’m ready to take what I’ve discovered and do something with it.

It’s time for time management. Luckily for me, I’ve befriended Charlie Gilkey, the mastermind behind ProductiveFlourishing.com.

Charlie is a creative person’s kind of productivity expert, and he’s put together some amazingly easy-to-use planners that he offers on his website. I’m currently trying out the free ones and finding them most helpful. I’m sure it won’t be long before I pony up for the premium versions.

You might like them too.

The Planners: Productive Flourishing Planners
The Man Behind Them: Charlie Gilkey

Cool.

You stay cool now, ya hear?

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“I am not interested in power for power’s sake, but I’m interested in power that is moral, that is right and that is good.”
Martin Luther King, Jr.

I’ve already asked you to find the magic in your world. Now I’m asking you to look for the magic in yourself, to find the wizard within.

I’m learning that I possess magic powers I once overlooked.

I’ve always had the power to make people laugh, especially small children. I do pretty good imitations of Patrick and Squidward from Sponge Bob Square Pants.

I also give affection with ease, a power passed down to me by my father who was a real master.

And recently I’ve gained the power to see things I never saw before, approach things from odd angles, and make two seemingly unrelated objects fit together.

You possess your own unique powers, and, as Uncle Ben told Peter Parker (Spiderman), “with great power, there must also come great responsibility.”

You have a responsibility to identify, develop, and use your powers to the world’s benefit.

If you’ve been counting yourself short, stop it. Spend some time today taking stock of what you’re good at and deciding how you’re going to use it for both your own good and the good of others.

And if you don’t mind, share what you find in the comments section below. Naming your powers can help others name their own.

Think, Draw, Write.

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“That’s the thing with magic. You’ve got to know it’s still here, all around us, or it just stays invisible for you.” Charles de Lint

You probably don’t believe in fake magic. You’re old enough to know better.

The woman doesn’t really get sawn in half. The rabbit doesn’t actually materialize out of thin air. You may not know how the trick is done, but you’re smart enough to know it’s a trick.

But you should never think you’re too old or too smart to believe in real magic, the inexplicable wonder contained inside things both small and ordinary.

Healthy skepticism is not the same as cynicism, and acknowledging the ugliness in the world doesn’t mean you have to ignore the beauty.

Start looking for the magic in your own world. Take special notice of the little things that somehow possess the power to transform your mood or the moods of others: things like kind words, helping hands, photographs, flowers, and three-chord progressions.

Do you own any magical items, things that whisk you away to other places or trigger a happy memory? Do you know any magical people, those who lift your spirits just by entering a room? Do you know of a magical place? Do you have any rituals or incantations you use to unleash your own brand of magic?

If so, invite them into your journal, or start a new journal, a magic journal, where you reveal all your secrets. Hocus Pocus. Focus.

Think, draw, write.

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