BOOK REVIEW
By
Randeep Wadehra
Inside the Box by Drew Boyd
& Jacob Goldenberg
Hachette. Pages: 257. Price:
Rs. 499/-
There are several ways of looking
at creativity. For some, it is an outcome of inspiration, for others it results
from unconventional thought processes and hard work, while many more look upon
creativity as the art of simplifying complex problems and devising viable
solutions. Creativity is all this and much more. One recalls the words of the
French poet and theatre personality Antonin Artaud, “No one has ever written,
painted, built, or invented except literally to get out of hell.” However, the
authors of this book have a different take on creativity.
Boyd & Goldenberg do not
agree with the traditional view that creativity is unstructured and does not
follow rules or patterns; or that you need to think “outside the box” to be
truly original and innovative. They feel that one can be far more innovative or
creative while staying “inside the box”. Not only will the result be better but
quicker too, because the innovator is dealing with a familiar world. “I will
master something, then creativity will come,” they may not have come across
this Japanese proverb, but it applies to most of their averments. Their thesis
is confirmed by Archimedes, a mathematician and inventor, whose principle of
displacement emerged from the fact that it pertained to his field of knowledge,
although inspiration too played a vital role in its formulation.
During their research, the
authors discovered that majority of new, inventive and successful products
result from only five templates, viz., subtraction, division, multiplication,
task unification and attribute dependency; these form the basis of the
innovation method called Systematic Inventive Thinking, which has enabled various
companies to achieve breakthroughs in their respective fields throughout the
world. For instance, Royal Philips Electronics used the “subtraction” method to
revolutionize the DVD market; the travel bag producing behemoth, Samsonite
employed the “task unification” technique to expand into the college backpack
market; and the Pearson Education used “multiplication” system to create a new
course for students who are weak in algebra.
Traditionally one looks upon a
creative person as someone who strives to acquire knowledge about such diverse
subjects as history, philosophy, economics, technology, botany and whatever
else that may help generate new ideas through amalgamation of diverse
disciplines or conflict among dissimilar worldviews. However, others believe
that one can be far more innovative through specialization in a particular
field of knowledge. A heart surgeon can develop newer, quicker and safer
techniques of heart transplant because he is aware of every aspect of that organ.
Similarly, specialists in electronics can come up with new ideas for better and
cheaper gizmos that would be useful to professionals in diverse fields ranging
from education, information and entertainment to engineering and medicine, etc.
Essentially, creativity is the
function of one’s attitude; as Alexander Graham Bell had aptly remarked, “An
inventor is someone who looks upon the world and is not contented with things
as they are. He wants to improve whatever he sees, he wants to benefit the
world.” One is not sure about the altruistic impulse beating in a creative
person’s heart but one can confidently say that satisfaction of one’s creative
urge, and even one’s ego, can be powerful drivers for generating of innovative
and original ideas. Creativity is indeed the soul of a true genius. This book
takes an elaborate look at the way creative persons, and groups, work in a
familiar environment on developing such products and services through a structured
course of action. Certainly, worth a read.
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