Dr. Barbara Doran, Reawakening your Creative Spark – Innova.Buzz 562
Dr Barbara Doran
Our guest in this episode is Dr. Barbara Doran, who specialises in identifying creative opportunities that respond to complex challenges and putting them into action. She teaches a multi-award winning Bachelor of Creative Intelligence course at the University of Technology, Sydney. This post comes after having worked as a Senior Lecturer for Australia’s leading performing arts conservatoire, National Institute of Dramatic Arts, with prior positions at The University of New South Wales and Western Sydney University.
In our conversation Barbara talked to me about
- Why creativity and art are not the same thing;
- How creativity is actually an intrinsic trait of being alive;
- How to awaken the creative spark inside and tap into our creativity by using all our senses.
Paulina Larocca in episode 399 introduced us to Barbara.
Listen to the podcast to find out more.
Listen to the Podcast
Support the Show
To support the show and join our Flywheel Nation Community head over to innovabiz.co/flywheelnation. This is where you can meet and talk with our guests and other fans of the show. The only way to access this community is through the purchase of a digital access token – it’ll cost you less than a cup of coffee! Permanently bookmark this episode by purchasing the episode token here. 50% of all revenue from this episode token will go directly to our guest; the other 50% goes towards supporting this show. Think of it as a way to support the guest and tell them that you loved their show.
Creativity is not just about being an excellent artist – it is intrinsic to being alive and is connected to problem solving and survival. @babaramaydoran on #InnovaBuzz podcast Click To Tweet
Show Notes from this episode with Dr. Barbara Doran
Key points and takeaways from this episode include:
- Creativity is not just about being an excellent artist – it is intrinsic to being alive and is connected to problem solving and survival. We need to move away from the idea that creativity is only about art and instead think about it in terms of problem-solving and being resourceful.
- Creativity can be expressed through cooking, walking, making connections, thinking about something in place or sound, and more.
- Creativity is linked to lifelong learning.
- We need to challenge cultural assumptions that link creativity exclusively to art subjects and open up the space around how we collaborate and work together.
- We should revisit the creative practices we engaged with in primary school and preschool and tap into our creativity by owning that space again. Have fun and play with creative areas just for the sake of it and to inspire creativity.
- Metaphor and playing games can spark creativity, then use that creativity in resourceful problem solving.
- Creativity is essential for problem-solving and innovation, and it is something that we all possess. We just need to be open to exploring our own creativity and embracing the process. By embracing our creative side, we can open up a world of possibilities and unleash our full potential.
- Creativity needs practice and it’s a practice of attending to the world – that can be any activity we are drawn to and that sparks new ideas.
- Our senses play an integral role in shaping how we think. Our senses help us to process and make sense of the world around us, and they can also be powerful triggers for creativity. When we pay attention to our senses, we can access a wealth of information that can be used to inform our decisions and our creative endeavors.
- Our senses are powerful tools that can help us to think more creatively and access memories and information that can be used to inform our decisions. By paying attention to our senses and using them to explore the world around us, we can unlock a wealth of knowledge and open up a world of possibilities.
Creativity is essential for problem-solving and innovation, and it is something that we all possess. @babaramaydoran on #InnovaBuzz podcast Click To Tweet
The Buzz – Our Innovation Round
Here are Barbara’s answers to the questions of our innovation round. Listen to the conversation to get the full scoop.
- 1 thing to be more innovative – Cultivate an attention that prioritizes creativity, combined with play and conversation.
- Best thing for new ideas – Built her own house learning during the process.
- Favourite resource – Painting with inks.
- Keep project/client on track – Tap into the emotional connection to the project, that will generate energy and commitment.
- Differentiate – We ARE all different from each other. Understand each other as distinctions and at the same time look for connections. Understand what sparks you.
Action
Commit to notice the world anew. Challenge yourself every day to do something that causes you just to notice something that you would not normally spend time noticing. The take action – do something that is connected to that.
Reach Out
You can reach out and thank Barbara through her website.
Suggested Guest
Barbara suggested we have a conversation with psychiatrist and neuroscience researcher Dr Iain McGilchrist and with Kees Dorst, Professor of Transdisciplinary Innovation at the University of Technology Sydney on a future InnovaBuzz Podcast episode.
Links
- Website
- Twitter – @babaramaydoran
- Instagram – @drbeedee
- http://www.barbaradoran.com.au/Barbara_Doran/home.html
- https://www.superorganisms.info
Books
- Creative Reboot: Catalysing Creative Intelligence, Dr Barbara Doran
Cool Things About Barbara
- In her early 20s Barbara designed and hand built an environmentally sustainable house.
- Barbara’s awards include UNESCO International Art and Bioethics Photography Award (2013 & 15) and the “She” national award (2009 & 2010)
- Barbara spent her childhood in Africa.
Creativity needs practice and it's a practice of attending to the world – that can be any activity we are drawn to and that sparks new ideas. @babaramaydoran on #InnovaBuzz podcast Click To Tweet
If you’d like a peek behind the curtain, of this show, go to innovabiz.co/flywheel – there you’ll be able to get your very own Digital Token which will give you membership of the Flywheel Nation Community, where you’ll have direct access to our amazing podcast guests, as well as a short audio program that walks you through the entire InnovaBuzz Podcasting Process. We have minted just 30 copies of this digital token so get in quick before they’re snapped up!