Everything in life, from the growth of a tree to the invention of groundbreaking technology, happens according to a process, as captured in the Law of Cause and Effect. Whether in nature or human endeavors, processes occur moment by moment to create all that we perceive:
the 2 to 3 ounces of blood pumped from our heart with every beat; the incremental emergence of a leaf from its stem. Each stage sets the foundation for what follows; without the preceding action, the next could not occur.
This means our lives are filled with an endless series of actions and steps that lead to particular results. In essence, every cause creates an effect, demonstrating order, direction, and purpose—94% of which are hidden from our perception within the apparent chaos of daily experiences.
However, the imagination of Western Science has been constrained from its inception, bound by the dictates of the Roman Catholic Church. This influence has profoundly shaped our understanding of the natural world. Though imaginative, some minds of the 20th century placed man above natural forces—like Icarus, unbound by the rules of reality. They believed in the mastery over nature, building “unsinkable ships” as if to defy it.
Even today, many in the scientific community cling to theories of randomness and chaos as explanations for the limitations of scientific thought while every first-year law student learns that “ignorance of the law is not a defence of the law” or put another way, randomness is simply man’s inability to understand the order existing in what is being observed.
This recognition could be seen in our observation of the natural world going back as far as the ancient times when man-made shifts away from assigning observations such as away from the redirection of rivers as a result of the Gods, towards measuring the changes that were occurring with the shift of land and assigning natural forces to its cause i.e. the Meander River; the study of how plants grow resulting in the understanding of photosynthesis which was discovered in the 1600s; the increasingly recognized record of large human populations in the Amazon basin, an idea that until 2021, was considered impossible.
The two things that become obvious in these situations are that preconceived ideas limited the future scope and scale of understanding but once focused attention was given to what was observable, preconceived ideas were shattered leading to leaps in understanding and possibilities.
In the context of ideation and creativity, one’s ability to recognize processes and systems in play can be the key to one’s ability to expand far beyond what you may believe is currently possible. When we learn to see the underlying structure of how ideas form and materialize, we can unlock the power to innovate consistently and effectively.
To expand on this idea on one additional level just like everything else in the universe, processes also occur according to and within the structure of laws and these laws govern how the processes unfold, whether we are conscious of them or not.
Just as gravity affects us whether we believe in it or not, the laws that govern creative and ideation processes are ever-present. By becoming aware of these laws, we gain the ability to navigate through them consciously, guiding our creativity toward impactful results.
Ideation is often misunderstood as a random burst of creativity or a flash of inspiration that strikes out of nowhere. Samuel Taylor Coleridge, a poet and philosopher first explored the term in 1818 suggesting it was an action of imagination suggesting that there were two types of ideation:
- Primary Imagination: The force behind perception and the creation of reality,
- Secondary Imagination: The conscious act of bringing new ideas into being.
Both of these ideas align with the philosophy of ideation as a process of perceiving, creating, and shaping our understanding of reality.
True ideation is a conscious and structured process. It involves exploring possibilities, gathering inputs, testing ideas, and applying them systematically. By recognizing ideation as a process, gives us the ability to see it not as luck or happenstance but as something that can be studied, learned, cultivated and directed.
Think of it like when you learned to drive a car. When you learned to drive a car you had to pay conscious attention to every step: the placement of your hands and feet, the size of the car relative to the distance of your left and right sides of the car in relation to the shoulder or centre line of the road.
When you focus your thought through the process of ideation, you direct creativity and consciously navigate the stages of what comes next. It’s a process of connecting thoughts and experiences, transforming them into solutions that are effective, novel, feasible, and applicable. Engaging with the ideation process intentionally turns thinking into a powerful tool for creation.
The process of ideation includes several key understandings, each contributing to a more innovative mindset with each action laying the foundation for what comes next. This mindset shift includes the following 8 components that start with a level setting of our experiences and extend through to understand trends that are occurring within the directions we are inclined to go. The following points exemplify the conscious action of becoming more innovative and these points will be discussed further over the next few weeks as I discuss each necessary alignment to shift one’s mindset from Limitation to Innovation where:
1. The Power of Agreements: Explore the rules that govern our experiences. By recognizing and challenging these principles, you broaden your creative horizons and uncover new pathways for innovative thinking.
2. Inward Focus: Tapping Into Past Experiences: Learn how our past experiences shape who we are today, both interpersonally and Intrapersonally. This heightened self-awareness allows you to tap into deeper, more personal sources of inspiration, enhancing your creative potential.
3. Focus Outward: Assigning Meaning to the World Around Us: Discover how our perception of information from our surroundings influences our reality. By interpreting external stimuli more effectively, you can generate more diverse and contextually relevant creative solutions.
4. Recognizing Patterns for Creative Problem-Solving: Understand how we naturally perceive experiences through patterns. Developing this awareness equips you to identify trends, set your ideas apart and lead to innovative insights.
5. The Art of Detection: Hone your ability to discern significant patterns within your experiences. This skill enables you to focus on the most relevant information, allowing for efficient and precise problem-solving in creative challenges.
6. Gathering Experiences: The Secret to Making Memories Memorable: Discover how creative individuals make experiences more memorable by asking the right questions. By systematically gathering and testing information, you build a reliable foundation for future creative projects.
7. The Catalyst: Embracing Challenges as a Condition for Innovation: Recognize that challenges are essential for sparking innovation. By connecting insights, you consistently generate actionable and impactful ideas, turning obstacles into opportunities.
8. The Creation: Leveraging AI to Connect the Dots: Learn how to use AI to connect the dots between conscious challenges and past experiences. This approach transforms experiences into cutting-edge, implementable solutions, enhancing your idea development process.
9. Actualization: Aligning Ideas with Trends: Explore how aligning your ideas with current and future trends helps turn innovative thoughts into actionable solutions. By anticipating what is to come, you can innovate ahead of emerging challenges in the market.
These steps encompass a comprehensive approach to ideation, starting with perception—gathering raw materials from our internal thoughts and external environments. The process then moves through stages of testing, application, and refinement.
By understanding ideation as a process, you gain control over your creativity. Instead of waiting for ideas to come to you, you can actively structure your thinking to align ideas with real-world applications. This shift allows you to innovate consistently and leverage your ideas more effectively.
In the following newsletters, we will unpack each step of the ideation process, providing you with actionable insights that you can incorporate into your thinking. This journey will help you unlock your potential for impactful innovation.
Embracing ideation as a process is the key to transforming thoughts into reality. This newsletter series serves as a roadmap, guiding you toward mastering this process and enhancing your innovative mindset.
Join me as we explore each step in detail over the coming weeks. Together, we will uncover how to develop a structured, innovation-driven approach to ideation that will set you apart as a true Ideation Philosopher. Let’s embark on this journey to turn your thoughts into reality.