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The Kids with Cameras in the Merle Hay Mall

April 28, 2007 by Liz Leave a Comment

Get Creative

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It happens at banks. It happens at hotels. In this story it happened at a shopping mall.

The assignment was that students were to phorograph examples of specific attributes of creativity. Students were sent in groups to several malls in the same city.

Someone thought she was in charge of the world. the Merle Hay Mall. She stopped the students and sent them away. They were told they had been belligerent in HER MALL. Here’s a quote about it.

My students were incensed by her accusations. For starters, groups at other malls did not have run-ins with mall security. If questioned, they explained the assignment and the guards did not hinder them. Second, belligerence (like beauty) appears to be in the eyes of the beholder, because they felt harassed by the guards from the second they came into the mall. Third, the individual store owners from whom they asked permission were thrilled to have their store featured in an assignment about creativity. And finally, I went back to the mall and photographed their posted code of conduct myself. There’s no mention of a photography ban listed anywhere.

The question was: How would I respond to that if I were the teacher who made the assignment? Please remember that I have the benefit of hindsight and knowing what’s already been tried.

This lady is obviously a high-structure person. She sees things running one way and gets thrown terribly when something new gets added to the mix — no matter what it is. She’s probably read about terrorists taking pictures of buildings too. She added two and two and action was her defensive response.

I would have put the problem to the students as a question of creativity. How might we use creativity to get to the solution we want? This could be fun.

Looking at the problem from another angle. What would make someone hold onto the keys to the mall so tightly? How might we creatively get her to give them up with a smile? The answer lies in making her feel generous and important. How hard is that?

Let’s say that we invite her to lunch or for an interview with the class. Maybe we ask to meet with her at her office. I would dress in my best business clothes and bring two or three students dressed similarly. We’d ask her to explain her responsibilities and the breadth and depth of her “kingdom.” We would show appropriate respect for how hard she works.

Then we’d ask if we could take a few pictures of her. Would she mind helping us with our project? How might we work together to get this done? It would certainly be a feather in her cap to be an ambassador to the local school. I would see to it that folks knew about it. Perhaps she would like to send someone to watch the students work?

Yes, this would take extra time to get past the barriers, but it would be such a life lesson. The kids would be learning how to use their creativity to solve a problem that meant something to them and get a chance to “outsmart a grownup” too.

Who doesn’t like to “outsmart a grownup” –especially a cranky one who’s been on a rampage like that?

I bet those kids would come up with a better solution than this in even less time than I wrote this post.

After all, their teacher is the guy who wrote the book, GUST. He could guide them, much better than I ever could.

Click to the “Bloggy Tag Button” to see who tagged me.

–ME “Liz” Strauss
ONLY 12 DAYS UNTIL THE BLOGGING EXPERIENCE THAT WILL BE INCREDIBLE — Why SOBCon not that Other One. Click the button to register now.
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Filed Under: Bloggy Questions, Successful Blog Tagged With: bc, bloggy-tag, Carpe-Factum, Merle-Hay-Mall, Timothy-Johnson

SOBCon 07: Prizes and Gifts from Generous Folks

April 18, 2007 by Liz Leave a Comment

Fabulous Books and a Blog Design for Attendee Gifts

Wonderful people have arranged to be sending books and a special prize for attendees at SOBCon. I want to personally thank them for their generosity.

Prizes

Thank you to these generous folks who have offered at their own cost to donate these prizes to attendees at this years’s SOBCon event in Chicago on May 11-12.

The Blog Studio

Peter Flaschner, Creative Dictator, of The Blog Studio has come forward to present an offer of a $2,000 blog design as a door prize. Here’s a sample of what they’ve done in the last year. Click the design to visit their gallery.

Lisa Haneberg

Two Weeks to a Breakthrough

Lisa has donated multiple copies of her book, Two Weeks to a Breakthrough: How to Zoom Toward Your Goal in 14 Days or Less, and pens to go along with the book. Using Lisa Haneberg’s proven process will help you move beyond your fears and bad habits and help you make significant breakthroughs, even amid the overwhelming clutter of everyday life. Two Weeks to a Breakthrough uses both repetition and the gradual introduction of new techniques to increase your ability to discover and manifest new possibilities. Through a combination of step-by-step instructions, examples, exercises, and illustrations, you will learn how to clarify your goals, take steps to break through both internal and external obstacles, and discover how to transform your career and personal life into exactly what you’ve always wanted. from the Amazon review

Ted Demopoulos

Secrets of Successful Blogging

Ted has generously provided a pile of his book Secrets of Successful Blogging to the conference. This popular tome is has had rave reviews from everyone who has had a chance to use it. Amazon says: 101+ tips for blogging more efficiently, effectively, and profitably, gleamed from interviewing hundreds of people who concretely benefit from the blogosphere. from the Amazon review

And Gift Books Too!

Tim Johnson

GUST

Tim is bringing his hot-off-the-presses, new book, Gust: The “Tale” Wind of Office Politics. Office politics are a fact of life in every company, but no one has ever told us how to use them to our advantage until now. Timothy Johnson has written a compelling, entertaining and deeply practical guide to navigating through the often-treacherous winds of office dynamics. You can t avoid company politics any more than you can dodge air molecules, so you may as well learn how to thrive in the midst of it. This wonderful book will show you how. —Steve Farber, Author, The Radical Leap: A Personal Lesson in Extreme Leadership and The Radical Edge: Stoke Your Business, Amp Your Life and Change the World

Rumor has it that

LorelleOnWordpress

Rumor has it that the famous Lorelle, that’s right Lorelle VanFossen of Lorelle on WordPress and The Blog Herald, will not only be at SOBCon, but will also introduce her brand new book for bloggers and will be providing a copy to every attendee courtesy of The Blog Herald, a SOBCon 07 Sponsor. Until then, the book title and contents are a secret.

Thank you to all of these generous people. Aren’t they great? If you see one, please say I told you what a big deal we all think their support is.

–ME “Liz” Strauss
SOBCon 07 — Be part of the most interactive and attendee-focused experience in blogging history.

Filed Under: Business Book, SOB Business, Successful Blog Tagged With: bc, Lisa-Haneberg, Lorelle-VanFossen, Peter-Flaschner, SOBcon-07, Ted-Demopoulos, Timothy-Johnson

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