Fresh Take on Leading for Creativity in Business (Pt 4 of 5)
(Developing Co-Creative Ecosystems) Part Four of a five-part series bridging arts, science, and business to reclaim a sense of wonder in American innovation.
Toto, I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore.
Dorothy’s journey along the yellow brick road highlights the transformative power of openness and collaboration. The “open road” symbolizes our potential to explore beyond known limits, guided by heart and imagination. Meeting her companions, Dorothy learns that courage, compassion, and wisdom are choices we make in the face of the unknown.
However, the rapid innovation cycles demanded of Dorothy and her team in Oz also bring disappointment, loss, and grief. Dorothy’s journey is as much about her identity transition as it is about her destination.
As the story begins, Dorothy’s identity is that she is stuck on the farm. While she could dream, the “mental mask” she wore made her think she was not an adventurer. This thinking was grounded in a story she told herself that only one kind of adventure existed, and it was out there beyond her reach. Her journey mirrors how innovation teams can prematurely commit to an identity that does not serve them well or unlock their human creative potential. This is known as identity foreclosure in psychology research. This often stems from societal pressures and can lead to grief from the loss of potential selves and unmet expectations. It is like a mask we wear.
Dorothy’s companions in Oz, too, wore their own masks—the straw-laced ignorance of the clever scarecrow, the steely, rusting armor of the compassionate tin man, the pompous roar of the scared but brave lion, the sparkle and dazzle of ruby slippers on the feet of a curious adventurer, or the technological wizardry and velvet curtain hiding the wisdom of a trickster. These identity masks obscure our true nature and limit what we believe is possible and valuable.
For innovation teams and entrepreneurs, prematurely foreclosing on one’s identity can result in grappling with grief from unexplored possibilities. People resist transitioning away from a foreclosed identity due to its security and predictability—even when it's not where they want to be. The fear of the unknown and emotional attachment makes embracing change difficult.
Information Goes in Through the Heart, Not the Head
And other things Steve Jobs taught us about moving from the “me” to the “we” of innovation.
In “The Wizard of Oz,” when Dorothy sang “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” she was stuck in the mental holding pattern of preparing for everything she wanted to happen. However, her courageous imagination in Oz helped her realize she could become prepared for anything if she was vulnerable enough to see what she shared in common with her traveling companions rather than the obvious differences between them. Team Dorothy’s journey in the land of Oz helped her to also understand that imagination does not start in the brain but in our hearts.
Neuroscience research supports that emotional responses often occur before cognitive processing. The amygdala, involved in emotional reactions, activates faster than the prefrontal cortex, responsible for rational thinking. This suggests that our initial reaction to information or stories is often emotional.
The heart’s metaphor as a receiver of information highlights the heart’s interconnectedness with the brain. Many cultures and literary traditions value the heart as the seat of emotions, intuition, and wisdom. Phrases like “follow your heart” or “heartfelt” convey that deep truths and authentic experiences are felt more than thought.
In business, effective storytelling leverages emotional reception. Stories that resonate emotionally can inspire action, foster trust, and build strong connections. Companies that understand and tap into their employees’ and customers’ emotional narratives often see greater engagement and loyalty. Leaders who recognize the importance of the heart in decision-making can create more empathetic and inclusive environments. By valuing emotional intelligence alongside analytical skills, they can foster the interconnection between innovation and resilience within their teams.
Ultimately, storytelling is the mechanism shaping this interconnection. Storytelling is the glue that holds together the Wonder Economy—the human side of technology and the future of work.
Mirrors and Windows
It all started with the first time one of us stood up, looked at the stars, and thought, wow, I wonder what that’s all about. It’s that instinct that we have to know the unknown. Let’s think of this as our head instinct.
But there’s another instinct, too, which pulses through us when we’re with our friends. It’s that feeling like you matter and that you’re connected with others. It’s that instinct to belong–the wellbeing instincts of our hearts.
And then, finally, there’s the instinct of our hands. Even in nature, we see it when big trees intertwine with the forest around them. It’s that instinct to have autonomy and self-determination, but at the same time, to join with others to do more than any one of us can do alone.
These are the instincts that guide imagination. And it’s in connecting our head, heart, and hands that we’re able to synchronize our internal and external experiences of the world.
As an innovation team begins its work, all its members come with their own stories about who they are. Then, they begin the messy process of holding their identity story while attempting to craft the team's shared identity together.
Whether your own or that of your team at work, how do you know the story you tell yourself about who you are is true? So many factors play into these stories. Have you ever stopped to consider whose sense of wonder is your story is living and working in?
Here’s what I mean. The World Economic Forum notes that the human brain is wired to make objective thinking really difficult, making us prone to bias. These cognitive biases influence how we process information and can warp our sense of reality.
Neuroscientists study brain scans to detect and diagnose disease, but I want to tell you about a different kind of brain scan. As I wrote in Part One, I grew up in Appalachia’s Breathitt County, the same place that JD Vance says he calls home. Though poor economically it is rich beyond measure in other ways.
For many years, my mom was a home health nurse there. Due to shortages in healthcare providers, traveling nurses, often from more affluent places, would always be cycling through to support the needs of our county’s residents. Mom would always tell me about the first 10 seconds when one of the traveling nurses walked inside someone’s door for the first time.
The person whose home it was would look at the traveling nurse's eyes to gauge whether the traveler was judging them. Those 10 seconds, without a word being spoken, determined how successful the traveler nurse’s efforts would be.
We all use mirrors and windows to create and interpret meaning. Sometimes, these looking glass generate collective creativity, bringing us closer together. But other times, they create a distance between us that can almost seem overwhelming.
I Have a Dream. Think Different. Love Wins. Si Se Puede. Yes, We Can. Make America Great Again.
I’m aware that seeing these grouped together may be jarring to some reading this. But as I discussed in Part One, creativity is neither benevolent nor malevolent; it all depends on the goals of those using creativity to craft the story of change and, importantly, the creative tension brought about through the interpretation of the story by those hearing it.
Since the beginning of human history, the stories we tell have been the most powerful predictors of our future. I believe the very first storyteller was also our very first culture futurist.
Innovation takes its first breath at the edges of culture. New stories are always being told across all aspects of American society, but they are never happening in just one place, and rarely do any of us appreciate the impact that these new stories will make as they begin interacting with one another.
Long ago, the wheel was an innovation story. Today, it’s artificial intelligence. Both are innovation stories that changed our human relationship to time and distance. In doing so, they also changed our expectations and behaviors of what it means to work together.
Our brains are highly susceptible to storytelling and are wired to be social, so innovators must be good storytellers. The work of an innovator is not to be a lone genius. Even the idea of a lone genius is one of the most pervasive false stories we tell about innovation in America. The origin of the word genius is the protective spirit of a person or a place.
Americans often get twisted in how we talk about genius, viewing it as the individual achievement of an exceptional person. In reality, genius may be more accurately defined as the shared success of a group that possesses the skills to embrace creative tension long enough to uncover deeper, more meaningful questions. This co-creative approach underscores the importance of diverse perspectives and sustained intellectual effort in achieving transformational breakthroughs.
Innovation is an opportunity for something new, but every time we move towards something new, we also experience loss. Saying yes to one direction means you are saying no to another, so leaders must manage more than just the situational aspects of change. Leading creativity in business today means learning to support the psychological and emotional identity transitions that accompany change. Otherwise, you put even the best innovation programs at risk.
Oh wow. Oh wow. Oh wow.
Reading the headlines, many business leaders might assume that artificial intelligence (AI) advancements are only about technology. While the tech is central, an equally important but less-discussed aspect is the co-creation relationship between human brains and machines. Exciting research is exploring how the skills involved in question-asking and prompt engineering processes can enhance human-machine collaboration. Both processes rely on creativity and cognitive skills to generate effective cues that elicit meaningful responses. Combining these skills leads to more sophisticated and creative interactions with AI.
Using frameworks like Bloom's taxonomy—a system that classifies different levels of human cognition in thinking, learning, and understanding—can improve the complexity and effectiveness of our questions and prompts, leading to better AI responses. This synergy between human creativity and AI capabilities presents a significant opportunity for businesses. By fostering effective communication and collaboration between humans and AI, companies can unlock new potentials for innovation and problem-solving.
There is, perhaps, no other leader who comes to mind at the human-tech nexus as easily as Steve Jobs. Even at his death, it’s been reported that Job’s unfettered curiosity was still in full operation – his last words were: “Oh wow. Oh wow. Oh wow.”
A recent read in my newsfeed recounted how Steve Jobs once noted:
“I grow little of the food I eat, and of the little I do grow I did not breed or perfect the seeds. I do not make any of my own clothing. I speak a language I did not invent or refine. I did not discover the mathematics I use. I am protected by freedoms and laws I did not conceive of or legislate, and do not enforce or adjudicate. I am moved by music I did not create myself. When I needed medical attention, I was helpless to help myself survive. I did not invent the transistor, the microprocessor, object-oriented programming, or most of the technology I work with. I love and admire my species, living and dead, and am totally dependent on them for my life and well-being.”
Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs’ words perfectly depict the interconnection of the Wonder Economy™—the human side of technology and the future of work. Jobs also understood the power of a story.
While the concept of the heart receiving information first underscores the importance of emotions, the role of rational thought remains the same. A balanced approach integrating emotional insights with analytical reasoning leads to more holistic and effective decision-making.
To understand the Wonder Economy, we must first acknowledge its interdependencies and how its lifeblood, Creative Brain Capital, is formed through nested systems impacting the shape of thought that is made visible in the stories we tell. These systems include cosmic, environmental, animal, social, technological, brain, and body realms. Each of these layers interacts and shapes how creativity is fostered and expressed within an organization.
ACTING ON WORKERS
Leading creativity in the Wonder Economy requires understanding the forces acting on workers. Social factors such as inequality, economic status, media, and education significantly impact workforce dynamics. Environmental factors, including the workplace, living place, play place, and learning place, influence the well-being and productivity of employees. Additionally, spiritual factors like attachment, envy, anger, pride, and ignorance impact emotional health and interpersonal relationships within the workplace.
MANIFESTING WITHIN WORKERS
Understanding what manifests within workers is equally important. Neurodynamic factors such as grief loss, epigenetics, allostatic overload, and inflammation affect cognitive and emotional functioning. Continuous team development of creative brain skills, including cognitive, emotional, and collaborative abilities, fosters innovation and problem-solving. These internal and external influences influence the workforce's creative potential, motivation, and performance.
SHAPING WORKFORCE
While understanding the forces acting on and manifesting in workers is important, more is needed to lead creativity in business effectively. One of the most significant things that shapes the workforce is our stories about work.
The Storytelling Determinants of Creative Brain Capital direct our behaviors while framing what innovation teams see as possible and valuable. These Creative Brain Captial stories provide the context, meaning, and inspiration for team engagement and performance.
Think of the storytelling list in the image above as a kaleidoscope. By leveraging diverse stories to expand the aperture of the innovation process, organizations can create a rich menu of experiential possibilities that resonate more deeply with both employees and customers. To successfully lead creativity on the human side of tech and the future of work, leaders must be capable stewards of dynamic cultures where emotional and rational insights are recognized as symbiotic. Getting this balance right is crucial for embedding creative know-how into an organization’s DNA and winning in the Wonder Economy.
Looking Ahead: What’s Next in the Leading Creativity in Business Series?
Join me tomorrow for the final installment in the series, PART FIVE: FUTURE-PROOFING TALENT, where I’ll bring it all together into a new vision for leading for creativity in business.
Thanks for joining me this week to find unexpected answers for rekindling the lifeblood of American innovation: creativity.
ACCESS THE FULL FIVE-PART SERIES
PART ONE: QUANTUM CULTURE
Beyond the political, JD Vance and I can likely agree on four things about Breathitt County.PART TWO: MAKING THE HUMAN SIDE A SHARED VALUE
Leadership needs a glow-up to match the boldness of our visionaries, entrepreneurs, and innovators.PART THREE: BUILDING STRATEGIC FORESIGHT
Finding the intersection of technology with human creativity in our search for awakening and understanding in a world that often feels chaotic and bewildering.PART FOUR: DEVELOPING CO-CREATIVE ECOSYSTEMS.
Information goes in through the heart and other things Steve Jobs taught us about moving from the “me” to the “we” of innovation.PART FIVE: FUTURE-PROOFING TALENT
A hope-fueled drive to actively shape a more creative and kind future that pushes us to go beyond old notions of creative economy while reconnecting us to something greater than ourselves.
Theo Edmonds, Culture Futurist® & Founder, Creativity America | Bridging Creative Industries and Brain Science with Future of Work & Wondervation™
©2024 Theo Edmonds | All Rights Reserved. Please credit the author when using any of this content. The views expressed above are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of any organization with which the author is affiliated.