A Whole New Mind is a page turner as a coworker of mine would say. A quick read with many solid points supporting its main argument which is this: possessing knowledge and knowledge-based skills is not enough to be successful anymore. Diversification is a necessity and a person must have an appreciation and understanding of the creative forces at work in the world to not get left behind. Pink's book presents 6 creative competencies that every person must understand in order to succeed in tomorrow's world. Those competencies are Design, Story, Symphony, Empathy, Play, and Meaning.My own life experiences support Pink's argument. I graduated with a degree in business (a common pursuit as Pink points out several times), and found success, but it wasn't until I started practicing more creative skills that I began to feel fulfilled.
There are several take-aways in A Whole New Mind. I look forward to putting the following into practice:
- Design: Looking at everyday objects and thinking about their design (beauty and utility).
- Empathy: The group activity of guessing the high and low points of a coworker's day and then comparing them against that person's actual responses.
- Empathy/Story: Taking acting/improv classes.
- Empathy: Interviewing coworkers to learn the professional/personal path they took in life.
- Empathy: Volunteering more.
- Symphony: Listening to symphonies to understand the complexities of how small pieces make up a whole.
- Symphony: Keeping an inspiration board for everyday things that can enhance a current/future project.
- Symphony: Having more organized brainstorm sessions.
- Meaning: Assembling a list of things I am thankful for. One for every year of my life.
- Meaning: Taking spirituality, and the exploration of spirituality seriously.
- Meaning: Taking time out of the day/week to practice mindfulness.
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