The Creative Contrarian

Introduction

“If anyone among you thinks he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise.”

— St. Paul, I Corinthians 3:18

Discovery consists in looking at the same thing as everyone else and thinking something different.

— Albert Szent-Györgyi, Hungarian Biochemist

I've been a lifelong student of the creative process. From my college days on through to my professional career as an author, business consultant, speaker, conference producer, product developer, and more recently as a toy designer, I've been interested in how and when the mind does its best work.

When does my mind feel most alive? Truth be told, it's when I allow myself to take on the role of the Wise Fool. Indeed, I've had an enduring fascination with this character: his free-spirited energy, his unexpected observations, and most importantly, his ability to shake people out of their habitual responses to problems so that they might conjure up more imaginative solutions.

The Wise Fool is an archetypal figure — such as the Sage, the Magician, and the Healer — who resides deep within the human psyche and fulfills a purposeful role in society. The Wise Fool is the one who looks at life in different and often non-traditional ways and pushes back against the status quo. We might recognize this character today as the creative contrarian.

Historically, Wise Fools were hired by the powerful (kings, ...