Trainer’s Notes for SUCCESS from Siva (TNSS 28): IMAGINATION: The What, Why, and How of it

Hi,
No wonder why Albert Einstein once said, "Imagination is more important than knowledge." It is the imaginative people and the innovative organizations that succeed more than the others. What is then imagination? How can one tap the power of imagination, a trait only possessed by the humans, and not by any other animals or any machines created by the man?

I have just read the book, 'IMAGINATION' by Dr. Harold Rugg, late Professor of Education at Columbia University, who spent years of research to answer one question that baffled him, "What is the nature of the act of imagination, and how a new idea is born?" He studied the autobiographies of several distinguished scientists, artists, authors, and personalities that  included many Nobel Prize winners. He studied several acts of human imagination that became miracles. During the process, he found that the modern man, though unleashed the power of imagination, did not actually know how he did it. So, he wanted to unearth this aspect of 'HOW' and presented his findings in his book. I would like to draw the essence of this crucially important aspect for the people at the present time from this book and share it with you through this week's TNSS.
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What is a Creative Act?
How is a poem made - a house, a bridge, a motor designed - a scientific hypothesis drawn? The creative process involves 4 stages:

Stage 1: A preparatory conscious period of confused struggle involving a focused effort to understand the problem in depth
Stage 2: A period of giving up and pushing the problem back or down into another compartment of the mind, requiring a patient wait
Stage 3: A sudden and unexpected flash of insight, that is required to be felt in order to capture it
Stage 4: A period of verification, critical testing, and reconstruction, taking advantage of the imaginative flash and building it further to solve the problem

The imagination flash can not be brought forth by sheer force or will. One must immerse himself deeply in the problem excluding all else for a long period of time. It could be days, weeks, months, or even years. Whether it is Newton's sudden flash about gravitation or Darwin's theory of evolution, or any other creative acts, all of them were invariably and inevitably preceded by the stage of dedicated effort, some suspense, and a patient wait. The flash will eventually occur. And when? No one knows. It might occur anytime, anywhere, suddenly, and unexpectedly. Only, the prepared grasp it, capture it, relate it, record it, and release it.

How to nurture and trigger imagination?
The conditions that favor the act of creativity are: 1) the quiet mind of relaxed concentration, 2) prolonged conscious preparation, 3) pertinent and ordered storage in the non-conscious mind, 4) a perceptive and alert observer, 5) the disciplinary effect of the form of the medium, and finally 6) the compelling and passionate drive.

Ways of releasing imagination?
Prof. Rugg also studied the ways of releasing the imagination and presented them in his book in detail with excellent examples. Those interested to learn more about this could read his book.
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We are all gifted with the power of imagination. However, we differ from each other in the way we tap this power, though we know our success in today's world very much depends on how 'innovative' we are in what we do. It is therefore important to appreciate the need to nurture the nature of creativity and create a culture both at home and office that encourages people to 'imagine' more and more. It would make a world of difference. JUST IMGINE.

To your greater SUCCESS,
With love and regards,
Siva

Trainer’s Notes for SUCCESS from Siva (TNSS 27): GREEN REVOLUTION in India: Do you know how it all began about 100 years before it actually happened?

Hi,
Who would dream that a boy playing in Iowa cornfields would save the lives of more than two billion people in Asia? This is the incredible story of Nobel laureate Norman Borlaug, a simple boy with a desire to feed the hungry – but Borlaug couldn’t have accomplished this without the help of Vice President Henry Wallace, who was influenced by inventor George Washington Carver, who in turn was rescued by farmer couple Moses and Susan Carver. Read further for more details on how it all happened...
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George W. Carver was born around 1864 in the United States. When he was just a few weeks old baby, he and his mother Mary were kidnapped by hooded raiders. A farming couple named Moses and Susan Carver rescued the orphaned boy from the kidnappers. Susan Carver thereafter raised the young boy as her own son. She taught him the basics of reading and writing and encouraged him to continue with his pursuits. George Carver attended school and later went to Iowa State Agriculture College where he received a bachelor’s degree in agriculture in 1894 and a master’s degree in 1896. He joined the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama in the same year where he worked as a teacher and also as a researcher for the next 50 years. George Carver went on to become a great agricultural scientist creating new markets for farmers with the discovery of up to 300 different uses of peanuts, sweet potatoes, pecans, and soybeans. His list of discoveries surpasses even that of Benjamin Franklin.

And while this is impressive by any count, his most important contribution to the world could be the time he spent with Henry Wallace. Carver instilled in a young Henry Wallace a love for plants and what they can do for humanity. Prior to becoming Truman’s Vice President, Wallace was the Secretary of Agriculture. As Vice President, Wallace used his power to create a station in Mexico whose sole purpose was to hybridize corn and wheat for arid climates, naming the young Norman Borlaug as its head. Under those auspices Borlaug developed the seeds that helped improve the crop yields substantially in India, Pakistan, and virtually many countries in every continent, saving billions of lives. The seeds of the Mexican Dwarf Wheat Varieties were imported into India and made available to the farmers under the stewardship of M. S. Swaminathan. Borlaug’s wheat varieties were accepted by the farmers in the states of Punjab, Haryana and UP with great zeal and planted them in large acreages which led to famed Green Revolution in India during 1960’s and also the further enhancement of wheat yields in the next 5 decades all across India.
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See, how the actions of simple farmers Susan and Moses Carver back in 1860’s had a monumental influence on the world in 1960’s and even today. Look at the link from Susan Carver to Norman Borlaug to Indian farmers over a period of about 150 years. But none of this was known when Susan Carver was frantically trying to find the kidnapped baby, or on the cold night when Moses Carver caught hold of the bag and rescued the baby.

The truth is that everything YOU do matters – what you did yesterday, what you do today, and what you will do tomorrow. Every choice you make, good or bad, can make a difference. New York Times bestselling author and speaker Andy Andrews chronicles this in his book, The Butterfly Effect, How Your Life Matters. “Everything you do matters,” he says. “Every move you make, every action you take … matters. Not just to you, or your family, or your business, or your hometown. Everything you do matters to all of us forever.” YOU matter. Your words, actions, and choices matter. Choose them wisely.

With love and regards,
Siva
value4value@gmail.com
Info sources: http://blog.commonflame.org/the-butterfly-effect/ & http://www.andyandrews.com/ms/the-boy-who/ & http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Washington_Carver