Episode 6: Creativity and Survival

“We are in unprecedented times.” We’ve been hearing this statement from government officials, employers, and even our friends and family repeatedly over the past three years. From COVID and the war in Ukraine, Chat GPT, and a shaky economy, the threats to life as we know it are all around us. What do we need to respond to all this change? We need creativity.

Creativity has driven innovation and the evolution of humankind. As the application of imagination, creativity is problem solving. It is how we adapt and survive. We frequently think of creative people as artists and musicians, but creativity can be found in every walk of life—and we need it now more than ever.

From DARPA and the Special Forces to the Manhattan Project and the policies allowing the US and other allies to shore up the Ukrainian war effort, thinking outside the box couldn’t be more valuable. However not everyone is as open to creative problem solving as they could or, probably, should be. We discuss corporations taking the ostrich-head-in-the-sand approach to geopolitical issues to their own detriment. We also talk about how failing to employ creative thinking can styme efficiency, effectiveness, and our very survival.

This episode is a celebration of creative thinking but also a warning for those unwilling to adapt. Chances are, success across all the major hurdles we face, as individuals, organizations, and societies, will entirely depend on creativity, imagination, and innovation.