CREATIVITY!

Reading, writing, and creativity. (From BW)

"the ability to think creatively is essential for students as they seek jobs, companies as they go up against competitors, and nations competing in the global economy."

"Ultimately it's the process of having original ideas, but there are several steps. The first step is imagination, the capacity that we all have to see something in the mind's eye. Creativity is then using that imagination to solve problems -- call it applied imagination. Then innovation is putting that creativity into practice as applied creativity."

"The Renaissance was a flowering on all fronts. It concerns me that this U.S. initiative is focused on a piece of the problem but not the whole thing. A second element is teaching. You can't just give someone a creativity injection. You have to create an environment for curiosity and a way to encourage people and get the best out of them."

"On the corporate level, Pixar is a good example. The company has something called Pixar University, that runs classes, events, workshops and stuff throughout the day. Every employee is entitled to spend four hours a week at Pixar University, and they are encouraged to not take anything job-related. That keeps peoples' minds alive."

"You can't be a creative thinker if you're not stimulating your mind, just as you can't be an Olympic athlete if you don't train regularly."