Tales From the
Wonder Emporium
Visual and Creative Thinking in Business
Kelsey Ruger
Webvisions 2008

I’m a kid at

I’ve always had a wild imagination.

I’ve always been a doodler.

I learned the power of
storytelling at an early age.

So why
THIS presentation
NOW?
We’ll
talk
about
class some
This visual t’s o
f
ut art thinkin Lo
isn’t abo stuff g nd to
doing but it grou
o r even bigger ’s over.
work. than t c
great sessio
his
n

Tell your story. Show your story.
+

A Visual
Library
From “Mapping Inner Space”
by Nancy Margulies, Nusa Maal, and Margaret J. Wheatley

Some people say...
Man, Kelsey I don’t know about you
but that’s just not the world I live in.

Sometimes
I don’t feel creative.

Who has time
for creativity
anyway?

I am busier than I have ever been.
I have too many projects for that
and there are deadlines I have to meet.

Some people get serious

REALLY serious.

It’s easy to see why that might be frustrating.
Business life doesn’t always make it easy to
pursue your creative goals.

Do visual and creative thinking really have a place
in today’s business workplace?

It’s true
The business world has changed.

Business isn't a newtonian machine of mechanical
laws that work like a clock.
an It’s
t’s . It abou
I
ism
t ules
gan and
invent
ion, er r n
or adopt Few ed o
lives es ion an
d bas rial
ath flexib ust
bre ility ind
mo dels
The old ways don't convert well in an age of
service, information and technology.

Enter Mr. Magorium
Mr. Magorium is the eccentric owner
of a magical toy store. His belief in
imagination has given him an
unnaturally long life and the ability
perform amazing feats of magic.

Even though he is the title character...
This story isn’t about Mr. Magorium

Meet Molly Mahoney.
She Feels Stuck.

Molly’s problem isn’t foreign... Just different
I don’t sleep
I watch the
enough
This isn’t fun clock all day.
anymore.
anymore.
It’s tough to I am grumpy
get up in the all the time.
morning.
I feel like I’m Nothing turns
There’s
dragging all the me on
nothing to look
time anymore.
forward to.

So it was back to the drawing
board because the solution wasn’t
just about how to make
businesses better

How does Molly’s Story Relate To Us?

Let me tell you a story
The quest is a search for a person, place, or thing, tangible or intangible. The
character is looking for something they hope or expect to find that will significantly
change her life. The character may be reluctant at first, but eventually does get
caught up in the need to reach the end point. The object of the search reflects
heavily on their character and usually alters it in some way, thus affecting the
character change, which is important by the end.

I will not pick my nose in class. I will not pick my nose in class.
I will not pick my nose in class. I will not pick my nose in class.
I will not pick my nose in class. I will not pick my nose in class.
I will not pick my nose in class. I will not pick my nose in class.
I will not pick my nose in class. I will not pick my nose in class.
I will not pick my nose in class. I will not pick my nose in class.
I will not pick my nose in class. I will not pick my nose in class.
I will not pick my nose in class. I will not pick my nose in class.
Chapter 1
Remember when you could conquer the world?

Why don’t adults believe what they
did when they were kids?

Do you
Remember
what it’s like to be a
kid?

Why do adults
stop believing
the things they believed
when they
were kids?

Stop being silly. You need to act like an adult.
Your Mother
You want to do what? Nobody does that!
Your high school buddy
That’s wrong. Do it the way I showed you.
Your first boss

The 6 steps for de-evolving of creativity.
Step
p 1: K Stick 2:
Ste t O with p 3: t
no statu the Ste righ
It’s silly. s qu the
be o.
to Find wers.
ans
4:
Step ave a Step
5:
ays h an. Alwa 6:
Alw us pl
ys be S tep nd
erio
logica ha
s l. Teac t.
Repea

Now do you see
why he’s mad?

The education process.

The shortest distance between two points
might be a straight line.

Being creative requires taking routes
that deviate from the straight path

Recent studies have show that humans use about
80% of our brain to process visual information
yet most things in business are either auditory or written

Visual Lesson 1: The basics are easy
• Vertical Lines • Diamond (Decision)
• Horizontal Lines • Spiral (Change in Direction)
• Circles • Circle (harmony)
• Spirals • Direction (arrow)
• Wavy Lines • Straight
• Jagged Lines • Triangle (Relationship)
• Star (success)

as achild.
to paint
lifetime
kawhole
It too o Picasso
Pabl

There is still a six-year old inside of all of us, still
undaunted, and just dying to come out and play.
Granville Toogood

There is no tooth fairy. There is no tooth fairy.
There is no tooth fairy. There is no tooth fairy.
There is no tooth fairy. There is no tooth fairy.
There is no tooth fairy. There is no tooth fairy.
There is no tooth fairy. There is no tooth fairy.
There is no tooth fairy. There is no tooth fairy.
There is no tooth fairy. There is no tooth fairy.
There is no tooth fairy. There is no tooth fairy.
Chapter 2
Is seeing believe or is believing seeing?

Everything isn’t “just” what it is.

Without the ability to temporarily forget what we
know our minds remain cluttered with ready-
made answers, and we never have an
opportunity to ask the questions that lead off the
beaten path in new directions.
Roger von Oech

What are the barriers to seeing things differently?

Roadblocks that prevent us from believing that
we can see something different.
hould
re s ght It sh
The a ri ould
the
be er. logica be llow .
nsw l. Fo les
a ru
on’t be Be pr
actic
D
oolish. al.
f

Discovery consists of looking at the
same thing as everyone else and
thinking or seeing something
different.

What do you see?
Before you can solve problems
creatively you have to be able to see
it in your mind.

Chapter 3
Do you have a sparkle?

Do you have a sparkle?

The Main Ingredient
All the creative exercises in the world
won’t matter if you are missing one
important ingredient - belief in yourself.

we believe the the labels that we or others have
applied. After a lifetime of this type of
programming most people start to accept that
there isn’t anything better, so they don't look,
don't push, and don't ask.
Kelsey Ruger

Understand Molly Mahoney’s story.

Conclusion
Putting it all together.

It’s not the store it’s you.
You can make it whatever you want.

Getting started with Visual and Creative Thinking
Encourage actual play and fun
Create an open environment
Start a School
Practice, Practice, Practice
Look beyond the obvious

The Final Lesson
The Five Acts

It wasn’t the fact that he died...
but rather the life he led before that.

The Wisdom of 82 Years...
If I had my life to live over, I’d try to make more mistakes next time. I
would relax, I would limber up, I would be crazier than I had been on this
trip.
I know very few things I would take seriously anymore. I would take more
chances. I would take more trips, I would scale more mountains, I would
swim more rivers and I would eat more ice cream and fewer beans.
I’ve been one of those people who never went anywhere without a
thermometer, a hot water bottle, a gargle, a raincoat, and a parachute.
I would start barefoot earlier in the spring, and I would ride more merry-go-
rounds, and catch more golden ring, and greet more people, and pick more
flowers, and dance more often. If I had to do it all over again. But you
see...I don’t
- Anonymous

The Wisdom of 82 Years...
If I had my life to live over, I’d try to make more mistakes next time. I
would relax, I would limber up, I would be crazier than I had been on this
trip.
Thi k
samthings I would takenseriously anymore. I wouldntakeen
I know veryefew e v
T h of life e d e more
chances. I iwould ply a I would n the
aptake more trips,nd work scale more mountains, life is
I
princ ples s. as a s s I would
swim more busineand
rivers s I would eat imorev ice cream and fewer sine
da ly a
d entu bu beans. asion
c
to
iss out. re an oc n g to.
I’ve been on’t m those people who never went anywhere without arisi
D one of orth
w
thermometer, a hot water bottle, a gargle, a raincoat, and a parachute.
I would start barefoot earlier in the spring, and I would ride more merry-go-
rounds, and catch more golden ring, and greet more people, and pick more
flowers, and dance more often. If I had to do it all over again. But you
see...I don’t
- Anonymous