Welcome to The X Factor Blog. Here you’ll find relevant use cases for Ideasicle X. Articles on the art of generating ideas while working remotely. Insights and studies into creativity itself. All from the desk of our founder and CEO, Will Burns.
Erwin Schrödinger said, “Consciousness is the fundamental reality.” So doesn’t it stand to reason that if we, to the degree we can, remove the UNfundamental reality (our physical reality) from the idea generating arena, then each participant’s individual consciousness is better able to shine through? And, better yet, the consciousness of multiple individuals on a team intermingle more purely? That’s exactly what we’ve found.
Read MoreWhat if your X had an application within it that allowed businesses to shop and recruit creative talent from around the world, put them into teams of four, and have them come up with ideas for said business over a few days? Now, you could go take years building that application, testing it, etc. Or you could recognize the fact that Ideasicle X already is that application.
Read MoreI stumbled upon a wonderful Facebook post from Beatle John on Facebook today that I think gives us several insights into the creative process. The post quotes Ivor Davis, an investigative reporter who was given unprecedented access to The Beatles when they were on tour in the early 1960’s. In the following blurb, Davis describes what he saw when he saw John and Paul working, creating, and writing some of the greatest music of all time.
Read MoreI’ve been using some form of Ideasicle X for fourteen years now, two with our new web application. And along the way my entire view of creativity itself has changed. I’ve learned so much about myself, I’ve learned new skills, and sharpened old ones. All by using this idea generating platform. Here are ten.
Read MoreIn today's interconnected world, virtual collaboration has become the norm for teams across diverse industries. While the benefits of virtual teamwork are widely acknowledged, one aspect that often goes unnoticed is the profound impact it has on nourishing a participant’s imagination. In this blog post, we explore three compelling ways in which virtual idea generation in teams nurtures the creative spirit, allowing ideas to flourish.
Read MoreWe are constantly scouring the science out there as it relates to improving our creativity. We want every advantage, right? You can see all of the individual studies we’ve found so far on our Science tab. But what if we combined the insights from different studies? How unstoppable would we be then? Well, let’s see what happens when you combine walking, the color green, and getting off your smartphone.
Read MoreIn-house agencies live their brand every day, they’re immersed in its culture, they get it first hand. However, the in-house agency is at a disadvantage to external agencies in one respect: the thinking can get insular. While external agencies are working on different brands all the time, in-house agencies work on one brand. All. Day. Long. In-housers know they need to bring in outside perspective from time to time, but many don’t want the risks involved in bringing in outside help. Is there an answer? Short answer, yes. Longer answer below.
Read MoreNorth Advertising was invited into a very attractive pitch recently for the Ledlenser portable lighting business and North felt they needed to manufacture every advantage humanly possible in order to win. After a deep strategy cycle designed to unearth the brand's "real,” they decided to augment their own creative muscle with a bit of IX creative juice. Here's their story as told by Rebecca.
Read MoreI was the director of biz dev at Arnold Worldwide for seven years, so I know how competitive it is and, more importantly, how savagely an agency will look for an edge over the competition in any given pitch. As long as it’s legal and wouldn’t get us kicked out of the pitch by the pitch consultant, we’d consider it. Well, we have a feature within the Ideasicle X platform that I wish I had when I was at Arnold. It’s an edge that I think will help some of the bolder agencies win pitches, but not every agency will have the guts.
Read MoreCreativity is a complex and fascinating phenomenon that has captivated humans for centuries. From the works of Leonardo da Vinci to the innovations of Steve Jobs, creativity has been celebrated as a hallmark of genius and a key driver of progress and innovation. However, for a long time, creativity was thought to be an elusive and mysterious concept that could not be isolated, measured or studied scientifically. That all changed with a groundbreaking study by J.P. Guilford in the 1960s.
Read MoreFor 13 years we have been on the front lines of bad ideas. Wait, that didn’t come out right. Let me try again. For 13 years we have been on the front lines interacting with marketers and agencies who are sick of their bad ideas and need help. That’s better. So we hear all the reasons. And sometimes it’s not until they see our process that they see what their own issues were. Anyway, here you go. The top 5 reasons marketing ideas have been lacking according to our customers.
Read MoreMost clients have multiple agencies working on their brands in different capacities. There’s a lead agency (AOR), a media agency, and then any combination of PR, social media, design, and/or promotions agencies who also bring their expertise to the client. Each of these agencies has its own superstars with masteries of their disciplines. What if a client could have these superstars form Super Teams and work in a concentrated way together coming up with ideas?
Read MoreRogerson is a nonprofit that develops and manages affordable housing, independent living, assisted living/memory care, and adult day health for older adults. We have a complex ecosystem and a layered “operating world” requiring different levels of expertise, requirements to market to myriad constituencies, and challenges the organization to speak with a unified voice. Here is Rogerson’s testimonial about the Ideasicle X process.
Read MoreAlan Watts was an English philosopher, writer, and speaker, focusing on popularizing Japanese, Chinese and Indian traditions of Buddhist, Taoist, and Hindu philosophies for a Western audience. I stumbled upon him years ago while killing time on YouTube and was blown away. I highly recommend any of his lectures. But one point he made in one lecture has always stuck with me and just today I realized why: it explains the importance of human creativity.
Read MoreMassPay was a triple decker of cascading idea needs. The named needed to change, though that wasn’t the assignment. They needed a brand idea to unify the company around a singular rallying cry. And then they needed a logo inspired by both. It was a tall task, but we were up to it and the MassPay clients were terrific. Here’s their story.
Read MoreIdeasicle X is a software platform designed to help marketing organizations and agencies tap into world-class freelance talent to come up with creative ideas. It’s an incredibly powerful tool R&D’ed over a ten-year period of virtual trial and virtual error. However, it is a clear disruption to our normal ways of coming up with ideas. As such, it’s not right for everyone. What follows a five situations where an Ideasicle X Subscription (IX) may NOT be right for your organization.
Read MoreWe like to think ideas are in our control. That we can sit down, think, and boom, an idea will happen. And that may happen for some, sometimes. But more often than not an idea hits you when you least expect it. In the shower, while gardening, or even by accident. I was curious about accidental ideas and did a little research. What follows are several great examples of these accidents and then ways we might be able to encourage happy accidents to occur.
Read MoreThe collaborative "build" on ideas was fun to watch. A nugget by one person would turn into a bigger idea and then bigger yet again. I have to be honest, it's great to arrive at a great idea, but the imagination and collaboration that the Ideasicle X platform enabled made the process more rewarding than the final output. Our meeting with the prospect was a success.
Read MoreLook at the problems you face, look at the components of those problems, and ask yourself, “I see what this component is, but what could it be?” The more we can train ourselves to realize nothing is as it seems, the more likely we are to see beyond the narrow definitions that surround us, and the more likely we are to see all that things that could be.
Read MoreHave you ever found yourself stuck in a creative rut when you're jamming like hell on a particular idea project, unable to generate new ideas? According to a recent study by Jackson G. Lu, Modupe Akinola, and Malia Mason at Columbia Business School, switching back and forth from one creative task to another can actually increase creativity by reducing a thing called “cognitive fixation.”
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