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The Five Faces of Genius: Creative Thinking Styles to Succeed at Work

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Useful With An Asterisk...
Interesting perspectives on creative thinking styles

The Five Faces of Genius: Creative Thinking Styles to Succeed at Work
Annette Moser-Wellman
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0142000353

Book Description

What do Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Leonardo da Vinci, and Ray Kroc, the man who created the McDonald's franchise enterprise, have in common? They have all mastered the skills of creative genius-essential tools in today's business climate.

Having researched the lives and techniques of past and present geniuses for this inspiring and provocative new handbook, Annette Moser-Wellman helps workers at all levels build and refine their working styles. These qualities of creativity-drawn from the the realms of art, science, as well as business-make up the five distinct "faces":

* Seer-the power to image
* Observer-the power to notice details
* Alchemist-the power to make connections
* Fool-the power to celebrate weakness
* Sage-the power to simplify

Moser-Wellman shows how we can utilize these creative thinking strategies and flourish in the workplace.

"It teaches people about the nature of creativity and how to cultivate it." (Fast Company)

"Moser-Wellman has given us five different perspectives from which to creatively tackle business challenges." (Carla J. Paonessa, Managing Partner, Accenture)

Customer Reviews:

Useful With An Asterisk..........2005-11-10

But so are most books of this type. The book's best feature is a nice combination of detail with theory. There are lots of exercises and a generally cheery "you can do it!" tone. That's good, but the book's recurring emphasis on developing multi-modal approaches to problem-solving is better (i.e., creativity means trying approaches you're not as familiar with). Concluding sections on interacting with people of dominant types that differ from you, and how to sell your ideas to them, is probably worth the cover price alone.
The author loves examples. These examples are not always correct (salons peaked in the 1700s, not the "seventeenth century" to cite one of more than a dozen examples), nor do they fit as neatly into their creative categories as the author supposes. In part, though, the reader comes to see this as the unique characteristics of a certain creative style--seeing this and making allowance for it is good practice for the rest of the book. After all, true creativity is aware of variant creative modes, especially in colleagues or even competitors.
The morning after skimming the entire book I began to experiment with some of its suggestions. Within two hours I had come up with a metaphor that will solve one of the most intractable process problems for my company--an idea that literally took my breath away, on something I'd been struggling with for months. I put a lot of work in; this book didn't give me any answers. But in a sense it reminded me of the answer, or gave me ideas about how and where to look for the answer. I was a college football player already, to use a metaphor, and this was a long look at a pro playbook. It won't work unless you're playing college ball; if you're a top pro player, you should look at something more advanced. But if you want to develop a basis of creative talent, this'll help.

Interesting perspectives on creative thinking styles.......2003-12-27

This book starts off a quick précis of the 5 faces : Seer, Observer, Alchemist, Fool, Sage. Then it gives a self-assessment of which Styles you are currently using. I scored highest on Fool & Observer, and lowest on Sage.

As I read through the book, I was disillusioned as to its worth. But when I got to Fool, I thought "that's me exactly" (there's no shame in being a 'Fool' in this schema).

So I looked back at the earlier chapters, and thought maybe the questions & examples were not as appropriate as they might have been?

Anyway, I began to appreciate the book more. Certainly the latter sections on how to apply the 5 different styles at work, and the strengths & weaknesses of teams who find themselves with & without all these players, were of more use than the theorising.

Amazon.com

Creativity and business have long enjoyed an uneasy alliance, with the latter more dependent on the former than it usually cares to admit. In The Five Faces of Genius, however, Annette Moser-Wellman builds a compelling case for creativity as the true force behind business and lays out ways in which it can be harnessed to even greater advantage. Moser-Wellman, president of a consulting firm that advocates just such an approach, breaks down the "thinking skills" of inventive masters like Mozart and Da Vinci into five types--Seer, Observer, Alchemist, Fool, and Sage--and then explains how readers can use the same processes in their own careers. "I discovered that the creative mind is the same no matter where you find it," she writes. "It took the same skills for Robert Frost to write a poem or for Bob Dylan to write a ballad as it did for Howard Schultz to create the idea for the Starbucks empire."

Following an exercise that helps readers determine their own creative strengths and weaknesses, Moser-Wellman goes into detail on each of her five traits and offers concrete suggestions for integrating them into the corporate environment. As epitomized by Ray Kroc of McDonald's, for example, Seers can learn to "create a plethora of possible business solutions and to predict the uncharted territory of their industry and company." By combining real-world examples and implementation ideas with her own incisive perspective, Moser-Wellman provides advice that should appeal to anyone who believes there is more to a job than uninspired, rote behavior. --Howard Rothman

Book Description

An essential primer of creative thinking techniques for success in today's new economy-and beyond.

What do Mozart, da Vinci, and Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon.com, have in common? They have all mastered skills of creative genius.

As the face of business rapidly changes and traditional models become obsolete overnight, companies are no longer looking for business managers who are experts at the system. They need people who can use their creativity to constantly reinvent the system. They want business artists.

Annette Moser-Wellman identifies five common creative styles or Faces of Genius: the Seer, the Observer, the Alchemist, the Fool, and the Sage. By using examples from geniuses old and new, she breaks down each face into specific techniques and provides exercises that anyone can use immediately to begin to think more creatively. The Five Faces of Genius teaches business professionals how to develop the creative skills necessary for success by emulating the techniques of past and present geniuses in the arts, sciences, and business.

Business geniuses and the "faces" they've used:

• Seer Ray Kroc envisioned a world lined with McDonald's franchises.
• Observer Howard Schulz brought Starbucks to the world after he noticed how much gourmet coffee a small store in Seattle was selling.
• Alchemist Mickey Drexler took the Coca-Cola idea of ubiquity and used it for Gap stores.

Customer Reviews:

Timeless wisdom.......2001-08-14

In the business world, we are often stuck in a set way of creating solutions. This book teaches you look at that process. Through example, the author shows how visualizing success, pondering what is missing in an equation, adding two things together to make something better, stumbling accross something new and looking back to the past for solutions for the future can all lead to genius. This is a very rough account of how Annette Moser-Wellman spins a complicated web about real life wizards that have changed not only the business landscape but the way we view the world. She looks at the strategies men like Ray Kroc, Walt Disney and Alfred Nobel employed and the tools they used to achieve where no one else had acheived. It is also a guide for how to act and view the business world every day. I read it and started seeing my own creative process differently. Can you ask anything more from a book?

My New Communication Bible.......2001-08-03

Few times in my life have I picked up a book that was so insightful, so readable and so true that I have recommended it to almost everyone I have come into contact with. It has changed my whole outlook on understanding how to take my ideas and develop them simply by looking at them from a variety of facets and by asking the right questions.

This book has also helped me cope with people I once perceived as difficult to get through to. I have since been able to 'read' my coworkers in such a way that every exchange ends positively, not at a cross-roads like before.

Great for business, indispensable for life.

Breath of Fresh Air in a Very Tired Workplace.......2001-04-08

This book will be helpful to every knowledge worker--the title should not scare off the 99% of the population that does not qualify for "genius" status.

Certainly there will be those looking for some magical way to lift themselves from obscurity, or lethargy, or oppression, that that think they are unappreciated geniuses and are simply looking for the window-dressing they need to be recognized. This book is not for them.

What this book does, in a very nice way that reminds one of Drucker's belief that the best work is work as a "calling"--work as a beloved endeavor that brings out the best we have to offer--or of the 7 Habits book that emphasizes the urgency of protecting those activities that are important but not urgent (things like family time, exercise, and freedom from the telephone--or now, email)--is "review the bidding" on five different workstyles, and how to make them better.

In a nutshell, this book is what results when Myers-Briggs and 7 Habits have children, and the children grow up to be artists. It is a good read, and at a minimum it will help *anybody* bring more reflection and more peace back into their daily work routine.

Become A Genius.......2001-04-08

This book, The Five Faces of Genius, is destined to make a difference, and become a "profitable experience" for anyone who reads it. It stimulates the imagination, which leads to ideas and concepts, which guide us to policies and programs, which generate strategies and tactics, which result in new products and services. The next thing you know, you have profits.

Listen to the writer, Robinson Davies (p.23) describing his inspirational moments: "An idea for a novel seizes me and will not let me go. What often appears in my head is a picture which somehow must be considered." Now, that happens to all of us. But, we need to learn how to act on those inspirational moments. This book teaches us how. Goethe's quote (p.193) is timely and has encouraged many of us to take action. It is at the heart of great leadership and magnificent results: "If you can imagine it, begin it. Boldness has genius, magic, and power in it." We should especially heed this advice during the current economic slump. It looks like the company, Agilent, did. The HP spinoff and maker of test and measurement equipment recently declared it would do something different to save money. It will cut the salaries of all 48,000 employees by 10% to avoid layoffs. This is an imaginative way to deal with economic hard times. It's also the "HP Way" - respect the individual. How to achieve this type of creative and positive response is all explained in the book. Finally, a third example that "exploded off the page" as I read the book are the Exercises found in each chapter. When you complete them you should submit them to your employer. They might become "the fuel that lights a fire" under your business.

This stuff works! Just read about the companies and people who have improved their lot. The author has identified 204 specific examples of individuals and organizations to make her point as to "the Skills needed to Master Ideas at Work." Heck, that's probably more than the number you would learn about at a good, four year college. And, this 208 page book can be read in a few hours.

In the Bible, Philippians 4:8, St. Paul urges us to think about "Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things." This book induces me to do just that. It seduces my senses. The author, Annette Moser-Wellman, knows what she is talking about. Can you define and dominate a market niche with your product or service? Read this book to find out how.

The author has imagined, noticed detail, connected domains, celebrated weakness, and simplified throughout her life. With this book she has brought the reader into "the company of the creative." Take advantage of her counsel. Discover the "seer, observer, alchemist, and sage" that lies within you. If you don't at least glance through this book, you're "a fool."

For "one shinning moment" then, be "a deer caught in the headlights of a passing car." Pause, in your life, read this book, and let the creative juices flow. Solve some problems in new, exciting, and imaginative ways. Then write the author, and thank her for encouraging you to be creative, improving the quality of your life, and increasing the productivity and profitability of your enterprise. Who knows, maybe someday you'll create a new "soft-chip technology" that eliminates cancer. This book is a wonderful, stimulating read. Enjoy it.

A Gem of A Management Tool.......2001-04-03

Yes, we know we need a great team to compete successfully, but that's easier said than done! We need a way to determine the members' strengths and weaknesses as they apply to analyzing problems and formulating new ideas. The Five Faces of Genius provides a quick assessment of individual thinking types with full explanations of each(good aspects, as well as pitfalls in processing). Each member can learn about himself, the other team players, and what to do with this new information as it applies to the group. What I found most refreshing was the concept that while it is nice to understand one's own way of thinking and creating, it is quite possible, even necessary,to try to personally develop new ways to formulate ideas.Also,knowledge about fellow workers' untapped abilities might just foster encouragement by staff of each other. Managers would do well to use this tool to understand the staff they supervise and allow each member to then do what he does best for the good of the whole! This is a gem.

Average customer rating:

Cinco Faces de um Gênio

Manufacturer: Alegro
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 8587122266

Average customer rating:

The Five Faces of Genius: Creative Thinking Styles to Succeed at Work
Annette Moser-Wellman
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OJIYZ0

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