Heisenberg and Origami puzzles

Group creative processes, ah what fun. Compounded impulses layered upon a tapestry of stretched possibilities permeating the sublime nature of a shared creative construct. Yet somehow, the whole kaboodle never seems to function quite right and we can never definitively describe that perfect storm of shared illustrious productivity. Individual creativity is difficult enough, but with a group it is perhaps even more so. Our prey shifts and shimmies, gyrates and slides, always eluding the grasp of any one member of the creative “team”, in its’ nature imitating the proverbial electron. When we try to pin it down, Heisenberg explains that we can never know with absolute certainty its position and velocity at the same instant. Group creativity seems to relish such ethereal existence.

However, group creativity is even more enigmatic, because not only is it factorially elusive, but also inherently as multi-faceted as an over folded origami puzzle. We can probe and bend it and it changes and rotates. We come at it from different angles and not only does it appear different, but since each team member is pulling and stretching on their own, all are doomed to failure in attempts to pin it down with descriptive darts. Our creative puzzle is folded by one, unfolded by another, turned, rotated, shoved together, and finally ripped and torn, yet somehow it survives in some form to emerge victorious not only in its complexity, but in its continuing ability to resurrect itself in a new form.

So, if I was in sales, I would now advocate an advertisement for the Ronco group creativity stretcher, guaranteed to insert every team member’s best creative input into a final group product with just a turn of the dial. However, since said creativity stretcher is currently backordered, instead we must all trudge along in the age-old method of putting heads together and working things out through brainstorming, conversation, and, yes here it comes…talent! Yet, each person’s experiences must also be filtered for each group product as well as their “team” collaborative skills, how old school is that? Call on the technology hero, he can save the day, you say? Well, wiki’s can be sticky when everyone is picky. Use email and the web, you say, well, okay, but I still want to see my group’s faces some day.

The pitfalls of illness and a fourth-quarter change, wreck havoc making our schedules necessary to rearrange. Varied pace and constraints may be quite essential, but more structure is often to our taste preferential. How to sort out what is internally or externally supplied, gives us pause to exclaim much more must be supplied. It is an origami puzzle with chocolate frosting, an enigma that too much time, it is costing. So, much as Heisenberg, we seek a method to describe how a creative product can come from a tribe. As elusive as all this, we cannot deny, that regardless of the odds, we’ll give it a try.
So, as we come to the close of our group project debate, we see that we still have much thought on our plate. We’ll exclaim as we ponder these with our new found delight, happy creativity to all, and to all a good night.
Smiles!