Hello world! For those of you who are new, welcome to the Luminstruct blog! I am currently working on a "365 Word Project" where everyday I will be posting a reflection on a word and today's word is "Imagination".
I was actually very excited about this word because there is so much you could do with it! Ironically, I want to start with one of the least imaginative concepts and write the definition. According to the dictionary, imagination (n) is a "faculty or action of forming new ideas, or images or concepts of external objects not present to the senses." Other words that can be used are creative power, fancy, vision, and the "informal mind's eye." Yesterday I discussed the power we have on each other and how ideas are planted in our minds to grow into something big! This huge outcome can only happen, however, with a little imagination. It is the ability to look at something simple and picture what it could be turned into!
Let's start with a simple exercise, look around your room and pick a random inanimate object. Now, for the next minute, take some time and think of all the possible futures this object could have for you. For instance, the single sock next to my laundry basket with a big hole in the toe could be used to keep my foot (partially) warm in this cold weather, I could throw it away, or throw it in my hamper for the next laundry day. These responses are the normal "motions" we go through every single day. It all becomes a schedule, list, or "definition" of things and the spark of life and even the fun in what we do is lost. Now look at the inanimate object again and begin to stretch the boundaries of this object. My holey sock could now be tied in a knot and given to the family dog as a chew toy, it could be further ripped and act as an arm band (or head band if you're a bit more daring), or it could be somehow created into an odd mitten. Finally I want you to throw all limits out of the window and come up with the craziest thing you could come up with for this item. My holey sock is now not even a sock, it is an evil puppet named Carl who has vowed vengeance upon the residents of "Bedroom" and has begun building his army to take over any open floor space his eye can see!
So besides the fact that I'm showing you how weird I am, what does this exercise prove? For beginners, it shows you the process needed to train your brain and potentially restore parts of your childhood imagination and sense of creativity. It also shows that all things have a possibility for greatness, it just takes a little hard work and a new angle of looking at things. I started with a quote from Walt Disney because I think he is the perfect example of this. Remember that "it was all started with a mouse."
Now let's take this activity a step further and bring in multiple people to all look at the same item and come up with different outcomes. What if they then shared their ideas and tried to come up with a final product they all liked? I can guarantee you it would be a different final product with different groups of people. All of them are taking from things they know from their past and working together in order to create something new! If you want to be known for your creativity or your mind, it is important to become a dreamer and know that anything is possible. Always strive for new ideas and experience new things in life to further build you imagination "factory", these will only add up to make better things! I wanted to end this post with a cover of one of the best "dreamer" songs out there. Although it may not be as powerful as the original, I decided to use the cover done by the group, "Playing for Change". It will only further show that once you get a set of dreamers together and have them work together on a common interest, their imagination will turn their dreams into a reality.
I was actually very excited about this word because there is so much you could do with it! Ironically, I want to start with one of the least imaginative concepts and write the definition. According to the dictionary, imagination (n) is a "faculty or action of forming new ideas, or images or concepts of external objects not present to the senses." Other words that can be used are creative power, fancy, vision, and the "informal mind's eye." Yesterday I discussed the power we have on each other and how ideas are planted in our minds to grow into something big! This huge outcome can only happen, however, with a little imagination. It is the ability to look at something simple and picture what it could be turned into!
Let's start with a simple exercise, look around your room and pick a random inanimate object. Now, for the next minute, take some time and think of all the possible futures this object could have for you. For instance, the single sock next to my laundry basket with a big hole in the toe could be used to keep my foot (partially) warm in this cold weather, I could throw it away, or throw it in my hamper for the next laundry day. These responses are the normal "motions" we go through every single day. It all becomes a schedule, list, or "definition" of things and the spark of life and even the fun in what we do is lost. Now look at the inanimate object again and begin to stretch the boundaries of this object. My holey sock could now be tied in a knot and given to the family dog as a chew toy, it could be further ripped and act as an arm band (or head band if you're a bit more daring), or it could be somehow created into an odd mitten. Finally I want you to throw all limits out of the window and come up with the craziest thing you could come up with for this item. My holey sock is now not even a sock, it is an evil puppet named Carl who has vowed vengeance upon the residents of "Bedroom" and has begun building his army to take over any open floor space his eye can see!
So besides the fact that I'm showing you how weird I am, what does this exercise prove? For beginners, it shows you the process needed to train your brain and potentially restore parts of your childhood imagination and sense of creativity. It also shows that all things have a possibility for greatness, it just takes a little hard work and a new angle of looking at things. I started with a quote from Walt Disney because I think he is the perfect example of this. Remember that "it was all started with a mouse."
Now let's take this activity a step further and bring in multiple people to all look at the same item and come up with different outcomes. What if they then shared their ideas and tried to come up with a final product they all liked? I can guarantee you it would be a different final product with different groups of people. All of them are taking from things they know from their past and working together in order to create something new! If you want to be known for your creativity or your mind, it is important to become a dreamer and know that anything is possible. Always strive for new ideas and experience new things in life to further build you imagination "factory", these will only add up to make better things! I wanted to end this post with a cover of one of the best "dreamer" songs out there. Although it may not be as powerful as the original, I decided to use the cover done by the group, "Playing for Change". It will only further show that once you get a set of dreamers together and have them work together on a common interest, their imagination will turn their dreams into a reality.
Take Away:
Tomorrow's Topic: "Secret"
