Let’s talk about engagement… with yourself, your projects and most certainly with others!  Inspiration comes in so many forms, but mainly from conversations and interactions with others.

In my work, I encounter so many people and I get so much energy from just chatting with them.  Everyone has a story and something to contribute to the conversation.

My brother often tells me to not make eye contact with anyone because I always invite the encounters (and I’ll give it to him as some of them get a little weird), but that’s even better when you are thinking creatively and innovatively!

My friend Donna Dowless says, “Always invite the encounters!”  And she’s right.  I witnessed a really cool engaging conversation a few years ago.  I had done a keynote in Maui and was on flight from Hawaii to Los Angeles.  There were three of us in my row in Delta Comfort Plus and the little lady in the middle seat turned to the guy in the window seat and asked him, “What do you do for a living?”  He replied that he was a writer, and she was delighted because she said that she was a literary agent.  She also mentioned that she had just signed a contract to write the memoirs of a famous comic book creator.  He whipped out his laptop so quickly to show her samples of his writing that he had done for a popular video game.  They proceeded to have the most fascinating conversation for our four-hour flight.  I pretended not to eavesdrop, but this was engagement at its finest!  And by the time we landed, they had agreed to work together.  Now, if he had not been open to the engagement, he might not have ever gotten that piece of work that I am sure changed his life.

Engaging with people really can inspire different thinking.  In my work, we use 9 different creative behaviors and an important one is Freshness.  Freshness is all about getting out of a rut and trying different things.  So, listening to a different kind of music, watching a different genre of movie, taking a different route to work or school, eating different foods, and of course… talking to people.  Talking with friends and colleagues is important, but so is talking to complete strangers.  And try for people who are different than you to experience a richer dialog.

Engagement is important… especially in this time of Covid where we are all just starting to venture out.  Put a ring on that conversation and use it to get inspired and energized!

--gert--