Summary Of Ted Talk: Taking Imagination Seriously

In the Ted Talk, “Taking Imagination Seriously”, Janet Elchelman discussed a few problems that she has faced, and the strategies she used to solve them. Janet was first faced with the issue of her paints not arriving on time, then after brainstorming she was faced with another problem of her material being too heavy, then Janet reveals another dilemma that she was confronted with; there was not software designed yet to aid her in creating her sculpture. When the paints had not arrived Janet dove right into problem solving. She clearly understood she could not create the art that was planned. Janet started to look for alternatives, one being the brass sculpture. When she started to evaluate her alternative solutions, she realized the brass was too heavy and started to revisit the areas that she had once looked at. Janet also sought help from an engineer to aid in her designs, Peter Hepel. From project to project, various problems arose for Janet. The project that Janet took on in Philadelphia was no different. Divergent thinking was implemented in
I will focus mainly on evaluating the alternatives. I have often been hasty when I solve problems and I do not always allow myself to have time to analyze or revisit different possible solutions. I plan to develop my critical thinking skills by introducing a few of the strategies into my everyday life. Using my wasted time to question how I used my time during that day will help me to reshape how I use my time. I especially like the question, “If I spent every day this way for 10 years, would I at the end have accomplished something worthy of that time?” I will also start keeping an intellectual journal. This process will allow me to see how I react to situations and reflect upon how I would react