how to think like da vinci.pdf

DVD companion to the international best-selling book, with 48 page downloadable activity booklet

How to

Think like Leonardo da V inci

Liberating Your Your Creativity and Innovation

Michael J. Gelb

How To Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci

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Welcome to How To Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci . This presentation is based on the best-selling book How To Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci: Seven Steps to Genius Every Day , by Michael Gelb, founder and president of The High Performance Learning© Center. This program provides new approaches to inspiring creativity, developing critical thinking skills, and generating new ideas. In the next two hours, Michael Gelb will share the seven principles and invite you to participate in understanding them and actively practicing them. While viewing the presentation, follow along and take notes in this participant guide. It cues you to key learning points and includes numerous activities and specified "homework" to enable your learning. Be prepared to have your customary ways of thinking challenged. Today's organizations desperately need people who have both analytical skills and bold imagination, who can create innovative products and new businesses. Michael Gelb's presentation - and the tools it contains - can help you and your organization achieve new levels of performance. Of course, Leonardo Da Vinci did not develop his genius overnight, nor did Michael Gelb learn how to understand that genius and apply his methods in just a couple of hours. Simply watching watching today's program program will not transform you into an instant instant genius. It requires rigorous self-development and learning through practice. To facilitate this learning, activities for before, during and after the seminar have been designed to accompany the presentation.

SCENE SELECTION

PART ONE: Introduction to Leonardo The Seven Principles 1.Curiosità 2.Dimostrazione 2. Dimostrazione 3.Sensazione 4.Sfumato 4. Sfumato 5. PART TWO: Arte/Scienza 6.Corporalita 7.Connessione

PART THREE - Question and Answer


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Welcome to How To Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci . This presentation is based on the best-selling book How To Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci: Seven Steps to Genius Every Day , by Michael Gelb, founder and president of The High Performance Learning© Center. This program provides new approaches to inspiring creativity, developing critical thinking skills, and generating new ideas. In the next two hours, Michael Gelb will share the seven principles and invite you to participate in understanding them and actively practicing them. While viewing the presentation, follow along and take notes in this participant guide. It cues you to key learning points and includes numerous activities and specified "homework" to enable your learning. Be prepared to have your customary ways of thinking challenged. Today's organizations desperately need people who have both analytical skills and bold imagination, who can create innovative products and new businesses. Michael Gelb's presentation - and the tools it contains - can help you and your organization achieve new levels of performance. Of course, Leonardo Da Vinci did not develop his genius overnight, nor did Michael Gelb learn how to understand that genius and apply his methods in just a couple of hours. Simply watching watching today's program program will not transform you into an instant instant genius. It requires rigorous self-development and learning through practice. To facilitate this learning, activities for before, during and after the seminar have been designed to accompany the presentation.

SCENE SELECTION

PART ONE: Introduction to Leonardo The Seven Principles 1.Curiosità 2.Dimostrazione 2. Dimostrazione 3.Sensazione 4.Sfumato 4. Sfumato 5. PART TWO: Arte/Scienza 6.Corporalita 7.Connessione

PART THREE - Question and Answer


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What You Will Learn

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Introduction

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Notes:

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Learning from Leonardo: 7 Steps to Genius Every Day

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Activity 1: Assessing your Curiosità Curiosità CURIOSITÀ: Approaching life with insatiable curiosity and an unrelenting quest for continuous learning

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Activity 2: Curiosità Skill Builder

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Activity 3: Dimostrazione Assessment and Skill Builder DIMOSTRAZIONE : Committing to test knowledge through

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experience, persistence and a willingness to learn from mistakes SENSAZIONE : Continually refining the senses, especially sight, as the means to enliven experience: Homework 1. SFUMATO: Embracing ambiguity, paradox and uncertainty

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Activity 4: Assessing Sfumato

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Activity 5: Sfumato Skill Builder

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Part Two: ARTE/SCIENZA: Balancing science and art, logic and imagination - 'whole-brain thinking' Activity 6: Arte/Scienza Assessment - Left-brain/right-brain

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Activity 7: Arte/Scienza Skill Builder - Mind mapping : Homework 2.

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CORPORALITA: Cultivating grace, ambidexterity, fitness and poise: Homework 3. CONNESSIONE: Recognizing and appreciating the interconnectedness of all things - 'systems thinking' Activity 8: Connessione Assessment

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Activity 9: Connessione Skill Builder

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Review

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Post-Presentation Activities

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Practice Your Mind Mapping Skills

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RECOMMENDED READING

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What You You Will Learn:

By participating in this seminar, you will be able to: • Increase your creative capabilities capabiliti es every day • Apply methods methods to balance balance critical critical and analytical thinking with imagination imagination • Expand your ability to generate generate new ideas • Use mind maps to navigate through ambiguity and uncertainty • Identify how to apply "systems thinking" to problem solving • Nurture creativity and innovation in your organization

Leonardo invented the parachute before anyone could fly. fly. Imagine what that kind of thinking can do for you!

How To Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci Liberating Your Creativity and Innovation

How To Get The Most Out Of This Seminar:

Pre-Presentation Activities

• Prepare yourself for challenge. Some of the concepts presented in this seminar may ask you to stretch the scope of your thinking. • Open yourself to new ideas. It is often helpful to relax both mind and body through simple breathing exercises. Begin by sitting erect with your back straight and your head centered above the torso. Let your arms dangle loosely. Rest your hands on your thighs or knees with your elbows close to your body. • Close your eyes to avoid being distracted, and breathe in a deep breath slowly until your lungs are full. Then exhale completely and breathe in slowly again. Keep your attention on the flow of air entering and leaving your body. Repeat this for a minute or two.

During this Program

• Participate! Learning is not a passive activity. You can absorb a lot by just looking and listening, but you'll learn a great deal more if you are actively involved. • Take notes in the space provided in this participant guide. • Engage in the learning activities. Throughout the seminar there will be opportunities to participate in activities designed to reinforce the learning. Although you will be pressed for time, be sure to at least begin each activity, and write down any questions that arise during the work. If you begin each activity it will be easier for you to return later to those that you could not complete.

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Post-Presentation Activities

• Complete any unfinished activities. These are important skill-builders that will help you internalize the Da Vinci principles. • Do the "homework". You will find a wealth of post-presentation activities beginning on page 34. Because there is not enough time during the seminar to practice each of the Da Vinci principles, activities have been provided that will not only reinforce the learning, but will also help you apply what you have learned in your organization. • Share what you have learned with other members of your organization.

• Read Michael Gelb's books, How To Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci: Seven Steps to Genius Every Day (Delacorte Press, New York, 1998), and do The How To Think Like Leonardo da Vinci WORKBOOK (Dell Publishing, New York, 1999). • Consider using the resources listed at the end of the participant's guide to learn more, and to develop one or more new skills that will expand your brain's capability. The "recommended reading" list begins on page 45.

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Liberating Your Creativity and Innovation

Introduction

For more than five centuries Western civilization has viewed with admiration and awe the life and works of a great genius of the Renaissance, Leonardo Da Vinci. The phrase "Renaissance man", which is used to describe anyone with a multitude of talents and skills, might have been coined to describe Leonardo Da Vinci. He was a painter whose masterpieces still influence artists today and delight all who see them. He was an astronomer, a musician, a scientist, an inventor, and a profound philosopher, who kept meticulous notes and sketches of all he thought and observed. How did he achieve all this? Da Vinci himself has recorded his methods and has described how to think, how to develop and use our inherent capabilities, how to integrate everything we learn into one harmonious whole. Five centuries later, as people search for new ways to improve the performance of their organizations, Da Vinci's ideas have re-emerged as the buzzwords of management theory. When we speak of: "continuous learning", "whole-brain thinking", "mind-body connection" "brainstorming", "systems thinking", "thriving on chaos", we are simply using new language to describe concepts set down long ago by Leonardo Da Vinci. In today's global marketplace, all organizations are searching for ways to revitalize themselves. Corporations, government entities and non-profits all need to find new methods of working, new ways to organize themselves, new products and services in a rapidly changing world. People in organizations are being called upon to develop competencies that will enlarge their own scope and will yield innovation and productivity for their organizations. For these people, Leonardo Da Vinci has a message: If you are willing to apply yourself, you can learn how to think like a genius!


Notes:

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Learning from Leonardo:

Seven Steps to Genius Every Day

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CURIOSITÀ: Approaching life with insatiable curiosity and an unrelenting quest for continuous learning

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DIMOSTRAZIONE: Committing to test knowledge through experience, persistence and a willingness to learn from mistakes

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SENSAZIONE : Continually refining the senses, especially sight, as the means to enliven experience

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SFUMATO: Embracing ambiguity, paradox and uncertainty

ARTE/SCIENZA: Balancing science and art, logic and imagination - 'whole-brain thinking'

!

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CORPORALITA: Cultivating grace, ambidexterity, fitness, and poise

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CONNESSIONE: Recognizing and appreciating the interconnectedness of all things 'systems thinking'

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ACTIVITY 1: Assessing Your Curiosità

Your desire to learn and develop your natural abilities is the fountain from which all Da Vincian practices will flow. Begin by contemplating the statements below. Your reflections will help you understand how well you are already using your curiosità, and where there is room for improvement.

• My friends would describe me as open minded & curious.

• I am always learning something new. • I seek out new perspectives when facing an important decision.

• I take adequate time for reflection. • I am a voracious reader.

• When I hear a new word, I always look it up. • I solicit feedback from friends, relations & colleagues.

• I love learning. • I am skilled at identifying and solving problems.

• I keep a journal to record insights and questions.

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Notes - 1. Curiosita: Approaching life with insatiable curiosity and an unrelenting quest for continuous learning:

ACTIVITY 2:

Curiosità Skill Builder: "What, When, Who, How, Where, Why... and What if?

Think of a real problem or question that you are concerned with in your work or within your organization. Write your question or problem statement below, and then fill in answers to "what, when, who, how, where, and why". Some cues have been provided to stimulate your thinking. Once the problem has been explored, set the problem aside for a while, and then, when you return to it, propose as many "what if scenarios as you can think of. Enlist the help of colleagues and associates. Record all scenarios, no matter how outrageous they seem at first. Then select one or more scenarios, and subject them to the six-question treatment. QUESTION/PROBLEM STATEMENT:

What...

is the problem? are the underlying issues? preconceptions, prejudices, or paradigms may be influencing my perception ? will happen if I ignore it? problems may be caused by solving this problem? metaphors from nature can I use to illuminate it? When...

did it start? does it happen? doesn't it happen? will the consequences of it be felt? must it be resolved?


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Who...

cares about it? is affected by it? created it? perpetuates it? can help solve it? How...

does it happen? can I get more objective information? can I look at it from unfamiliar perspectives? can it be changed? will I know that it has been solved?

Where...

does it happen? did it begin? haven't I looked? else has this happened? Why...

is it important? did it start? does it continue? (Ask Why... Why... Why... Why... Why

. . .

to get to the bottom of an issue.)


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What have you learned about your question or problem from asking these questions? Summarize your insights below.

What if...

(Try this exercise with others in a group problem-solving session.)


Notes - 2. Dimostrazione: Committing to test knowledge through experience, persistence, and a willingness to learn from mistakes:

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Liberating Your Creativity and Innovation ACTIVITY 3:

Dimostrazione: Assessment & Skill-Builder Rate yourself with these questions, answering "mostly yes" or "mostly no". For each question, jot down an instance in your experience when the answer was "yes" and an instance when the answer was "no": 1. Do I view mistakes as learning experiences?

Yes

No

Yes

No

Yes

No

Yes

No

"Yes" example: "No" example: 2. Am I willing to acknowledge my mistakes?

"Yes" example: "No" example: 3. Do I question 'conventional wisdom' and authority?

"Yes" example: "No" example: 4. Do I persevere in the face of obstacles?

"Yes" example: "No" example: • Now, select a problem and ask, "How would I handle it differently if I weren't afraid of making mistakes"?


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Notes - 3. Sensazione: Continually refining the senses, especially sight, as the means to enliven experience:

(For post-presentation activities on sensazione, please see pages 34-38)


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Liberating Your Creativity and Innovation ACTIVITY 4: Assessing Sfumato

In this activity you will be assessing the degree to which you embrace ambiguity, paradox and uncertainty. In the following list, quickly rate yourself on a scale of 1-5, where 1 represents a need for certainty at all times, and 5 represents a well-developed capacity for ambiguity and comfort with uncertainty and paradox. Then, go back and write down an example from recent experience which illustrates your self-rating. Finally, add up your "score". A total less than 30 indicates a strong need to develop your ability to embrace ambiguity if you want to think like Leonardo Da Vinci. not at all I am in touch with my intuition.

so ewhat

yes!

1

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5

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Example: I thrive on change.

Example: I see the humor in life every day.

Example: I know when I feel anxious.

Example: I spend sufficient time with myself.

Example: I trust my gut.

Example: I can hold contradictory ideas in my mind.

Example: I delight in paradox and irony.

Example: I believe that conflict often inspires creativity.

Example:

SCORE:


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Trust Your Gut

Bring more to your everyday hunches and intuitions. Cultivating an accurate, reliable inner guidance system requires listening to your body. Comments such as “My gut tells me otherwise,” “I just know it in my bones,” “I can feel it in the pit of my stomach,” and “I know it in my heart of hearts that it must be true” reflect the body-centered nature of intuition. When you take time for solitude - walking in nature, driving in your car, or just lying in bed - remember to listen to your bones and check in with your heart of hearts. Try the following exquisitely simple exercise, one or two times everyday, for accessing the subtle nuances of your intuition: Enjoy a few deep breaths. Soften your belly. Be receptive.


Notes - 4. Sfumato: Embracing ambiguity, paradox and uncertainty...

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Liberating Your Creativity and Innovation ACTIVITY 5: Sfumato: Skill Building

Here are two activities aimed at strengthening your Sfumato skills. Select one of them to get started on during the seminar, and plan to come back afterward to complete the other. Activity 1:

Cultivate Confusion Endurance: The Sfumato principle asks us to sharpen our senses in the face of paradox and embrace creative tension. It is useful to explore the paradoxes in our everyday lives. For example: • List at least three of your personal weaknesses. • Then list three or more of your personal strengths.

Strengths

Weaknesses

How are these qualities related? ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________

• Goals and process. Write down an important goal you accomplished. Describe the process you followed. How do goal and process relate?

_______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________


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Have you ever achieved success without experiencing fulfillment?

In your personal experience does the end justify the means? Why, or why not?

You can continue this exercise indefinitely by examining other paradox pairs in your life: Joy and sorrow, good and evil, change and constancy, humility and pride, etc. Activity 2: Making space for incubation: When do you get your best ideas? Think of a moment of creative breakthrough. Trace the process. Were you alone? What kind of input preceded the breakthrough? Did you have to take a break? How long a break? Do you have a strong faith in your creative process? Give examples of success.


In Part One of our program, we looked at: •

Human potential

•

The genius of Leonardo Da Vinci

We then explored the first four of seven steps to genius every day:

CURIOSITÀ: Approaching life with insatiable curiosity and an unrelenting quest for continuous learning •

• DIMOSTRAZIONE: Committing to test knowledge through experience, persistence and a willingness to learn from mistakes • SENSAZIONE: Continually refining the senses, especially sight, as the means to enliven experience • SFUMATO Embracing ambiguity, paradox, and uncertainty

In Part Two, we will continue learning from Leonardo by taking a closer look at the last three of the seven steps:

ARTE/SCIENZA Balancing science and art, logic and imagination - 'whole-brain thinking' •

• CORPORALITA Cultivating grace, ambidexterity, fitness and poise • CONNESSIONE Recognizing and appreciating the interconnectedness of all things 'systems thinking'

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Notes - 5. Arte/Scienza: Balancing science and art, logic and imagination: 'whole-brain thinking':


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Liberating Your Creativity and Innovation ACTIVITY 6: Arte/Scienza Assessment (Left-brain/Right-brain)

This self-assessment is designed to help you get a rough idea as to whether you tend to be "left-brained" or "right-brained". Circle a value from 1 to 5 for each statement, where 5 is "very much so" and 1 is "not at all". n t at all

very

I like details.

1

2

3

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5

I am almost always on time.

1

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5

I am skilled at math.

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I rely on logic.

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I write clearly.

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Friends describe me as articulate.

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Analysis is one of my strengths.

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I am organized and disciplined.

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l Iike lists.

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I start a book at page 1 and read in order.

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The preceding list describes a classic "left-brained" person.


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See how you do on this next list:

n t at all

very

I am highly imaginative

1

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I am good at brainstorming.

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I often say or do the unexpected.

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I love to doodle.

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5

In school, I was better at geometry than algebra.

1

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5

I read a book by skipping around.

1

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5

I look at the big picture, leave the details to others.

1

2

3

4

5

I often lose track of time.

1

2

3

4

5

I rely on intuition.

1

2

3

4

5

Most people have a proclivity toward one hemisphere or the other of the brain. Was that your result? Of course, all people have a "left-brain" and a "right-brain". Looking at your own answers, you can see that you have some characteristics of each. But having a proclivity toward one hemisphere points at the opportunity to bring the brain in balance - balancing Arte and Scienza - by developing the less prominent capabilities of the brain.


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Mind Mapping (Mind mapping was originated by Michael Gelb's friend and colleague Tony Buzan. Buzan, author of The Mind Map Book , was inspired to create Mind Mapping partly through his studies of the notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci!) The Rules 1.

Begin your mind map with a symbol or a picture (representing your topic) at the center of your page. Starting at the center opens your mind to a full 360 degrees of association. Pictures and symbols are much easier to remember than words. Drawing a picture or symbol stimulates your right hemisphere and strengthens your ability to think creatively about your subject.

2. Use key words. Key words are the information-rich "nuggets" of recall and creative association. Choosing key words exercises your analytical "left brain" and helps you find the essence of your subject. 3. Connect the key words with lines radiating from your central image. By linking words with lines ("branches"), you'll show clearly how one key word relates to another. 4. Print your key words. Printing is easier to read and remember than writing. 5. Print one key word per line. By doing this, you free yourself to discover the maximum number of creative associations for each key word. The discipline of one word per line also trains you to focus on the most appropriate key word, enhancing the precision of your thought and minimizing clutter. 6.

Print your key words on the lines and make the length of the word the same as the line it is on. This maximizes clarity of association and encourages economy of space.

7.

Use colors, pictures, dimension, and codes for greater association and emphasis


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Mind Mapping:

Highlight important points and illustrate relationships between different branches of your mind map. You might, for instance, prioritize your main points through color-coding, highlighting in yellow the most important points, using blue for secondary points, and so forth. Pictures and images, preferably in vivid color, should be used wherever possible; they stimulate your creative association and greatly enhance your memory.


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ACTIVITY 7:

Arte/Scienza Skill Builder Mind mapping activates both Arte and Scienza - your whole brain. Mind maps let you organize your material logically and even sequentially, while encouraging imagination and spontaneity. Mind maps record in detail where you've been, while suggesting a multitude of potential next steps. Practice this important skill. Begin by creating a mind map in the space below of what you have learned so far in this seminar:

Write down a problem at work you would like to solve:__________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________

Plan to mind map this problem and brainstorm solutions later. Share the mind mapping technique with colleagues and associates and enlist their help in using a mind map to define and solve this problem. You will find a valuable mind-mapping post-presentation activity on page 41.


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Notes - 6. Corporalita: Cultivating grace, ambidexterity, fitness and poise:

(For post-presentation activities on corporalita, please see pages 42-43) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Notes - 7. Connessione: Recognizing and appreciating the inter-connectedness of all things 'systems thinking':


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Connessione Assessment The ability to see the interconnectedness of things, to appreciate how separate things and phenomena relate to the whole is often called "systems thinking". Do you think of yourself as a 'systems thinker'? Answer these questions on a scale of 1-5, where 1 is "never" or "not at all" and 5 is "always" or "completely". never

al ays

I enjoy analogies and metaphors.

1

2

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5

I frequently make connections other people miss.

1

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5

I can articulate systems dynamics - patterns, connections, and networks - in the workplace.

1

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I seek a 'holistic' approach to health.

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My life goals and work are integrated with my values.

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I study the details to grasp the 'whole'.

1

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At times I feel connected with all creation.

1

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5

Why would you want to improve your Connessione?


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Connessione Skill Builder Metaphors and analogies are useful ways to make connections that are not otherwise apparent. You can practice making connections by using the body metaphor to explore the dynamics of your organization, department or work unit: Which organization are you exploring? Who is the head? Who is the heart? What is the stage of our development? Is the head in harmony with the body? What is the quality of nourishment? How is our circulation? What is our backbone? Does the right hand know what the left hand is doing?

Are we ambidextrous? What is the state of our health? Chronic maladies? Growing pains? Life threatening disease? What are we doing to be more fit? Where do I fit in?

How To Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci Liberating Your Creativity and Innovation Notes:

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Review

You have unlimited potential to liberate your creativity and ignite innovation in your organization. We learned that some of the most modern ideas about creativity and high performance were actually formulated centuries ago by a great genius, Leonardo Da Vinci. The "seven steps to genius every day" are: •

• • • • • •

CURIOSITÀ: Approaching life with insatiable curiosity and an unrelenting quest for continuous learning DIMOSTRAZIONE: Committing to test knowledge through experience, persistence and a willingness to learn from mistakes SENSAZIONE: Continually refining the senses, especially sight, as the means to enliven experience SFUMATO: Embracing ambiguity, paradox, and uncertainty ARTE/SCIENZA: Balancing science and art, logic and imagination - 'whole-brain thinking' CORPORALITA: Cultivating grace, ambidexterity, fitness and poise CONNESSIONE: Recognizing and appreciating the interconnectedness of all things 'systems thinking'

In his presentation, Michael Gelb explained the method for using these seven principles. A wealth of exercises has been provided for your use both during the presentation and afterward, offering opportunities to learn and develop the skills embodied in this method. Anyone can learn how to think like a genius. With this knowledge and these tools at your disposal, you and your organization can begin a new period of increased creativity and innovation.


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Liberating Your Creativity and Innovation Post-Presentation Activities

Beginning on the next page, you will find a series of activities that will augment the work you did during the seminar. Before starting these, be sure to go back and complete the activities you began during the seminar. You will note that some of those also have post-presentation components.

POST-PRESENTATION ACTIVITY: Assessing Sensazione

Think of the time in the past year when you felt most alive. Chances are that you can conjure up all the images and sensations associated with that event, because at such times your senses tend to be heightened and focused. By refining your Sensazione, you will be able to bring the sensory aliveness of your peak experiences to your life every day. In the pages that follow you will find some suggestions for activities and exercises designed to develop your Sensazione. As before, it is helpful to assess the current state of your Sensazione. Begin by ticking off the checklists to help identify where your senses are most developed and which senses need more work. For more detailed activities like these, please see The How To Think Like Leonardo

da Vinci WORKBOOK.


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Liberating Your Creativity and Innovation VISION: LOOKING AND SEEING Self- ssessment: Vision

When different colors and hues are side by side, I am sensitive as to whether they harmonize or clash. I know the color of all my friends' eyes. I look out into the far horizon and up to the sky at least once a day. I am good at describing a scene in detail. I like doodling and drawing. Friends would describe me as alert. I am sensitive to subtle changes in lighting. I can picture things clearly in my mind's eye. LISTENING AND HEARING:

Every sound and every silence provides an opportunity to deepen auditory attunement; but city sounds can be overwhelming and cause us to dull our sensitivity. Surrounded by noises from televisions, airplanes, subways and automobiles, most of us "tune out" for self-protection. Try the following exercises to "tune up" your auditory sense. Self- ssessment: Hearing

Friends describe me as a good listener. I am sensitive to noise. I can tell when someone is singing off-key. I can sing on key. I listen to jazz or classical music regularly. I can distinguish the melody from the bass line in a piece of music. I know what all the controls on my stereo system are for and can hear the difference when I adjust them. I enjoy silence. I am attuned to subtle changes in a speaker's voice tone, volume, and inflection.


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Liberating Your Creativity and Innovation TOUCHING AND FEELING

Your brain receives information from more than 500,000 touch detectors and 200,000 temperature sensors. Yet Leonardo lamented that most people "touch without feeling." The secret of sensitive "feeling" touch is an attitude of receptivity, learning to "listen" deeply with your hands and whole body.

Self- ssessment: Touch

I am aware of the "feel" of the surfaces that surround me daily, i.e., the chairs, sofas, and car seats I sit on. I am sensitive to the quality of fabric that I wear. I like to touch and be touched. Friends say I give great hugs. I know how to listen with my hands. When I touch someone, I can tell if they are tense or relaxed.


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Liberating Your Creativity and Innovation AROMATIC AWARENESS

Every day, all day, we are confronted with a smorgasbord of smells. Our five million olfactory cells can sniff out one molecule of an odor-causing substance in one part per trillion of air. And we take about 23,000 breaths per day, processing about 440 cubic feet of scent-laden air, But most people have a very limited vocabulary for describing aromatic experience: "It stinks," or "That smells good," are the most common references. Aim to increase your discrimination and appreciation for smell by expanding your olfactory vocabulary. Perfumers categorize smells as floral (roses), mint y (peppermint), musky (musk), ethereal (pears), resinous (camphor), foul (rotten eggs), and acrid (vinegar). Use these terms and make up your own descriptors as you explore the following exercises.

Self- ssessment: Smell

I have a favorite scent (What is it? Why do I like it? What does it remind me of?) Smells affect my emotions strongly, for better or worse. I can recognize friends by their scent. I know how to use aromas to influence my mood. I can reliably judge the quality of food or wine by its aroma. When I see fresh flowers, I usually take a few moments to breathe in their aroma.


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GOOD TASTE

For most of us, the opportunity to taste presents itself at least three times a day. But in the rush of our lives, it is often difficult to pay attention. It is all too easy to "grab a bite on the run," and to consume an entire meal without really tasting anything. Instead, pause for a few moments before every meal. Reflect on the origins of the meal you are about to enjoy. Aim to be 100 percent present as you taste the first bite of your food.

Self- ssessment: Taste

I can taste the "freshness" of fresh foods. I enjoy many different types of cuisine. I seek out unusual taste experiences. I can discern the flavor contributions of different herbs and spices in a complex dish. I am a good cook. I eat consciously, aware of the taste of my food. I avoid junk food. I avoid eating on the run. I enjoy participating in taste tests and wine tastings.


Notes:

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Notes:

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POST-PRESENTATION ACTIVITY: Practice Your Mind-Mapping Skills

Mind mapping is an invaluable tool for simplifying complex tasks. You can use it to improve your performance in a wide range of areas including strategic planning, presentation preparation, meeting management, test preparation, and systems analysis. It's best to make your first few mind maps on relatively simple, lighthearted subjects. Choose one of the following topics to practice your mind-mapping skills. Take about twenty minutes for this first practice map. Mind Map Your Favorite Movie. Begin with a simple drawing that represents your favorite movie's title. Print key words and draw images that express the characters, plot, and themes. Remember to put key words and images on lines radiating out from your central symbol. Mind Map Your Dream House. Explore the delightful fantasy of a dream house using a mind map. Start with a symbol of your paradise in the center and then branch out with key words and images that represent the elements of your ideal living environment. Remember, let your mind work by association instead of trying to put things down in order. Just generate ideas for your ideal environment. Then after you have come up with a multitude of possibilities, you can go back and put them in order.

After you've made one or two practice mind maps, tackle the problem you wrote down at the seminar. Instructions:

• Use a large piece of paper. • Think of the idea you would like to explore or the problem you would like to solve. • In the center draw an abstract image of your topic. • Free associate branches of the map - use keywords, color, pictures • Take a break and then generate another wave of branches. • Take another break - review - look for connections and emerging themes connect related parts of your mind map with arrows, codes, colors, etc. • Now, find relationships that can help you integrate and organize the most cogent ideas and then reorder them to reflect new possibilities or solutions.


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Liberating Your Creativity and Innovation POST-PRESENTATION ACTIVITY:

Assessing Corporalita

The idea that a robust mind and a healthy body are linked was one of the concepts from ancient Greece that was revived during the Renaissance. Leonardo offered a prescription for the health of mind and body when wrote:

"To keep in health, these rules are wise:

• Beware of anger and avoid grievous moods. • Rest your head and keep your mind cheerful. • Be covered well at night. • Exercise moderately. • Shun wantonness, and pay attention to diet. • Eat only when you want and sup light. • Keep upright when you rise from the dining table. • Do not be with the belly upwards or the head lowered. • Let your wine be mixed with water, take a little at a time, not between meals and not on an empty stomach. • Eat simple (i.e., vegetarian) food. • Chew well. • Go to the toilet regularly."


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Liberating Your Creativity and Innovation POST-PRESENTATION ACTIVITY:

Cor oralita - check each statement that describes you I am aerobically fit. I am getting stronger. My flexibility is improving. I know when my body is tense or relaxed. I am knowledgeable about diet and nutrition. Friends would describe me as graceful. I am aware of the ways in which my physical state affects my attitude. I am aware of the ways in which my attitude affect my physical state. I love to move. • To make headway in developing your mental skills, it will be necessary to undertake improvements in your physical being. On the next page you will find some exercises to get you started on improving body awareness and condition.

Corporalita Exercises Mirror Observation. Stand in front of a full-length mirror. Avoid judging or evaluating your appearance, just observe your reflection objectively, and record your answers below: Does your head tend to tilt to one side or the other?____________________________ Is one shoulder higher than the other? ______________________________________ Does your pelvis rock forward or is it held back? ______________________________ Is your weight distributed evenly on your feet or do you depend on one leg mor e than the other for support? ___________________________________________________ What parts of your body appear to be overly tense? ____________________________ Are your pelvis, torso, and head in a balanced alignment? _______________________ Review your responses. Are you surprised by these results? _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________


Notes:

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CURIOSITÀ • Adams, Kathleen. Journal to the Self. New York: Warner Books, 1990. Filled with marvelous exercises for increasing self-knowledge. • Goldberg, Merrilee. The Art of the Question: A Guide to Short-Term Question Centered Therapy. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1998. A therapist's masterful application of Curiosita. • Gross, Ron. Peak Learning. Los Angeles: Jeremy P. Tarcher, I 991. A handbook for lifelong learners. • Progoff, Ira. At a Journal Workshop. New York: Dialogue House, 1975. Progoff is the modern pioneer in the use of journaling as a tool for personal growth.

DIMOSTRAZIONE • Alexander, F. M. The Use of the Self. New York: Dutton, 1932. An inspiring story of learning from experience. • Gelb, Michael J. Innovate Like Edison: The Five Step System for Breakthrough Business Success. New York, Penguin Group, 2007. Learn from the genius who brought us 1,093 United States patents. • McCormack, Mark. What They Don't Teach You at Harvard Business School. New York: Bantam, 1984. Dimostrazione in the business world. • Seligman, Martin. Learned Optimism. New York: Knopf, 1991. How to learn resilience in the face of adversity.

SENSAZIONE • Ackerman, Diane. A Natural History of the Senses. New York: Vintage Books, 1991. The Chicago Tribune called it "an aphrodisiac for the sense receptors.” • Campbell, Don. The Mozart Effect: Tapping the Power of Music to Heal the Body, Strengthen the Mind, and Unlock the Creative Spirit. New York: Avon Books' 1997. • Collins, Terah Kathryn. The Western Guide to Feng Shui. Carlsbad, Calif.: Hay House, Inc. 1996. • Cytowic, Richard. The Man Who Tasted Shapes. New York: Putnam, 1993. A neurologist's creative investigation of synesthesia. • Gelb, Michael J. Wine Drinking for Inspired Thinking: Uncork Your Creative Juices. Philadelphia, Running Press, 2010. How to DRINK like Leonardo da Vinci!

SFUMATO • Agor, Weston. The Logic of Intuitive Decision Making. Westport, Conm: Greenwood Press, 1986. Agor makes a strong case for the use of intuition in managing complexity. • Gelb, Michael J. Thinking for a Change: Discovering the Power to Create, Communicate, and Lead. New York: Harmony Books, 1996. Introduces the concept of "Synvergent Thinking," an approach to thriving with Sfumato. • May, Rollo. The Courage to Create. New York: Bantam, 1976. A seminal exposition of the central role of creative tension in a creative life.


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ARTE/SCIENZA • Buzan, Tony. Use Both Sides of Your Brain (third edition). New York: Penguin, 1989. Buzan's classic work, originally published in 1971, established him as the father of "whole-brain" education. An invaluable guide for anyone interested in balancing Arte and Scienza. • Wonder, Jacqueline. Whole Brain Thinking. New York: Ballantine, 1985. Are you more Arte or Scienza? Wonder offers the opportunity to test your brain dominance.

CORPORALITA • Anderson, Bob. Stretching. Bolinas, Calif.: Shelter Publications, 1980. • Cooper, Kenneth. New Aerobics. New York: Bantam, 1970. • Gelb, Michael. Body Learning: An Introduction to the Alexander Technique. New York: Henry Holt & Company, 1987 (new edition, 1995). A guide to developing the Da Vincian qualities of poise, presence, and grace. • Gelb, Michael J., The Five Keys to High Performance. New York, Gildan Media Group, 2009. This audio program will guide you to improve your learning ability as you age, embrace change, and discover resilience in the face of adversity as you learn how to juggle!

CONNESSIONE • Gelb, Michel J. Discover Your Genius: How To Think Like History’s Ten Most Revolutionary Minds. New York, HarperCollins, 2002. Ten more geniuses!

• Kodish, Susan and Bruce. Drive Yourself Sane: Using the Uncommon Sense of General Semantics. Englewood, N.J.: Institute of General Semantics, 1993. An approachable work on systems thinking and general semantics. • Lao-Tzu. Tao Te Ching: A New English Version, with forward and notes by Stephen Mitchell. New York: Harper & Row, 1988. Taoism mirrors many of the Maestro's insights. • Senge, Peter M. The Fifth Discipline: The Art & Practice of the Learning Organization. New York: Doubleday, 1990. Guides the reader to see and understand patterns, relationships, and systems in business and everyday life. • Wheatley, Margaret. Leadership and the New Science. San Francisco: Berret-Koehler Publishers, 1992. Applications of the new physics to understanding organizations.


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Please visit www.michaelgelb.com.

For more activities like the exercises in this booklet, please refer to The How To Think Like Leonardo Workbook .

how to think like da vinci.pdf

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