Charles Cave sparked this Challenge with his challenge the impact of music on thinking. This week let external stimuli through your senses to help pop ideas into or out of your mind.

Assemble 6 to 12 examples of stimuli per sense. 15 to 30 seconds of 6 to 12 different pieces of music or sounds. Either tape them onto a single tape or use separate records, tapes, cds. You simply can collect 6 to 12 different things that produce widely different sounds: bells, drums, glasses, water into containers. It is best if you can record the sounds onto a tape or burn them onto a cd so that your only focus is on the experiencing the collage of sounds and not making the different sounds during the experience.

Collect 6 to 12 examples of widely different smells, tastes, physical textures, visual images: photos, slides, magazine tear outs or objects.

Each day set yourself up to focus on experiencing primarily one sense at a time for as much of 15 to 25 minutes recording thoughts, ideas, insights, ahas, feelings, reactions while you are experiencing the specific sense.

Monday Sounds

Tuesday Smells

Wednesday Tastes

Thursday Touches

Friday Sights/visuals

You may choose to work on a specific problem while you are doing this or simple record the random mental results: ideas, thoughts, feelings, etc.

Have fun popping your creativeness this week.

Best wishes for the greatest and most creative year of your life in 2001.

© 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2006 Robert Alan Black, Ph.D. CSP