David Applebaum’s Creative Re-Energizer

As we often find ourselves busy with… well everything, I read HAROLD AND THE PURPLE CRAYON by Crockett Johnson every year to ensure that I never forget the beauty of creativity and thinking outside the box. Read more: Have you noticed that a child’s imagination knows no limitations? One of the greatest ways to tap into one’s creativity is to find the elemental truth of your subject matter and then open one’s mind to create from that fertile canvas. I have a workshop on creative thinking that is about finding that elemental truth and re-imagining the solution from the seed. How do I workshop myself? There are a few things that I do, but the simplest and most fun is to rediscover this journal with the respect I give to Socrates. Once a year, or when I have an “IN CASE OF EMERGENCY BREAK GLASS” moment, I spend the night with Crockett Johnson’s classic Harold and the Purple Crayon. I am quite serious. I choose to read this at night not just so that I can put my responsibilities and technology away for the day, but because the journey starts with the words “One night, after thinking it over for some time, Harold decided to go for a walk in the moonlight”. And with a purple crayon in one hand and the reader in another, Harold gently reminds us how far an imagination can take you. Try it, enjoy the ride, and see if the light bulb turns on for you. If you need an excuse, sit a child in your lap and read it together. At the very least you’ve gifted a child with a key that unlocks so much potential, but I challenge you to not have the lessons unlock your heart, your mind and your own potential.