Creativity, Inc

Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration

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Ed Catmull: Creativity, Inc (2014, Transworld Publishers Limited)

368 pages

English language

Published Dec. 31, 2014 by Transworld Publishers Limited.

ISBN:
978-1-4481-2628-6
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5 stars (5 reviews)

Creativity, Inc. is a book for managers who want to lead their employees to new heights, a manual for anyone who strives for originality, and the first-ever, all-access trip into the nerve center of Pixar Animation—into the meetings, postmortems, and “Braintrust” sessions where some of the most successful films in history are made. It is, at heart, a book about how to build a creative culture—but it is also, as Pixar co-founder and president Ed Catmull writes, “an expression of the ideas that I believe make the best in us possible.” www.randomhouse.com/book/216369/creativity-inc-by-ed-catmull-and-amy-wallace

8 editions

Creativity, Inc.

4 stars

1) "The thesis of this book is that there are many blocks to creativity, but there are active steps we can take to protect the creative process. In the coming pages, I will discuss many of the steps we follow at Pixar, but the most compelling mechanisms to me are those that deal with uncertainty, instability, lack of candor, and the things we cannot see. I believe the best managers acknowledge and make room for what they do not know—not just because humility is a virtue but because until one adopts that mindset, the most striking breakthroughs cannot occur. I believe that managers must loosen the controls, not tighten them. They must accept risk; they must trust the people they work with and strive to clear the path for them; and always, they must pay attention to and engage with anything that creates fear. Moreover, successful leaders embrace the reality …

Review of 'Creativity, Inc.' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

"I loved this book, definitely five stars.

Catmull does a nice job of balancing stories about Pixar, Jobs, and Lassiter with the philosophy of running a creative, forward thinking business.

My big take aways revolve around the second to last chapter titled ""Notes Day,"" which is an activity they implemented at Pixar to overcome the building reluctance of employees to be candid.

Essentially, the philosophy revolves around balancing the structures created to maintain a business and the need to continually evolve those structures and be creative as a business. I like the fact that every business/project must overcome both its initial chaos and inevitable crisis to be successful. No matter how amazing people are, every project will deal with both chaos and crisis at some point; how we handle those elements define the business and success."

Subjects

  • Creative ability in business
  • Corporate culture
  • Organizational effectiveness