Eric LiuImagination First: Unlocking the Power of Possibility

After I read "Imagination First" once I immediately went back and read it again. This is not an easy concept: the authors in a way ask you to be aware of the workings your imagination before you use it. You can read their very valuable practices and think, yes, I did that with project X, or, I should try that with project Y, but how do you self-consciously make yourself practice their recommendations in a way that leads you to a new approach, or even enlightenment? That is up to you. What Liu and Noppe-Brandon have done is lead you to the threshold and made you aware of what you are capable of. The rest is up to you. This is not a "self-help" book that pretends to have "answers." Instead it has challenges. It is also not a book for managers, though bsuiness people will find it helpul. It is a book for anyone that answers to the title "human being."

Imagination First includes 28 and a half simple, but unique imaginative concepts presented in an easy to read manner. The content is well organized with great examples for each concept, which makes it easy to apply the information in personal, educational or business environments. I found it inspirational and highly recommend it.

Bought for class. Blah.

This book was an easy read for the most part and has many useful suggestions for expanding your imagination. I highly recommend it to all.

Thank you.

Very inspiring book that took me back to what is the most important feature of humanity!

Great book.

'Imagination First: Unlocking the Power of Possibility',by Eric Liu & Scott Norpe-Brandon;I have just finished reading an entertaining book.It's 'Imagination First' by Eric Liu & Scott Noppe-Brandon, both ardent campaigners for arts & imagination in education.With the book, the authors introduce a set of universal practices - 28 (and a half) to be exact - to help the reader to get unstuck, & to reframe everyday challenges.I like the authors' principal premise:"... The reality is that imagination comes first. It must. Until & unless we have the emotional & intellectual capacity to conceive of what does not yet exist, there is nothing toward which we are to direct our will & our resources... Routinising imagination is... the work belongs to everyone of us... We can all use imagination across every part of our lives - & we can all learn to do it better... "It is fair to say that the authors have been influenced to some extent by Benjamin & Rosamund Zander, who wrote 'The Art of Possibility: Transforming Professional and Personal Life', which has also been quoted in the book.The book has been written in three parts:- the premise, as I have already captured above;- the practices, which form sort of field manual - I must add that some of them are quite provocative & inspirational;- the purposes, which form the thematic distillation;According the the book, one can readily as well as easily think of & express new possibilities by practising the following playful "capacities" (the authors' term for "habits of mind"):1) Noticing Deeply: identifying & articulating layers of detail through continuous interaction with an object of study;2) Embodying: experiencing a work through your five senses & emotions, & physically representing that experience;3) Questioning: asking "why?" & "what if?" throughout your explorations;4) Identifying Patterns: finding relationships among the details you notice, & grouping them into patterns;5) Making Connections: linking the patterns you notice to prior knowledge & experience (both your own & others);6) Exhibiting Empathy: understanding & respecting the experiences of others;7) Creating Meaning: creating interpretations of what you encounter, & synthesising them with the perspective of others;8) Taking Action: acting on the synthesis through a project or an action that expresses your learning;9) Reflecting & Assessing: looking back on your learning to identify what challenges remain & to begin learning anew;From my personal perspective, the foregoing "habits of mind", even though they are not ground-breaking, serves as my quick takeaways, especially habit #1 & habit #9.In the end analysis, I like to say that this is still a wonderful book about opening one's minds to a myriad of possibilities, & choreographing the possibilities to work.For "ideas to cash" (paraphrasing my good friend, Dilip Mukerjea, an accomplished author in Singapore), I would recommend reading this book with 'Turn Your Imagination Into Money: Every Great Business and Innovation Can Be Attributed to One Thing - Imagination', by advertising consultant Ron Klein. In the book, the one chapter about the '22 Springboards to Imagination' alone will kick your imagination into overdrive.If you are a strategic planner, 'Corporate Imagination Plus: Five Steps to Translating Innovative Strategies into Action', by strategy consultant Jim Bandrowski is worth pursuing.[My personal fascination with "imagination" actually goes back to the late 70's, when I had first read Alex Osborn's 'Applied Imagination', followed by Michael LeBouef's 'Imagineering' in the early 80's.I like to consider them real "classics" on the subject, even though both authors had a different slant from Eric Liu & Scott Noppe-Brandon.The last book I have read not too long ago is Alexander Manu's 'The Imagination Challenge', which is somewhat scholarly, but worth pursuing too, if you have a deep interest like I do.][Reviewed by Lee Say Keng, Knowledge Adventurer & Technology Explorer, Optimum Performance Technologies, Singapore, March 2010]

Full of practical examples of how to apply imagination to everyday situations, a great introduction.