Lectures 17 and 18: Improvised Lives Workshop: Automated Writing, Drawing, and Creating - 27 November 2020

University of East Anglia
Norwich Business School
Employability, Creativity and
Personal Development
NBS-5915A
The Second Half
Lectures 5-6
27 November, 2020
Dr. Fahri Karakas
F.Karakas@uea.ac.uk

IMPROVISE
D LIVES
A Creative
Workshop

3
 Review of Last Class: Asset Creation
 Puzzles
 IMPROVISED LIVES Workshop:
◦ Exercise: Automated Creative Writing
◦ Exercise: Automated Imagination (What If…)
◦ Exercise: Automated Adventures and Fun (Lighten Up)
◦ Exercise: Automated Imagination (Your Netflix Show)
◦ Exercise: Automated Ideation (The Matrix Challenge)
◦ Exercise: Moonshots and Asset Creation
◦ Exercise: Automated Drawing and Doodling
 Mini-Workshop: Future Generations & Climate Emergency
 Mini-Workshop: Life and Employability in a far away place
 Key Takeaways

4
“Creativity is no longer a luxury. It is
a critical survival skill that we need to
adapt to rapid changes, solve complex
problems, imagine new possibilities,
and navigate uncharted waters ahead
of us.”
Dr. Fahri Karakas

5
 I define improvised lives as lives defined by a
sense of adventure, curiosity, exploration, and
spontaneity.
 Improvised living requires a playful mode of:
◦ continuous learning,
◦ intense curiosity,
◦ embracing chaos and uncertainty,
◦ thinking and problem solving beyond borders,
◦ experimenting and making mistakes, &
◦ entrepreneurial acting
 To start improvising, you can use automated
writing, doodling, drawing, ideating, imagining,
and creating techniques.

Lectures 17 and 18: Improvised Lives Workshop: Automated Writing, Drawing, and Creating - 27 November 2020

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
Upstairs, downstairs, and the basement
Art therapy and inequality
Landscape rock and other metaphors
Fates entwine hilariously and horribly
The sad, sad flow of water
A dystopia that we live in
A discretionary tale of gasps and twists
Surprise, surprise, 92
PARASITE

The film that made history Parasite (Trailer)

INEQUALITY
How can you address this wicked problem as a
future business leader?

11
 Coronavirus: Be Anti-fragile
 Universities as Places of Imagination
 Exercise: Six Adventures & Six
Challenges
 Workshop: Heroes of Entertainment and
Imagination (Masterclasses)
◦ Hans Zimmer – film score/music
◦ Chris Hadfield – space exploration
◦ Will Wright – game design
◦ Stephen Curry – basketball
◦ Sara Blakely – entrepreneurship (Spanx)
◦ Shonda Rhimes – TV production and
screenwriting
◦ Frank Gehry – architecture
◦ Diane Von Furstenberg – building a fashion
brand
◦ David Baldacci – mystery/thriller novels
◦ Nas Daily – 1000 days of video creation
◦ Shane Carruth – non-linear cinema
◦ Matt Groening – The Simpsons
◦ Scott Adams – Dilbert
◦ Hayao Miyazaki – immersive animation
◦ Penn and Teller - magic
◦ Chris Record – songs for entrepreneurs
◦ Pokemon – most valuable media franchise
◦ Dallas Cowboys – most valuable sports team
◦ Exercise: Create your own Masterclass
 THE SQUASH: The Squash Challenge
& Imagination Exercises
 Workshop: Creating Assets
 Exercise: You are a Super-hero
 Exercise: Living Exponentially &
Avoiding Mediocrity

“I'm enough of an artist to draw freely on
my imagination, which I think is more
important than knowledge. Knowledge is
limited. Imagination encircles the world.”
Einstein

Review of Takeaways
 You can get inspiration from 100
different people and 100 different
fields.
 And then imagine you are a
farmer and you are growing 100
creative projects: Let 100 flowers
bloom!
 The world needs interesting,
unique, weird people – like you!
 It is not easy to scare yourself and
set yourself new challenges and
adventures. But if you do it, you
will be rewarded. You will be
happier.
 What kind of a super-hero are
you? How will you help other
people?

Your most crucial task is: Create
your own creative assets. Start
now!
Use your Seven I or Entrep. project
as an opportunity to create your
own intellectual and creative
assets.
Do not take yourself seriously. Take
your work seriously.
Do not be trapped by your ego –
this will make you mediocre.
You cannot learn and grow if you
try to be clever all the time. It is
much better to be naïve, hungry,
foolish, playful, and curious.
Review of Takeaways

You need to live exponentially and
avoid mediocrity.
Life is short and you are the hero.
Make a difference.
Being part of something large feels
good. We are a community of
learners & experimenters.
Create your own category and be
the owner of that category.
Surprises, adventures, puzzles,
exciting ventures, new projects,
artistic pursuits are good for your
health.
You need a bit more chaos,
randomness, dance, singing,
independent learning, writing, and
creating in your life.
Improvisation is magic – it improves
your life instantly.
Review of Takeaways

Your diary is your best friend.
Your diary is a seed catalogue of all your ideas.
Write, draw, reflect, capture your ideas every
day.
We live in an imagination economy. Ideas are
the new currency. Your attention (i.e. your
time) is the most precious thing in the world.
Life is not only about the next goal to be captured.
There is more to life than that. We are not
machines. We need adventures. Sometimes, you
need to relax, breathe, loosen up – just be.
What if you had quadruple lives – wouldn’t
this enrich you as a person?
“Curiosity does not kill the cat. The cat thrives
through curiosity.”
Dr. Fahri Karakas
Review of Takeaways

Treat 2020-2021 as the year of ASSET CREATION
Work regularly and consistently on your individual project for
the second half. Create creative assets for your future.
SEVEN I PROJECT (Kickstarter type project)
ENTREPRENEURIAL BUSINESS PROPOSAL (Shark Tank type
project)
• Think about the assets you want to
create for your future
• Do not think like a student. Do not
treat this as assignment.
• Do this for your own future.
• Do something real – create something
exciting and fresh.

Exercise:
Your Unique
Strengths

Asset Creation:
How will you go forward?
“Draw the art you want to
see, start the business you
want to buy from, play the
music you want to hear,
write the books you want to
read, build the products you
want to use.”
- Austin Kleon

Long Term Thinking and
Productive Habits
https://benjaminhardy.com/want-
to-become-a-multi-millionaire-do-
these-15-things-immediately/
Read and reflect on how you will apply
each principle in your life.
These principles will help you
tremendously in your journey of asset
creation.

IMPROVISE
D LIVES
AutomatED
WRITING

Creative Writing Exercise
Guidelines
Writing is just playing.
Go with the flow.
Do not judge your writing –
just keep writing.
Write non-sense.
Write boring stuff.
Do not evaluate.
Show up: Your hands do the
work.
Embrace uncertainty.
Never stop writing.

Creative Writing Exercise
Choose your anchor phrase.
Whenever you are stuck,
come back and write down
your anchor phrase.
Write non-stop for 10
minutes.
An adorable red cottage
The dark ocean was rising
It is OK to jump off the cliffs
A glorious escape
Those were magical times
What if there is a better way
A mysterious door opens
A yellow squash

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
Who was the highest paid celebrity in 2019
in the world?
Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift: Miss Americana (Netflix – Documentary)

Shawn Mendes: In Wonder (Netflix – Documentary)

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
Who is regarded as the
‘dance messiah’ & probably
the best DJ in the world?
Hint: His net worth is $75m
David Guetta

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
Who is the highest paid athlete in
the world?
Hint: Think of a global football star
Lionel Messi

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
She is one of the top actresses in Hollywood.
She loves alternative medicine and pseudo-
science. She created a controversial lifestyle
company and brand called ‘Goop’.
Hint: Her Goop is valued at 250 million
dollars.
Gwyneth Paltrow

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
Adam Bowen, 43, and James Monsees, 38, met in the early
2000s while in graduate school at Stanford University, where
they were studying product design.
They achieved success by tapping into an addictive habit and
inventing a new product line (and even invented a new verb
during this process).
The controversial company soon became worth more than $30
billion.
Altria (one of the biggest public health villains) invested $12.8
billion for a 35% stake.
Which company is this?
JUUL – e-cigarettes – “vaping”

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
At the age of 65, this business leader
announced on social media that he would take
on 65 challenges during his 65th year.
He has done all the challenges (adventures)
and documented them.
Who is he?
Richard Branson
https://www.virgin.com/richard-branson/65-
challenges-my-65th-year
This is a wonderful list that involves adventure,
creativity, and personal branding.

IMPROVISE
D LIVES
AUTOMATED
IMAGINATION

WHAT IF…
Exercise
Imagine and write down
Top 5 things/ideas that
come to you.

WHAT IF…
Exercise
Please create 5-6 actions
that you can implement in
your life.
Which ones will you try out?
Write down concrete and small action
points you can carry out starting today.

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
She is one of the most influential qualitative
researchers in the world. She wrote five NYT
bestseller books.
She has spent two decades studying courage,
vulnerability, shame, and empathy.
She hosts the Unlocking Us podcast.
She is the first researcher to have a filmed
lecture on Netflix “The Call to Courage”.
“Owning our story and loving ourselves through
that process is the bravest thing that we will ever
do.”
Brené Brown

Brené Brown: the Call to Courage | Netflix

The power of vulnerability | Brené Brown

Listening to shame | Brené Brown

IMPROVISE
D LIVES
AUTOMATED
ADVENTURES
FUN

Exercise@Home:
Erasing Walls
To live a memorable life, you
need to be more open and
vulnerable.
Dr. Fahri Karakas

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
What is the relationship between
PIXAR and Number 22?
Pixar’s 22 Rules of Storytelling

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
Netflix launched a fashion competition reality
series.
Hint: It is similar to Project Runway - which is
getting a bit old (it has been running for 18
seasons!)
What is the name of the Netflix fashion show?
Next in Fashion

Next in Fashion (Netflix – Competition Series)

Create your own
NETFLIX SHOW
Exercise
Imagine that Netflix hired
you to create your own
show
What would you like to
create?
Feel free to experiment with any formats
(documentary, TV series, interviews, reality,
quiz show, travel, lifestyle, food, fashion,
mystery, science fiction, business,
technology etc.)

Exercise@Home
What are you NOT
doing?
How will you make it
happen?

Exercise@Home
Make a list of all your
hopes, dreams, or
exciting possibilities.
Give them names.
Imagine specific details.

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
He is a Renaissance Person: A versatile and
creative American actor, comedian, writer,
producer, director, musician, and DJ.
In May 2018, he released a provocative/critical
song and music video "This Is America” which
won four Grammy Awards. The video
powerfully depicts gun violence and being
black in the United States. He was chosen to
Time 100. Who is he?
Donald Glover – Childish Gambino

The Rise of Donald Glover/Childish Gambino

IMPROVISE
D LIVES
AUTOMATIC
IDEATION

MINI-WORKSHOP
FUTURE
GENERATIONS

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
Which problem is the greatest that faces future
generations?
Climate Emergency – Global Warming

Before the Flood (Climate
Change)

Ice on Fire (2019) - Climate Change
Documentary

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
In our times, if Trump represents the worst
kind of old/blind capitalist power and greed
(Goliath), who represents youth wisdom with
clarity (David)?
Greta Thunberg

Greta Thunberg attacks world leaders:
"How dare you?"

Greta Thunberg
On 20th August 2018, after a summer of heatwaves and wildfires in
her native Sweden, 15-year-old Greta Thunberg decided not to attend
school:
If the planet had no future, she argued, there was no point in studying.
Inspired by “school strikes” against shootings in the US, Thunberg’s
demands were straightforward: that the Swedish government reduce
carbon emissions as per the Paris Agreement.
Thunberg has since inspired a wave of school strikes across the
world—with an estimated 1.4m students taking part—and spoken at
the UN Climate Change Conference.
She says her autism, far from being a hindrance, helps her see the
world’s problems in black and white. She speaks with blistering
clarity.

Greta alone in 2018.
2019: Look at the scale of
the movement she started

“Young people begin to
understand adults’ betrayal of
the planet”
“The eyes of all future
generations” will be watching.”
Greta Thunberg

Climate Emergency
As we near 2030—the year that capitalism was meant to be over, the
time when we were meant to have advanced and elevated ourselves—
the predictions are not rosy.
In October 2018, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
concluded that global warming is likely to reach 1.5 °C between 2030
and 2052 if temperatures continue to increase at the current rate.
In the event we do hit that mark, experts predict:
• a rise of between 26 and 77 centimeters (10 and 30 inches) in sea
level,
• a rapid increase in species extinctions,
• hundreds of millions more people experiencing water and food
shortages, and
• sustained extreme weather the likes of which the modern human
species has never encountered.
We have been stockpiling not just wealth, but disasters.

A new generation and a new understanding
• Capitalist production has become an objective hazard for the entirety
of human society.
• We need to establish new standards for social well-being—standards
beyond GDP growth and bottom line.
• We need to get the carbon out of the atmosphere and the plastics out
of the ocean, keep the oil in the ground and the undomesticated
species we have left alive. Anything else is a catastrophic failure.
• A YouGov poll found that support for capitalism among Americans
under 30 fell from 39% to 30% between 2015 and 2018—14
percentage points below the average and 26 points below the figure
for seniors.
• The kids recognize that capitalism has been using up human and
natural resources rather than building a better society.
• Much to everyone’s surprise, Keynes’s grandchildren have become
Marxists. The workforce of 2030 is the last true cohort that market
capitalism gets.
“Keynes was wrong. Gen Z will have it worse.” By Malcolm Harris

CLIMATE
EMERGENCY
How can you address this wicked problem as a
future business leader?

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
We have had Generations X, Y, and Z. What
comes after? Which letter represents the next
generation born after 2010?
ALPHA!

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
What are the names of generations
that come after Alpha?
BETA, GAMMA, and DELTA

HERE ARE THE FUTURE GENERATIONS:
ALPHA GENERATION: Born between 2010-2024
BETA GENERATION: Born between 2025-2039
GAMMA GENERATION: Born between 2040-2054
DELTA GENERATION: Born between 2055-2069

The Alpha Generation is also known as _____________
There are more than 2.5 million Gen Alphas born globally every week.
When they have all been born (2025), they will number almost two billion.
They are in primary school now – they are the most formally educated generation
ever, the most technology supplied generation ever, and globally the wealthiest
generation ever. They will experience AI, robotics, 5G, IoT, and space travel.
Screens are placed in front of them from the youngest age as pacifiers,
entertainers and educational aids.
They were born in 2010, the year the iPad was introduced, Instagram was created
and “app” was the word of the year.
They already interact with Google Home and Alexa on a regular basis, requesting
jokes or asking for facts about the weather.
They have been raised as “screenagers” to a greater extent so they are also called
GENERATION ___________
GENERATION GLASS

The biggest celebrity of the Alpha Generation is not
Michael Jordan, nor Taylor Swift.
WHO?
Hint: This is a YouTube Channel having 24 million
subscribers, and $112 millions net worth as of Feb
2020.
Ryan ToysReview! (Ryan’s World)

IMPROVISE
D LIVES
MOONSHOTS
& Asset

UN Global Compact: The Breakthrough Mindset

I have recently read:
Bold: How to Go Big, Create Wealth, and Impact the World–
Peter H Diamandis
• A radical, how-to guide for using exponential technologies,
moonshot thinking, and crowd-powered tools to create
extraordinary wealth while also positively impacting the lives of
billions.
• Part 1: exponential technologies: 3D printing, artificial
intelligence, robotics, networks and sensors, and synthetic
biology.
• Part 2: Psychology of Bold: Larry Page, Elon Musk, Richard
Branson, Jeff Bezos, Singularity University, XPRIZE, Planetary
Resources, & Human Longevity, Inc.
• Part 3: incentive competitions, crowdfunding campaigns, crowd-
powered tools.

What is the Purpose of a Corporation?
On August 19 the Business Roundtable issued an open letter
titled “Statement on the Purpose of a Corporation.”
One of the preeminent business lobbies in the United States,
the Business Roundtable (BR) includes the CEOs of leading
U.S. companies from Apple to Walmart.
Sandwiched between the spare title and 181 signatures was a
one-page declaration that ended as follows:
“Each of our stakeholders is essential. We commit to deliver
value to all of them, for the future success of our companies,
our communities and our country.”

IMPROVISE
D LIVES
AUTOMATED
DOODLING &
DRAWING

Exercise:
Get a new white page in
front of you.
Close your eyes.
In the next 40 seconds:
Do random drawings while
your eyes are closed.
AUTOMATED DOODLING &
DRAWING

Now: Open your eyes.
Look at your random drawings.
In the next 40 seconds:
Try to find a pattern or multiple patterns
among the chaotic drawings.
In the next one minute:
Try to create “abstract art”.
Remember: Art thrives on chaos and
emergence.
In the next one minute:
Give a name to your artwork.
Write a short description (perhaps incorporate a
philosophy or a story into this).
AUTOMATED
DOODLING &
DRAWING

DOODLING & DRAWING
EXERCISE @HOME
Create random drawings
or doodles for each
small screen.
No waiting or thinking.
Do not think hard and
do not judge your
drawing.
Your hands should flow
and do the work – your
mind should not
evaluate, criticise, or
interrupt.

DOODLING & DRAWING
EXERCISE @HOME
PART 2
Try to turn each circle into a
different object.
Make it as quick as possible.
The more ideas, the better.

Life & Employability on
MARS
MINI-WORKSHOP
for FUN/CURIOSITY

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
By which year does Elon Musk’s
SpaceX aim to send the first
astronauts to Mars?
By 2024

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
America’s 2020 budget includes
funding for a manned Mars
mission to launch with a goal of
bringing back samples of the Red
Planet.
For which year is this plan?
2026

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
How many people does Elon
Musk wish to send to Mars until
2050?
1 million

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
How long does it take to go to
Mars?
If everything goes right
About 7-8 months.

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
How long is one year in Mars?
Hint: Longer than the Earth.
687 days!

HERE IS A PUZZLE:
How will people on Mars
communicate with people on
Earth?
Which technology?
Holoportation technology (virtually
placing people in the same room)

TED: The future of human life in Mars

https://highexistence.com/100-science-fiction-books/

Combining Maths, Humour, and Poetry
Grand Slam Poetry Champion | Harry Baker | TEDxExeter

IMPROVISE
D LIVES
CREATE YOUR
OWN
Write your ideas
on a white page

127
 To solve wicked problems of the 21st century, you need to
think beyond borders and disciplines.
 Invest in yourself and your learning every day. This is the
biggest investment you can ever make.
1) Ask Right Questions + Follow Your Interests + Intense Curiosity + Continuous
Learning + Imagination + Passion
2) Courage: Take Risks + Consistent Small Actions + Smart Moves + Hard Work + Play
Your Game + Resilience + Resourcefulness
 Think about where you will be after 10 years. Act
according to that vision.
 You can be as big as your dreams and ambitions.

128
 You can use improvisation to increase adventure and
quality in your life.
 Try to apply automated writing, drawing, doodling, story-
telling, ideating, designing, creating, dancing, and singing
in your life.
 In this life, it is never too late to follow your interests,
curiosities, and passions.
 Show up for creative work and use random prompts or
anchors to get going. Start small – small is beautiful.
 Business as usual is over. We need a new paradigm of
business that solves complex problems ahead of us.

129
 In your profession, it is not enough to know only about
business or finance or HR or marketing. You need to think
bigger.
 Be a polymath: An individual whose knowledge spans a significant
number of subjects, known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve
specific problems.
 Be an autodidact: A self-taught person individual who initiates and
manages his/her own learning and reads voraciously
 Be a hunter and learner of most interesting things. Cross
boundaries – there are no borders.
 Go out of your comfort zone. Learn outside your
discipline. Think and act wider.

130
 This lecture itself was improvised. I learned all the things on these
slides in the last two weeks.
 I had to make hard choices and reduced from 250 slides. Many
things I learned did not make the final cut.
 All the rules of traditional lectures and curriculum – I have thrown
them out from the window.
 Sometimes I feel terrified: Am I on the right track? Does this make
sense to you? What do you think? Please provide me feedback and
let me know.
 Education as usual is dead. Long live lifetime learning!
 Assume responsibility for your own learning.

Lectures 17 and 18: Improvised Lives Workshop: Automated Writing, Drawing, and Creating - 27 November 2020

More Related Content

What's hot (20)

Similar to Lectures 17 and 18: Improvised Lives Workshop: Automated Writing, Drawing, and Creating - 27 November 2020 (20)

More from Fahri Karakas (20)

Recently uploaded (20)

Lectures 17 and 18: Improvised Lives Workshop: Automated Writing, Drawing, and Creating - 27 November 2020

Editor's Notes