Are you an Architect, a Sunbird or an Integrator?

There are three types of creators according to Amy Wilkinson, the author of The Creator’s Code, that is:

1. The Architect,

2. The Sunbird, and

3. The Integrator

The Architect:

The Architect persona refers to creators who build new concepts from the ground up. A good example would be SpaceX founded by Elon Musk.

SpaceX was born from Elon Musk wondering why space exploration was so expensive. He then went back to first principles, breaking down the problem even further. He uncovered that the parts that make up a rocket are what made space exploration ridiculously expensive and just like that SpaceX was born.

See this excerpt from the Creator's Code:

Just like Elon Musk, Architects identify problems, employ the five ‘why' framework i.e. ask ‘why’ until they uncover the root cause and proceed to construct solutions from the ground up.

They use first principles thinking which is described as ‘the practice of questioning every assumption you think you know about a given problem, then creating new solutions from scratch.’ It’s sometimes referred to as ‘reasoning by first principles’ and is one of the best ways to unlock creative solutions to complicated problems.

The Sunbird:

Did you know that the process of making instant coffee and preserving the full taste of coffee beans in powder form was derived from a medical technology invented to preserve blood cells? This is an example of a Sunbird leap.

Sunbirds look at how problems are solved in different fields, industries and geographies and transport those solutions to other unrelated areas.

Starbucks CEO, Howard Schultz, transported the idea of coffee shops from Italy to the US with a few tweaks here and there. When Schultz first established the coffee bar in the US, he replicated the exact Italian Cafe experience, that is, waiters dressed in bow ties, opera music playing in the background and no seating for customers. Once he noticed that it wasn’t working, he strived to understand why and realized that Americans wanted a place where they could have a cup of coffee while working and that’s when he found the sweet spot. He added seating to the restaurant and the opera was traded for jazz and blues and the rest is history. Today Starbucks has 32,000 stores across 80 countries.

To be a sunbird, you need to be observant and inquisitive to spot the correlations.

The Integrator:

Integrators have an ability to disentangle elements and assemble them in new and different ways. Eg

• Luxury SUV, for those who want a high-end vehicle designed for comfort with an all-wheel, off-road sport vehicle built for rugged terrain.

• Glamping, for those who love nature but don’t want to go for traditional camping. It’s a fusion of glamour and camping, also known as luxury camping.

Integrators combine concepts and introduce a new product/concept.

Steve Ells, the founder of Chipotle (US based restaurant), was a classically trained chef who combined his Culinary skills with techniques behind Mexican street food and eventually created a new dining category known as Fast Casual. It’s food that is of a higher quality, offered at an affordable price but served at a faster rate compared to fine dining.

So what’s the point of sharing this with you?

I read The Creator’s Code is 2018 and I still remember these 3 categories to date. For me, learning about this informed how I approached problem solving. It taught me that:

1. Creativity is not ‘a one size fits all’. There are different ways to be creative. Some innovations are incremental, while some are disruptive, but all are innovations. Look around you and you’ll see all forms of creativity and all types of creators. None is lesser than the other.

2. Curiosity is your biggest asset. Never shy away from asking ‘why’. Be inquisitive, be open to learning and dig deeper.

3. Ask the RIGHT questions. 

   “You don’t invent the answers, you reveal them by asking the right question,” Jonas Salk, discoverer of the polio vaccine.

4. The importance of reasoning by first principles. Breaking down a complex problem into its fundamentals, makes a problem that seems insolvable, solvable. Go back to the fundamentals.

5. The benefits of being a generalist. Often generalists are looked down upon but there is room for both specialists & generalists to thrive. In this instance, being a generalist allows you to identify solutions that can be transported across divides or combined to produce new concepts. If you’re a generalist, lean into your strength.

6. Be observant. Be present. It’s only by being present that our minds collect data that is eventually used to connect the dots giving birth to creative ideas.

7. Create pockets of time to think. It’s during these moments that creativity happens. Take a walk, a long drive or meditate. There’s a lot that can happen when we allow ourselves room to think.

I’ll leave you with this:

As you begin your week I hope you will allow yourself room to create whether it falls under these 3 categories or not. Remember, these archetypes are a state of mind rather than a fixed persona so don’t limit yourself. Allow your mind to wander because creativity is like a muscle that needs to be exercised and the ideas can come from anywhere, especially the most unexpected places! Make some time to engage your creativity muscles this week.

Here’s to a great week of problem solving and innovation!

#ChooseToThrive