{"id":18896,"date":"2018-09-13T21:57:14","date_gmt":"2018-09-14T04:57:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dminlgp\/?p=18896"},"modified":"2018-09-13T22:08:38","modified_gmt":"2018-09-14T05:08:38","slug":"where-to-begin-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/where-to-begin-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Where to begin…"},"content":{"rendered":"

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I meet with a lot of people who feel stuck in some way. Most of these people are young and have much of their lives ahead of them, yet that is often the problem. They sense there is a specific path they must forge but they don\u2019t know how to get to it. Or they feel there are so many options they are paralyzed. Choosing means eliminating options and potentially picking a dead end, leading to failure. Not having a road map is daunting for young people, yet when being told what to choose, they feel boxed in.\u00a0 What many could use is a guide to discovery, a way forward that allows them to process their ideas and experiences so they may more readily discover their calling. For those who feel stuck or need to reimagine their way forward, Tina Seelig\u2019s book, Insight Out: Get Ideas Out of Your Head and into the World<\/em> does just this. A practical guide introducing entrepreneurial concepts with stories to illustrate her points along with practical application for the reader, Seelig offers a way to invent one\u2019s own future.<\/p>\n

In a culture filled with self-help schemes and gurus, Tina Seelig is not primarily interested in creating another money-making gimmick. As a neuroscientist and professor at Stanford in the department of Management Science and Engineering, Seelig is focused on helping her students \u201cidentify and seize opportunities\u2026fostering skills that will enable them to build their career, contribute to the organizations they join, and lead a fulfilling life.\u201d[1]<\/a><\/p>\n

Seelig states in an interview her purpose in writing Insight Out. \u201cMy goal in Insight Out is to bring together what we know about creativity with what we know about entrepreneurship so that we can reproducibly teach, learn and practice these skills in a rigorous manner.\u201d[2]<\/a> She does this through introducing the invention cycle. \u201cThe Invention Cycle is a new model that defines the relationships between imagination, creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship\u2026 Imagination is envisioning things that do not exist; creativity is applying imagination to address a challenge; innovation is applying creativity to generate unique solutions, and entrepreneurship is applying innovation to bring unique ideas to fruition.\u201d[3]<\/a><\/p>\n

Seelig\u2019s book is very pragmatic and doable for anyone, not just students at Stanford. Her basic introduction of concepts accompanied by stories to illustrate how the concepts take shape in the world provides vision for those beginning to grow their entrepreneurial skills. In addition, the practical application at the end of the chapters give learners a way to experience the concepts and actually grow their skillset. Seelig notes early on that learning is experiential and without experiencing the ideas being taught one will not actually learn the content presented to them.<\/p>\n

One of the limitations to Seelig\u2019s work comes in the way of a starting place. For entrepreneurs and innovators to create in a way that is meaningful and productive they must begin with a concrete sense of identity. Knowing who one is allows them to create something that is deeply fulfilling, especially when risk and challenge are inevitably involved.<\/p>\n

When considering the development of an apprentice or new leader, one must begin with their identity. As a pastor and leader in the Free Methodist church, I believe all are made in the Imago Dei and, as such are a good creation. And, although we are good, we are broken and sinful, and in need of a Savior beyond ourselves, namely, Jesus. \u00a0This identity leads us to begin with the creation narrative and then the story of redemption found in Jesus in the New Testament. There is much more detail and nuance to our identity but these are the basic beginnings. From here, disciples can connect with their unique giftings and personality. Thus, their identity will inform the ways they experience the world and how they choose to engage toward learning passion areas and choosing creative and even career paths.<\/p>\n

Over the weekend I watched the movie Adrift<\/em> featuring Shailene Woodley. Adrift<\/em> is the actual story of two young people who set sail from Tahiti to San Diego in the 1980s. They are caught in a hurricane in the midst of their trip and are thrown hundreds of miles off course. The majority of the story is focused around the internal and external struggle to return to the original course and finish the prolonged trip with a broken sail and very few supplies. While watching I was struck by the sailor\u2019s navigational abilities and their tenacity in what seemed like a hopeless situation. They were able to determine where they were in the midst of endless ocean and then re-charted their course to find land and survive in a dire circumstance. They could have remained stuck and allowed themselves to die in the bleak situation but, determining where they were and being compelled by something greater than themselves (you will have to watch the movie to know what that was), they carried on.<\/p>\n