In an earlier post on creativity I was talking about using RSS readers to make more time for creativity.

That’s one approach. It’s methodical, consistent, and sustainable. Another approach is the web stumble. It’s been accused of being a time waster, and sometimes that’s true, but other times . . .

Here’s the process.

1) Go to stumbleupon.com

2) Sign up (it takes two seconds)

3) Download and install the stumble upon browser application.

4) Fill out your preferences (a quick pick list)

5) Click “stumble!”

The stumble system will then show you sites that match your preferences that are recommended by people like you. This is hugely important and if you read much from Swift Kick you’ll know we are all about recommendation engines based on collaborative intelligence – that this is the core of what we think is the future of education, but that’s not what this post is about.

What happens when I clicked “Stumble!” was an immediate get: it showed me something cool.

First it was incredible pictures of storms:

Then it was chalk art.

On the third click came pictures of installations by Mark Jenkins.

They made me laugh:

And they had a little commentary built in, that made me think:

And this is the creativity. We talk about pattern interrupts and apathetic detournement and here it is – simple, effective and engaging.

Wouldn’t the next programming meeting be a little more fun with images like these as a starting place?

(Maybe, just maybe, someone would be inspired to find the distinction between “guerilla marketing” (which I loathe) and viral memes (which I love) and this would be incredible education. A hint: Free Hugs would be completely crap with a Nike Swoosh on it. But I digress.)

So stumble as a catalyst for creativity, but don’t stop there.

As an advisor, you have an opportunity to build rapport, credibility, and influence by sharing cool things. If you’re on Facebook, you can do this with one click. Just install the “Share On Facebook” button (on the right hand side in the grey box):

(Get to this page by clicking “Posted Items” in your upper left hand navigation.)

Then when see something that really strikes you, something profound, something funny, something meaningful, share it with all of your friends (probably your students) on Facebook. Your contribution of obscureness to the social network a) makes you more interesting / cooler b) adds to their horizons c) opens up dialogue:

Notice how Jyn actually says she’s going to repost what I found and try to claim her own cool points (the same points she had to give me.)

So stumble away! (And be my friend on Facebook so that when you find cool stuff, I can repost it and claim cool points : )