With passion & creativity to innovation
“Fantasy is more important than knowledge, because knowledge is limited,” is a well-known quote from Albert Einstein, which has often inspired me. For me, creativity is closely connected with fantasy. To travel in my mind, to daydream and to discover unexpected things has been a lot of fun to me since my childhood. In my profession today, creativity is a central element, if not the core competence.
At the Porsche Digital Lab in Berlin, we are always on the lookout for new ideas and technologies that we can put to good use in the Porsche Cosmos — for example AI and sound (e.g. Case Study: “The Sound Detective”).
We see technology as how good solutions are built, but which are only used by people if they offer genuine added value and the golden “aha effect”. To create this added value, we need a high degree of creativity.
With some of my colleagues, I have found that being creative at the touch of a button does not work, even if we are good at practice. Whenever I approach a new task with my rational mind on, I notice that it gets a bit bumpy and I block myself. What helps me in such moments? For example, I like to talk to people from other professions and areas to get new impulses. What role does creativity play for them and what do they need to be creative? Can I learn something for my own creativity from this?
Technology meets Music
I had a particularly intensive conversation with the two girls from “Chefboss”. I immediately fell in love with the Hamburg dancehall group with singer Alice Martin and dancer and choreographer Maike Mohr at our meeting. Office or stage, technology or music — we quickly agreed that it doesn’t really matter in which field you work when it comes to the phenomenon of creativity. Because creativity goes beyond the trades and is above all one thing: a very personal topic. Being creative is a mindset that needs the right individual conditions and the right drive.
Alice told me what unfolds her creativity for the creation of new music and lyrics: “I am inspired by people who approach their business with passion, curiosity and knowledge. According to Alice, to release, channel and steer creativity in the desired direction, you need a vision that you can work on and fight for. She finds it helpful to remain human, funny, open and above all always curious.
After my little roadtrip with Alice und Maike, I sat down and noted my 3 personal creativity engines:
1. Long live the curiosity! As I said at the beginning, my curiosity to different things and people has rewarded me with great ideas and divers views on topics since my childhood. Even in adulthood I always try to put myself into this carefree feeling without “self-censored mind”.
2. The inner urge for change: As it is well known, creativity cannot be prescribed. Without a passion for the subject and the inner urge to gather more experience and knowledge in this subject area, being creative is not possible in my opinion. Those who recognize their passions and look for a profession related to that passion will automatically earn good conditions for creativity.
3. Time & deflection: It takes its time until we dive into a topic in a concentrated and deep way. The overcoming of established patterns of thought and the conquest of new paths of thought does not work according to a fixed schedule. That‘s why for me it works well to stop thinking too much and do something different. Listen to music, go for a run or go to an art museum and when I expect it at least the idea is born. Frankly speaking I had some of my best ideas while having a shower…
We at Porsche Digital Lab are convinced that creative abilities such as thinking unusually, solving problems imaginatively or presenting results innovatively will play an increasingly important role in the future world of work.
After all, these are skills that cannot easily be replaced by machines or artificial intelligence. Therefore we invest a lot of time and resources in cultivating, promoting and living creativity. Only in this way can we pave the way for future innovations and productivity.
#NextLevelGermanEngineering.
#TheNext70Years
