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How the Inner Vision Deck™ was invented
Creative Problem Solving for Skeptics...
The Inner Vision Deck™ was created in response to a question I posed myself while planning a creative problem solving workshop for my local business-networking group. I wanted to introduce quite a sceptical group to the power of creative problem solving. The question I asked was "How can I gently engage people in the act of creative problem solving?"
Answers and insights...
The answer came in the form of an image of a deck of cards that mimics the effects of CrabApple, a CPS technique devised by Win Wenger. Instead of using an object as in CrabApple, the image I saw suggested using words! Next the question came - "what words?" As soon as I asked myself that question, a stream of words started running through my head. I pulled out my Portable Memory Bank (a notepad that I carry with me everywhere) and began to write them down. When I finally stopped and counted the number of words, it came to sixty-nine words. I knew that if I tried to rationally decide on the words, I would never be certain that I had made the most effective choices. To double check, I used muscle testing to verify if I had all the words I needed. Through asking a series of questions I found that I only needed to change the wording of two phrases. Satisfied with the results, these are the words/phrases that made it into the final version of the Inner Vision Deck™.
Putting it to the test...
I immediately sensed that I was on to something, so I mocked up a prototype using some design software, an inkjet printer and photo paper, which was the closest thing to card that I could print on.
The next day, I brought the cards to the workshop with my networking group and tested them out...and people started getting answers to their questions, some of which had been left unresolved for quite a while. Either the word/phrase answered the question directly or after being prompted to explore the relationship between it and the question, the workshop participants started to get clear answers.
Demand grows...
I continued to test the cards in solving my own questions and when working with others in coaching situations. Wherever I went, I brought the deck with me and placed them on the table or counter in front of me. People would inevitably want to see how they worked. This gave me an opportunity to refine the steps for working with the Inner Vision Deck™ The cards have been used 100's of times with people, with great results. After using them, people then started to ask, "Okay, I'd like to buy a set." I had to tell them that this was a prototype and the only one I owned. The feedback and request to actually purchase a deck made me realise that I had a product that people were willing to buy.
Taking the leap...
After plenty of research and a determination I decided to produce the Inner Vision Deck™ without the need for a loan or investor (other than my wife and I), I found Games & Print Services in the UK. The team there was extremely helpful in getting the cards printed and finished to a high standard.
The initial run of the Inner Vision Deck™ is for 1000 decks, and depending on their success, the revenue will be used to get more printed - and in different languages. There has already been a request for a German language Inner Vision Deck™. If anyone would like to collaborate on creating a version of the Inner Vision Deck™ in any other language please contact me.
Simple appeal...
The appeal of the Inner Vision Deck™ comes from the fact that it is minimalist, and so can be easily used in a business context. The words have no inherent meaning aside from what the user ascribes to them. In this way you are not being told what to interpret from the cards - you are being asked to interpret for yourself. This is the basis of the majority of the Creative Problem Solving techniques and products I develop. It encourages you to go inside and find your own answers.
Rory O'Connor, 2005