An “exceeder”. (Episode 189)

I like to make up new words to describe my thoughts. Today I want to introduce you to “exceeder”.

​

An exceeder is an idea that exceeded your expectations. An idea that came out better than you intended.

​

When we try to be creative, we imagine that what we think is the perfect idea.

​

Yet frequently, quite often, to be honest, our ideas come out way better than we imagined.

​

Take my glass dome office that I built, as an example. When I was thinking about ideas for my new office, I imagined a glass dome that would have amazing views, have me be close to nature, have me sitting in a “creative bubble” and inspire me by its unusual and exciting shape.

​

And when I built my glass dome I got all of that.

​

But when I was planning it, I thought I would sit in the dome just in the summers (It lacks insulation and proper heating). I thought that when fall came, I would have to go down and work in my house again.

​

But today it’s the 23 of November and I am still sitting in the dome watching the sky and the sea.

So I was wrong. My idea of a summer glass dome was exceeded. Turns out that the result I got was a ‘3/4 of the year’ office.

​

When is the last time that an idea ended up way better than you imagined it?

​

When is the last time you had an exceeder?

​

Would love to know your thoughts – post your comment here.

​

Fredrik Haren – The Creativity Explorer, today sharing insights from a magical island in Sweden