Combinatorial Play

Shooo so thats a mouth full - combi-nato-real Play. Whats that all about. Well the term itself was coined by Einstein, to define the mixing (cross pollination) of concepts from different fields to determine if there are any new valuable insights that can be formed. Einsteins actual words were "the search for patterns that yielded new meaning".

Referring back to IDEO, one of their examples of combinatorial play, is the "materials box" that is available when ever a new product design team starts working. This is essentially a box into which interesting odds and ends are stored (like new material types, different kinds of packaging etc). The box serves as an idea impetus when conceptulising the new product.

Combinatorial play is the main factor behind most ground breaking discoveries like the theory of relativity, Darwins origin of the species, the discovery of the microwave oven, the creation of the first apple PC, the development of the Star Wars Movie and and and ....

In fact what most people dont realise, is that the human sub-consious mind is in a constant combinatorial play state pairing different concepts together. Some surface to the conscious mind, and is explored further while most are discarded into the dusty depths.

For the entrepreneur, combinatorial play is crucial to find a competitive edge, innovative solution or new nitche to exploit. I believe that play is the operative word in this regard. It is the act of playing (which is a creative state) with concepts either physically or mentally that leads to finding innovative solutions.

Dont forget how to play, as this is perhaps one on the most crucial tools towards maintiaining a creative state of mind. Buy play with diversity, continiously do something different to further allow the cross polination to occur. In fact the more diverse your explorations and interactions are, the better populated your own personal "materials box" becomes. Also, it broadens your view of the world, and further encourages subconscious combinatorial play.

The zen in all of this, is learning how to allow the subconscious to surface the seeds of its combinatorial play, hand over to your conscious play which can lead to innovative creations.