Cats and refrigerators

Purpose

To encourage creativity when looking at everyday situations and objects.

Resources

The time required is 5 “10 minutes. No equipment is required.

Notes to coach

This activity helps the coachee to use the right side of the brain, that is to awaken creativity. It is also a good activity to use if the coachee s energy level is dropping.

Instructions

Tell the coachee to think about the similarities between two unrelated but everyday objects and either write down or call out the ideas.

For example: the similarities between a cat and a refrigerator are: they both have tails (the wire leading up to the fridge), they both contain milk, they both have whiskers (mouldy food in the case of the fridge ), they both purr, they can both be white, etc.

Other objects you could use are:

• a computer and a bed;

• spaghetti and tinsel;

• a handbag and a bath;

• a plastic cup and a window.

Alternatives

Ask the coachee to brainstorm similarities between his or her situation and, say, riding a bike “ you could use any activity to make the comparison, such as: walking in the rain, having a baby, reading a book, making dinner, drinking brandy.

SeeVon Oech s book, A Whack on the Side of the Head: How you can be more creative “ details in the Further reading section “ for ideas on awakening creativity.