Leveraging intuition, improv, and inquiry with Natalie Nixon

Technically Speaking with Harrison Wheeler

Natalie Nixon, Ph.D., is a creativity strategist, keynote speaker, and author. She is the CEO of Figure 8 Thinking and known as the Creativity Whisperer for the C-Suite.

She has been recognized as one of the "Top 50 Keynote Speakers for 2022" by Real Leaders and her book, "The Creativity Leap: Unleash Curiosity, Improvisation, and Intuition at Work," received an award at Fast Company's World Changing Ideas Awards in 2021.

In this episode we discuss various aspects of creativity, including building curiosity and empathy, productivity solutions, work-life integration, creativity in executive roles, and intuition in business.

About the Guest:

A creativity strategist, keynote speaker, and author, Natalie Nixon, Ph.D., CEO of Figure 8 Thinking, is the Creativity Whisperer for the C-Suite. Through wonder and rigor, she helps leaders amplify growth and business value through transformation.

Real Leaders named Natalie one of the "Top 50 Keynote Speakers for 2022". In 2021, Fast Company's World Changing Ideas Awards honored her book The Creativity Leap: Unleash Curiosity, Improvisation, and Intuition at Work.

In 2021, Core 77 named Figure 8 Thinking one of the Top 20 Women-Led Innovation Firms. Natalie is a trustee of the Smithsonian's Cooper Hewitt Design Museum, Vassar College, and Leadership+Design. She holds a BA (Honors) from Vassar College and a Ph.D. from the University of Westminster in London. She is a Foresight Practitioner certified by the Institute for the Future.

Quote of the episode

“As my mom used to tell us as we were growing up, all learning is interconnected. Everything that we do, whether it's waiting tables or leading a team, is relevant, and we can interweave it into our current work and outlook."

Connect with Natalie Nixon:

• Website: https://www.figure8thinking.com/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/natwnixon
• LinkedIn Learning Course: https://www.linkedin.com/learning/lead-with-inquiry-improvisation-and-intuition/the-power-of-inquiry-improvisation-and-intuition?autoplay=true
• Fast Company Articles: https://www.fastcompany.com/90721653/your-invisible-work-is-key-to-your-most-productive-self

Timestamps

(00:13) - Icebreaker: Natalie's current obsession that helps build curiosity and empathy.

(02:32) - Icebreaker: The best yet counterintuitive approach to productivity and solution to burnout.

(05:02) - Icebreaker: How to turn work-life balance into work-life integration with daydream breaks, timed walks, and dancing.

(09:04) - Being The Creativity Whisperer in the C-Suite and creativity's role at the executive level.

(12:05) - Natalie's diverse and loopy background in cultural anthropology and fashion.

(13:37) - Common misconceptions about fashion, what it's really about, and how her career in fashion taught her everything about business.

(15:30) - Building a business using intuition and prototyping.

(16:32) - How to gain confidence in your intuition by toggling between wonder and rigor.

(19:30) - Coming up with the name Figure 8 Thinking for her business and the types of projects they work on.

(24:34) - Unleash Curiosity, Improvisation, and Intuition at Work through The Creativity Leap book.

(26:15) - How her podcast guesting for The Creativity Leap book promotion on...
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