Angela Crocker

Write. Teach. Organize.

  • Home
  • Biography
  • speaking
    • School Visits
  • News
  • Books
  • Blog
  • contact

Curious About Creativity

11.21.2022 by Angela Crocker // Leave a Comment

My updated Instagram bio includes “curious about creativity“. That phrase is fast becoming my new theme song.

What is creativity?

Over the last several months, I’ve been exploring creativity. It has many facets. Writing, drawing, speaking, playing, and much more. Creativity is something we define for ourselves. It’s a personal adventure with ideas and expression.

Yet, it’s also something we’ve forgotten how to explore. Our formal education, societal expectations, general busyness, and other outside factors box in our creativity. We doubt our creativity. Worse, we lose sight of its importance. Maybe even its existence.

What’s there to explore?

All of these observations have made me curious about creativity. I’ve been reading academic studies, following TikTok creators, and guiding my own students through creativity exercises. The more I learn, the more curious I become.

With so much to explore, I find that my definition constantly expands. It feels as though the big bang popped in my brain! While the central theme of creativity is solid, I see wisps of related ideas that  capture my attention. At first, it seemed like chaos. Now, I think it’s chaos theory in action.

I haven’t seen everything – yet?! – but I am starting to see patterns in the information. And I’m excited to follow those patterns for meaning. To do that, I am redirecting my attention with the intention of satisfying my curiosity about creativity.

Here’s an example: Last Tuesday, I was driving home after teaching a lecture-lab for my content planning class. Seemingly for the first time, I saw the #14 bus – a legendary route in Vancouver. While I’ve never ridden this route, I had seen the play, The Number 14, back in 2009. The imagery from that play sticks with me today.

That’s creativity in action. I seek a better understanding of how that works and what it means.

Why be curious about creativity?

Angela Crocker laughs about curious about creativity. This tall woman wearing a red shirt under a navy jacket holds a Fisher Price toy phoneThe few friends I’ve shared my new curiosity with have asked if this is my next book. My answer is cryptic: Not at this time but, maybe, one day. These ideas feel bigger and brighter than anything I’ve written before. I need time to follow my curiosity and see where it takes me.

Now is my opportunity to enjoy the journey.

I’ll be sharing the journey here on my (oft neglected!) blog. I, also, hope to put a spotlight on creative minds along the way. For more, follow along on my TikTok and Instagram. It’ll be fun, I promise!

Categories // Blog, Curious About Creativity Tags // #CuriousAboutCreativity, Creativity

Go to Experts for Lifelong Learning

06.22.2021 by Angela Crocker // Leave a Comment

Everybody needs go to experts.

As an educator, I spend much of my year working with students at BCIT, a Vancouver-based, polytechnic university. I also teach assorted workshops, seminars, and guest lectures at other venues. I teach content planning, digital marketing, public relations, work from home skills, digital decluttering, and more.

Lifelong Learning

Typically, I work with a group of students for a single semester, about twelve weeks. One of the lessons I hope they takeaway is the knowledge that everything digital is constantly evolving. To be successful, it’s vital to become a lifelong learner who is consistently curious about what’s new and what’s stayed the same.

My Go To Experts

I know from experience that it is impossible to stay up to date on everything of interest on my own. I need to update my knowledge regularly, as needed. The gaps between updates vary depending on the work (or play) that holds our attention at any given time.

To help make it easier to stay up-to-date on topics of interest, I curate this constantly evolving list of go to experts. The names on this list offer expertise that intersects with mine. They generously share their work, research, and other relevant information online.

To help my students (and readers) jump start their own list of experts, I’m sharing my list. Below, grouped by subject matter, you’ll find a list of professionals whose work I know and admire. In no particular order, here are my go to experts:

Marketing

Tara Hunt has an extraordinary mind when it comes to digital marketing. Her research and experience across several industries makes the work she shares invaluable. Check out her video on owned versus earned media for an example and don’t hesitate to use brand personality cards.

As both educator and food writer, Rebecca Coleman’s research and practical experience in social media is brilliant. Her Instagram stories are well-planned yet spontaneous, personable, and fun.

More than one million Canadian listeners tune into Terry O’Reilly’s engaging podcast, Under the Influence, each week. Each well-researched and engaging episode is filled with an entertaining look at some aspect of the marketing business. My current favourite episode is Number Fever: Surprising Stories of Bottle Cap Marketing (Season 11, Episode 1).

Business Communication

Catherine Blyth’s book, The Art of Conversation, is a much-needed reminder to make the most of every conversation. As she wrote, “Conversation is brilliant at both polishing thoughts and frothing up new ones.”  (p4)

Vicki McLeod brings decades of experience to work around digital communication. She passionately advocates for us all to be  more human in a digital world. Her most recent book, Effective Communication at Work, is a must-read for anyone wanting meaningful communication at the office. This excerpt from her blog is a good starting point, “Empathy connects us to one another, creating resonance and helping people feel seen, heard, and understood.”  (And I’d be remiss if I didn’t note that she is also my Digital Legacy Plan co-author.)

Productivity

When it comes to productivity, I’m most likely to refer people to Mike Vardy’s work. From his Timecrafting productivity framework to his popular A Productive Conversation podcast, Mike’s work is filled with actionable advice. (He also enjoys alliteration as much as I do!) I recently enjoyed his conversation with Annie Duke – tune in if you need help making decisions.

Author Chris Bailey’s experiments in productivity illuminate the dilemma all digital marketers face – online distractions. As he wrote, “The internet can destroy your productivity if you’re not careful… disconnect from it when working on a high-impact or ugly task… and disconnect as much as possible throughout the day.” (The Productivity Project, p.76) And be sure to check out this time-tracking hack from Chris’ blog – easy and insightful.

Solopreneur Stephen Warley identifies the skills entrepreneurs need to get the right things done. Be sure to check out the Life Skills That Matter podcast and blog. Stephen’s thoughts on making time for self-reflection caught my attention. He “[regards] self-reflection as a check-in conversation with myself to see who everything is going.”

James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, shows us the value of small, incremental changes to shift how, when, and why we commit to new habits. His 1% approach is almost sneaky; it’s so simple (based on complex research). We’re also  on the same page when it comes to the value of no.

Technology

Steve Dotto is one of my favourite tech geeks. His robust (and free!) webinar Wednesdays are a treasure trove of weekly learning opportunities on a wide range of topics. He’s also host of Grey Matters podcast guiding mid-career and late-career professionals. (He recently interviewed my Digital Legacy Plan co-author, Vicki McLeod, on writing.)

Journalist and CBC Radio host, Nora Young, offers a fun and informative look at new technology. On her program, SPARK, she explores how technology impacts our lives at work, at play, and at rest. This episode about how online communications impacts are relationships resonated with me.

Most weeks, I turn to co-hosts Mike Agerbo and John Biehler for the latest tech news. I regularly listen to the podcast edition of their live radio shows, Get Connected and The App Show, to hear tech news. With informed opinions on the new gear, related public policy, and real world application, it’s easy to keep up to date.

Creativity

Meghan Parker‘s book, Teaching Artfully, influenced my perception and understanding of how we communicate ideas. If a graphic novel and a comic had a baby, it would this delightfully visual exploration. One of my main takeaways is to use more varied elements of art (line, color, form, texture, shape, space, and value) in my note-taking. Check out her Instagram feed for a closer look at her work.

Whenever I’m struggling with writer’s block or procrastination, I reread Steven Pressfield‘s The War of Art. It’s just the reset I need to remember what Pressfield calls “resistance”. This repelling force…[that] aims to shove us away, distract us, prevent us from doing our work”. Because resistance is “self-generated and self-perpetuated”, the reminder helps me reset my creative mojo.

Given my academic background, I’m a stickler for citing sources. That said, I enjoy Austin Kleon‘s observation in his book, Steal Like an Artist. As Kleon wrote, “… a good artist understands nothing comes from nowhere. All creative work builds on what came before. Nothing is completely original.” I find this freeing as I explore different ideas. I’m always seeking new connections, new interpretations, and new presentations to help me understand what I’m learning.

More go to experts to come

Over time, I anticipate this list of go to experts will grow. Check back from time to time. Meanwhile, keep learning! Always.

(I’m also open to suggested additions. Drop me a line if you’d like to recommend someone for this list.)

Categories // Blog

Interview: Business Storytelling Podcast

03.10.2021 by Angela Crocker // Leave a Comment

Recently, I chatted with Christoph Trappe, host of the Business Storytelling Podcast, and Vicki McLeod, my Digital Legacy Plan co-author. Listen in as we discuss how to start your digital legacy plan today and the after-death realities of your digital footprint.

p.s. Be sure to check out Christoph’s new book, Going Live: Livestream Your Podcast To Reach More People. It’s on my “to read” list.

 

Categories // Blog Tags // Business Storytelling Podcast, Christoph Trappe, Digital Legacy Plan, interview, Vicki McLeod

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • …
  • 59
  • Next Page »

Digital Life Skills for Youth

Digital Legacy Plan

Digital Legacy Plan book cover

Declutter Your Data

book cover Declutter Your Data by Angela Crocker

The Content Planner

Podcast

Keep in touch!

Thanks for signing up!

Sign up for updates on Angela's latest books, projects and events.

By submitting this form, you are granting: Angela Crocker & Associates, 255 Newport Drive, Suite 225, Port Moody, British Columbia, V3H 5H1, Canada, http://AngelaCrocker.com permission to email you. You may unsubscribe via the link found at the bottom of every email. (See our Email Privacy Policy for details.) Emails are serviced by Constant Contact.

Buy the Book

Click to Buy Online

Contact Angela

Angela Crocker
Email
Voice: 604.727.6974
By Mail:
225 - 255 Newport Drive,
Port Moody, BC V3H 5H1

Contact Angela

Angela Crocker
Email
Voice: 604.727.6974
By Mail:
225 - 255 Newport Drive,
Port Moody, BC V3H 5H1

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS
  • Twitter

About Angela

Angela Crocker helps businesses communicate. She’s a writer, a teacher and an information organizer. Trained as both a business writer and a technical writer, Angela draws on her twenty years of business experience in marketing, fundraising, entrepreneurship, leadership and teaching. A published author, Angela’s currently celebrating her latest book, The Content Planner. On a personal level, Angela collects Star Wars novels, adores choral music and doodles with fine art supplies. Learn more…

Recent comments…

"Thank you for the presentation regarding social media (something I know very little about). It was very helpful to make it less "magical" and more possible, in my mind."

Angela Sousa

Read more...

Recent comments…

This has been really quite wonderful. You make [Twitter] so clear in the way you explain things. I’m sure I can do this now.

Danial Neil
Flight of the Dragonfly (Borealis Press)

Read more...

Copyright © 2025 · Modern Studio Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in