There is a deck of cards, made by Roger von Oech, called the “Creative Whack Pack.”  My husband bought it years ago, and I ran across it the other day.  I couldn’t remember much about it and so I decided to rediscover it.  There are 64 cards, each one having a strategy to generate new ideas, help with decision-making and basically give you a “whack” in the head to see what you are doing in a fresh way.

There are 4 different headings on the cards, each representing a  type of thinking in the creative process.  There are 16 cards in each suit. These 4 suits are: Explorer, Artist, Judge and Warrior.  

The Explorer is the role you take to create new ideas.  The Artist is the role for transforming your resources into new ideas. The Judge is for evaluating your idea and making a decision about where you want to go with it.  And finally, The Warrior is the role for its implementation.

There are a myriad of ways to utilize this deck of cards and many are discussed in the little booklet found inside the box.  Ways of brainstorming in a group, playing a game at a meeting or at home, or other techniques for creative thinking.

Shuffling, dealing the cards and picking the cards at random all provide unique methods for individual or group usage.  It is truly a tool for creating ideas for many different people, in workplaces, schools and just for fun.

Having re-discovered this special deck of cards on my bookshelf, I have decided to explore the cards and find ways I might like to use them.  Just the act of reading them alone, will perhaps help to jump-start some ideas I have been carrying around with me.  It may just prove to be the “whack” I need to bring some ideas to fruition.  At least it’s worth a try.  Wish me luck!  I think this is going to be fun!