Here's a short story which illustrates 'Collabetition'...

The Stone Soup Legend

There exists a tale, handed down from times long ago, of two travelers on a journey. Hungry and tired from a long day, they come to a small impoverished village where they decide to rest by the side of the road. One of the travelers builds a small fire upon which she places a large pot, while the other, having drawn water from the town well, fills the pot and places into it a small stone.
As the two sit by the fire, bringing their "stone soup" to a boil, the local villagers become inquisitive of the curious antics of these strangers and eventually, several townsfolk decide to engage them in conversation. Shortly thereafter, there is heard the sound of merriment, as the travelers, who turn out to be quite friendly, share with the local villagers their tales of the lands and people they have met throughout their journey.

Finally, a young boy asks the travelers "But why, may I ask, are you boiling a stone?"

One of the travelers replies, "So we may eat stone soup."

"It must be terribly bland!" says an townswoman. "But I have a cabbage which will add some flavor!"

"And I some carrots which will add color!" says another villager.

"Some potatoes!" offers another, until shortly, by the contribution of a little by many, a hearty stew was made, upon which the entire village and the weary travelers dined... and while doing so, shared their tales, talents, and camaraderie throughout the night.

The very next day, the travelers (who by now could no longer be called "strangers"), continued their journey, leaving the little town, and its people, behind. But the villagers never forgot them and the lesson they had learned. In fact, during the hardest of times, in such a time as this tale, that little village thrived because the townsfolk never forgot how to make "stone soup".
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I wonder what would happen if every one of us brought our best to the pot of stone soup? I believe that the moral of our story was TO GET COOKIN'! With a slice of collaboration, a dash or principles, and a pinch of competition we can all make tonight's version of "stone soup". As you travel on your journey, going from job to job, community to community, virtual village to virtual village, what will you add to that boiling pot of ideas; how will you choose to compete in the Creative Era?

Collabetition is a principle-centered approach to the creative process. Based on natural principles, here are the three ways creative ideas arrive and expand:

1. Become an Idea Magnet.
The mind is a powerful search engine. To find and attract the ideas we want, this principle shows us how to focus and channel our thoughts.

2. Become an Idea Harvester.
Creative people and their ideas represent the modern "farm." So the relationship seeds we plant on this farm can either help or hinder the social aspect of creativity. This principle shows us how to reap better ideas from collaborative environments.

3. Become an Idea Producer.
Staying competitive means getting a team of minds bursting with creativity to produce the next brilliant idea. This principle shows us how to create the environment (or factory) that releases ideas from everyone involved in the assembly line.

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From the Introduction

    Many people would agree when I say that this is a wonderful time to be creative. This is because within many of us lies a creative person in waiting. While the waiting lines have gotten longer, there have never been more opportunities today for you to express, expose, and experience a fulfilling creative existence. A great creative idea can become an asset giving way to purpose or fortune. From patents to intellectual property to trademarks, possessing a creative mind can be your gateway to growth on all levels.
But I must admit, when it comes to creativity, my view is now more objective. You see, I hail from the new school of creativity: the school with advances in technology, rife with endless possibilities to be seen and heard on a global scale--in short, to express one’s creative side. In this school many of us are Wired, working for the Fast Company looking to make that first Fortune.
    Some readers may feel differently than I do about this school, seeing the utter disruption of the creative life, and many creative types I spoke with share in the belief that technology is not all roses and sunshine. One reason cited for these sentiments is due to shifts in technology that have unearthed jobs or competitive positions previously held by one knowledge worker to a new knowledge worker. In their book Beyond Reason, Roger Fisher and Daniel Shapiro note, "In today’s booming innovative corporations, executives with 50 years of experience are not as valuable as an enthusiastic 23-year-old bursting with creativity and knowledge about the latest computer innovations.” This very notion may spell gloom and doom to the generations from the old schools while representing a gold rush to the school I hail from. But if history has taught us anything, it is that no one, regardless of age, school or talent, may rest on his or her laurels.

Just by observation, have you ever noticed how some people just seem to have great ideas all the time? From the outside looking in at their lives, it seems these talented people consistently attract ideas. Have you also noticed how you often obtain new or better ideas just by doing certain things or hanging with certain kinds of people? While I have your brain going, try thinking about how new breakthroughs get started, or how lasting professional partnerships are found and created. Or take this into consideration: Is there a time you can remember being part of a group or team effort in which everything just clicked, making success seem assured? I have found there to be a connection to these thoughts and behaviors and the people who see higher levels of creativity required in today’s world.
I'm not talking about some formula, a fixed procedure or rule for achieving a result. To nurture the creative within, what we don't need is more rigidly applied rules. No, I'm referring to a strategy for creativity rooted in essential truths or principles, ones that you probably use at times but perhaps are unaware of.
The word collabetition suggests an intersection between collaboration and competition–yet this book is about more than two words forced to marry. When we take the root collab, meaning “to work with,” and the suffix etition, loosely meaning “to seek a quality or state,” we create not merely a collage of root words but a description of a new mindset that I believe is directly linked to our levels of creativity--in addition to the quality of ideas we're able to produce. As I will show in later sections, evolution into this type of mindset includes working with other people, in addition to laws and principles, to boost these levels, allowing us to achieve a quality or state of creativity that is imperative provided we desire to compete in what has been referred to as the Creative Era.

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From Chapter 9: The Idea Magnet

      A common trait in highly creative people is the ability to discover breakthrough ideas almost without observable effort, and it is my assertion that this ability ultimately rests within a certain mindset. The first part of that mindset requires that ideas must be drawn to them before they can be processed into something of value. This mindset also contains a realization that focus and personal surroundings play a pivotal role in the creative attraction process. And people with this mindset somehow know that an idea will come to them in the time it is supposed to. They seem to understand, perhaps unknowingly (or with intuitive knowingness), that collaboration with the natural laws is the first critical step to idea birth.
    Not surprisingly, they will not communicate in these exact words. They captured an idea because of who they are, essentially how they think. This thinking is within your reach as well. Becoming attractive to ideas means aligning oneself with the thoughts, people, places and circumstances that naturally align with our future of ideas. It means becoming idea magnets–people who draw into their minds ideas in harmony with their most dominant thoughts, conditions, and surroundings.
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From Chapter 24. The Results of Collabetition

      So who's competing in the realm of ideas? How has the rising tide of collaboration turned these people to higher levels of creativity? And how are people using the principles outlined in this book to increase these levels? Here are some candidates I've found:

      Idea Magnets: Based on the laws of attraction, good infection, and gestation, these are people who attract ideas in extraordinary ways.

      1. Anyone who is open enough (has the money or volunteers for a free pass) to attend conferences like Gel is technically an idea magnet. Why? You've read my words; now see what those who've attended have to say about their experience.
      Web address: gelconference.com

      2. Personally, I love my portable mp3 player, as I'm sure you do. Yet we may do so for different reasons: mine allows me to keep a busy schedule and still find time for learning by audio books. Through instilling the words of authors who live by effectiveness, in a small still powerful way, I am practicing idea magnetism, keeping with the pace of change by utilizing my otherwise rock-out time towards learning time to discover much of the concepts you've read in Collabetition.
      Who else uses these portable devices to keep pace with change as well as be more creative? Check out this article by Liz Abend, staff writer at Pepperdine University who notes, “The mp3 player has become a useful tool among national college campuses.”
Web address: Pepperdine U

      3. Sara Blakely noticed a problem. And like many of us discovered a solution only after she decided to get creative. Yet for her out of that creativity, arose SPANX Inc.
As you read the interview, observe who she kept her idea from and who she shared her idea with. Also try to notice the reasoning behind both decisions. Above all else, it’s my opinion that her belief in the strength of her idea was the one key trait responsible for her success.
Read more about Sara's story on LadiesWhoLaunch.com: an online portal that helps women start and expand their businesses and creative ventures through content and community.
Web Address: LadiesWhoLaunch > http://www.ladieswholaunch.com/magazine/sara-blakely/1032

Idea Harvesters: Based on the law of the farm, these are people who collaborate with others to reap extraordinary ideas.

1. In "Six Degrees of Bruno Faidutti," Shannon Appelcline describes a loose collaboration in the world of gaming.
Web address: 6 Degrees

2. Bloggers (people who write online journals) can be described as idea harvesters that characterize the activity of loose collaboration. Author and blogger Hugh Hewitt declares, "the best goal of a blogger is to get others in on the craft even if they are direct competitors. Every good blog will bring new readers to the blogosphere just as anchor stores bring traffic to the mall. Everybody wins when the customer base expands"1.
To witness the proliferation of ideas for yourself visit:
Web address: technorati.com

Idea Factories: Based on the law of collective effort, these are organizations that produce extraordinary ideas for all who participate.

1. BetterTogether.org provides interactive ways to celebrate and learn from the ways that Americans are connecting, and provides tools and strategies to reconnect with others.
Web address: BetterTogether.org

2. Established in June 2004 by Pierre and Pam Omidyar, the Omidyar Network derives its focus and values from Pierre's experience as founder of eBay.
Web address: Omidyar.net

3. Skinny Corp is another idea factory that creates environments where users can interact and mutually benefit each other.
Web address: SkinnyCorp.com

4. The TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) conference is an invitation-only event where the world's leading thinkers and doers gather to find inspiration.
Web address: TED

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