15th International CREANDO Symposium, Creativity in Economics, Arts and Science, Zermatt/Valais, Switzerland, 2001

Topic
Peak Experience in the Creative Process
"A Kind of Glory"

Chairman: Gottlieb GUNTERN, Switzerland

Speakers

Tom ALEXANDER
CEO & President of LuxN, Inc., Sunnyvale/CA, India/USA

Günter BLOBEL
Nobel Prize in physiology/medicine 1999,Professor of Cell Biology at Rockefeller University, New York, Germany/USA

Catherine DESTIVELLE
free style climber, France

Myron S. SCHOLES
Nobel Prize in Economics 1997,Stanford University, Stanford/CA, USA

Clark TERRY
jazz trumpeter, jazz educator, bandleader, USA

Summary
Writer and winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature John Steinbeck wrote about "a kind of glory" that sometimes "lights up the mind of a man." He was talking about the energy that permits to go the extra mile, or several extra miles.

Five personalities engage in a trans-disciplinary dialogue on the phenomenon of peak experiences in creative achievements and what it takes to reach that point of exaltation. Thus, to take but one example, the French free style climber Catherine Destivelle successfully performed three spectacular solo ascents in the Alps during wintertime — the North faces of Eiger and Matterhorn, the South-West pillar of the Aiguille du Dru, also called the Bonatti Pillar. Such a breathtaking performance raises all kinds of questions:
How can we motivate ourselves to move beyond the boundaries of habitual performance?
How can we use the energizing moments of bliss to endure the stretches of frustration?
How can we stimulate ourselves with such positive emotions as enthusiasm, pride and joy generated by peak experiences?

Downloads
• General Introduction Gottlieb GUNTERN
• Introduction to Tom ALEXANDER
• Introduction to Günter BLOBEL
• Introduction to Catherine DESTIVELLE
• Introduction to Myron S. SCHOLES
• Introduction to Clark TERRY