I recently went one on one with Doug Patton. Doug has created more than 300 products in 40 international market categories over the past three decades and is the author of the new book Inspirations of Creativity: Quotes from Conquering the Chaos of Creativity.

Adam: Thanks again for taking the time to share your advice. First things first, though, I am sure readers would love to learn more about you. How did you get here? What experiences, failures, setbacks, or challenges have been most instrumental to your growth?

Doug: Creativity has been my modus operandi for the past 40+ years. Having gotten my start in the industrial design department at California State University, Long Beach, I have since trail-blazed a path through the chaos of creativity with no degree of restraint. In innovating everything from medical technology to consumer products, I have fortified my sincere desire to elevate humanity. 

Of course, no pioneering spirit is made resolute without obstacles, and my path has been no different, all challenges I have faced becoming gradually transformed into strengths that have served me in what have truly been battles of creativity. The metaphor isn’t glib; it is a mere nod to the rigors of intellect and spirit that threaten to crush all who venture boldly down the creative path.

A particular challenge that has shown up multiple times over the years is that of meeting deadlines. While Patton Design has never missed a deadline, this has taken tremendous effort from the whole team whereby we sometimes work 15-hour days for weeks to deliver a project on time. Many memories and legends have been created in this deadline-forward challenge that in and of itself is worthy of its own article.

Adam: What do you hope readers take away from your new book?

Doug: I created Inspirations of Creativity to give people a more accessible way to approach the unique methodology of my textbook-length debut book, Conquering the Chaos of Creativity. Inspirations is packed with bite-sized wisdom that is the result of a lifetime navigating the creative chaos; each aspect of the human creative amalgam is represented with insights derived from psychology, imagination, and spirituality, to name a few aspects of what I call the foundations of creativity.  In this way, Inspirations offers a highly accessible approach to creativity that can help you create the next revolutionary product, develop better communication within your family, or even just enter a period of important introspection. 

I’m extremely passionate about how my books are vehicles for advancing the soul of creativity. Anyone can pick them up and instantly find inspiration and energy on any page.

Adam: How did you come up with your ideas? What advice do you have for others on how to come up with great ideas?

Doug: We all have a supercomputer in our brain that is more powerful than artificial intelligence, but we haven’t been taught how to use it to full effect; this is the essence of Inspirations of Creativity.

Especially given the further mechanization of society and the advancement of AI, we are in dire need of creative pioneers more now than ever before, so in everything I do, I try to encourage people to embrace their innate creativity regardless of their discipline.

I make full use of my own supercomputer with techniques such as my subconscious cloud method in order to come up with ideas for products that save lives all over the world, and this is what I encourage others to do to produce their own great ideas. We must pursue creativity wholeheartedly by embracing our intrinsic gifts with the understanding that doing so will always reveal the path in due time.

Adam: How did you know your ideas were worth pursuing? What advice do you have on how to best test their ideas?

Doug: I have always been guided by an innate sense of idealism ever since I was a child. It has made me compelled to do everything possible to help humanity, my efforts ranging from creating a beautiful faux flame candle to engineering surgical devices that save lives. My innate idealism has motivated me to study the sociology of our culture to discover and define unmet needs; it has compelled me to believe in the ability of my ideas—as crazy as they sometimes seem—in order to create positive change in the world at large. For those who aren’t born with this idealistic quality, I want to emphasize that it is possible to cultivate it. You must believe in what you are doing with full conviction, guided by abiding love for people. 

As for how to test ideas, you must become multidisciplined in order to acquire the knowledge and skill set necessary to understand the effectiveness and impact of your ideas. This is one reason why I feel the field of industrial design is so compelling and why I try to attract so many to it; it requires what I call multidisciplinary vision convergence, with which you come to command creativity. It is an incredible path not for the faint of heart; anything you fix your mind on, you can achieve.

Adam: What are the key steps you have taken to grow your businesses? What advice do you have for others on how to take their businesses to the next level?

Doug: Over the past four decades, my business has expanded because people have come to me to experience the same revolutionary innovation they’ve seen me generate for companies like Apple and Bausch + Lomb. Every project I’ve taken on has involved major innovation of some description, and this process generally happens two ways.

First, one must urgently embrace the philosophy that there are no unimportant projects—only uninspired designers. Everything can and should be done in service of humanity, and even the projects with the most seemingly minor importance can have significant impact that spills over into several areas of society.

Second, even the most simple utilitarian object has the potential to spur major revolutionary innovation, and this is the beauty of evolving your business to the next level. Each step in the process is necessary, and stages should neither be skipped nor rushed. Trust in the process, trust in your timing, and put your all into each and every action.

Adam: How can leaders foster innovation and creativity?

Doug: A core concept in my work is the idea that a leader must be a visionary; only in this way can he advance himself, his organization, and aspects of society by fostering the highest possible level of revolutionary invention. This is the true creative path no matter what field you are in.

In order to become a visionary, you must first and foremost believe deeply in your innate creativity; you must also understand when you are in need of edification and support in certain areas, thereby learning from those with knowledge you don’t yet possess.

It is also of utmost importance to suspend disbelief when evolving innovation and creativity within an organization. You may well surprise yourself with the enormity of your developing vision, feeling that it can never work, but this is a false belief that must be eradicated with bravery and full commitment to serving humanity with the task at hand.

Adam: In your experience, what are the defining qualities of an effective leader? How can leaders and aspiring leaders take their leadership skills to the next level?

Doug: I cannot overemphasize the idea that both beginning and established leaders in any field have an immense responsibility to elevate humanity as a whole. My methodical intuition technique, described in both my books as a method for making the most of your subconscious mind, is one that can be established within a group in an appropriately methodical way so as to generate heightened awareness about all aspects of the problems that need to be solved. It is a means by which leaders can become visionary forces capable of changing the status quo for the better.

As a visionary, you need people beside you who can lead aspects of your enterprise to which your expertise does not extend; this is crucial because you must have free reign to direct all efforts with the right vision. Part of my creative methodology involves this concept, which I call multidisciplinary vision convergence; it and my pinnacle vision concept are necessary for taking success to the next level.

At the end of the day, one must believe with the most sincere passion that what he is doing is a needed venture—one that is worthy of humanity and capable of lasting impact.

Adam: What are your three best tips applicable to entrepreneurs, executives, and civic leaders?

Doug:

1. The status quo will resist anything and everything you do. Persevere anyway, emboldened to improve humanity. This is an absolutely essential point. If you persevere, there is no raging fire of creativity that can burn you to the ground; instead, you will ultimately always dance upon the flames.

2. You must believe in your work with the greatest, most sincere passion. As the status quo not only resists but also often inhibits great evolutionary change, efforts to innovate within any field are the hardest path a human being can venture down. You must believe fully in your vision, never questioning whether or not the work you are doing is the right thing for you to do, as this weakens you.

3. You must be bold and courageous, exercising a considerable measure of patience to create your own revolution. The chaos of creativity is not for the weak, and there are multiple techniques you can use to strengthen your faith, willpower, and creative acumen.

Adam: What is the single best piece of advice you have ever received?

Doug: I was blessed to have three mentors at CSULB who would constantly debate creative topics. Their dialogue was foundational for me as a fledgling designer and someone who was just beginning to make his creative mark on the world. Internalizing my mentors’ conversations over the years is how I came to construct a unique creative amalgam that, to me, is a direct embodiment of the best advice I have ever received.

I remember distinctly that Herb Ternawer would say his intuition was far greater than any process by which one could solve a problem. Michael Kammeyer’s rejoinder was the idea that intuition isn’t enough; you need a methodical and logical process to effectively problem-solve. Dean Meyers, on the other hand, would say that neither intuition nor logic matters enough; if something doesn't look good or doesn’t feel good, it won’t work. 

One way of looking at the advice I received, then, is that I took to heart the idea that creativity is a composite representing the human totality. Intuition, logic, aesthetics, inspiration, spirituality, and other categories within my creative methodology are all of similar importance, and one must become a master of all to achieve creative perfection.

Adam: Is there anything else you would like to share?

Doug: Creativity is our salvation in the face of everything that threatens to functionally undermine, spiritually annihilate, and physically destroy us—everything from homogenized, soulless education to the alarming evolution of AI. It is my most sincere hope that we awaken to the alarm of creativity before we lose too much of our most valuable innate gift, and I want nothing more than to be part of people’s awakening. Thank you for your time, Adam.


Adam Mendler is an entrepreneur, writer, speaker, educator, and nationally-recognized authority on leadership. Adam is the creator and host of the business and leadership podcast Thirty Minute Mentors, where he goes one on one with America's most successful people - Fortune 500 CEOs, founders of household name companies, Hall of Fame and Olympic gold medal-winning athletes, political and military leaders - for intimate half-hour conversations each week. A top leadership speaker, Adam draws upon his insights building and leading businesses and interviewing hundreds of America's top leaders as a top keynote speaker to businesses, universities, and non-profit organizations. Adam has written extensively on leadership and related topics, having authored over 70 articles published in major media outlets including Forbes, Inc. and HuffPost, and has conducted more than 500 one on one interviews with America’s top leaders through his collective media projects. Adam teaches graduate-level courses on leadership at UCLA and is an advisor to numerous companies and leaders. A Los Angeles native, Adam is a lifelong Angels fan and an avid backgammon player.

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