 and welcome to another edition of The Creative Life, an exciting collaboration between Think Tech Hawaii and the American Creativity Association. I'm Darlene Boyd, your host for today. And joining me as our guest is Emily Fimbo. Emily is coming to us from College Station, Texas. And we're doing a little twist today. We have a little different agenda than we normally do. If you follow us, you probably know that we've had a number of experts and long life connectors to creativity. And we're going to, over time, and starting with Emily, bring in some folks that are not necessarily new to creativity because they're creative themselves in their everyday life, but they're new in their efforts in how they are mentoring other people. So Emily is the assistant director of something called Launch at Texas A&M and College Station. So Emily, welcome. Welcome to The Creative Life. I'm so glad you're with us today. Thank you so much. Perhaps a good place to start would be to just give us an overview. What is Launch? So Launch is part of Texas A&M University. It's a collection of programs. So Launch is actually an acronym. It's Learning Communities, Academic Excellence. That's where my programs fall. Undergraduate research, national fellowships, capstones, and honors. So in one way or another, we work with a huge amount of different students on campus trying to get them involved in lots of different programs. How long has Launch been going on? In various iterations, honors and undergraduate research have always been around. But I think Launch itself, it's definitely been it for at least eight or nine years. I just joined one year ago, so I'm about to have my one year anniversary there. But even before I got to be a part of it, I got to work with the people from Launch. So I was pretty excited when I got to join because I knew they were a good group. OK, so how many participants are there in Launch? So in terms of employees, I want to say we have probably around 15 students. It's probably within any given year, it's hundreds and thousands. Whether it's people involved in the programs that I work with like InnovationX, the Maroon-based app, that would be thousands of students who use that, or students in the honors program, which come from all over the university. So we definitely get a chance to touch a lot of lives. Now we're here, of course, to talk about creativity. When Launch was launched, what would creativity play other than in the creativity of its assistant director, perhaps director? So I would say from what I've seen so far, every person that I have worked with and based on their history who they've worked with seems to be a pretty creative person. They have really embraced the idea of mentorship and using creative methods to match students up with faculty members to make sure that they are interacting with people of different majors and minors. I think it's definitely seen as a way for them to actually interact with people outside of their normal world. So sometimes you only get to do that like when you're sitting in the library or when you're at a football game. So this would be the chance otherwise to get to work with people in a creative aspect. Emily, I know you glanced into a few of our previous shows and our viewers know also that we've been doing a lot recently on innovation as anyone being responsible in the field of creativity certainly should be addressing innovation in its many ways of delivery. And some of the people we had, for example, Cal State, Dominguez Hills has an incubator program that is very well respected and recognized naturally. So we were so pleased that we could have the director come in and speak with us. So we do have a session on that. And then we've had some others that are innovators. And of course, in innovation, our guests have been split not all academic, Emily. They've been split coming from the corporate world, consultants, and then some of the academic programs which turn out not necessarily those that are held on a campus, not necessarily to be academic linked perhaps with a school of management, a school of business, and they have a real strong link in the community. So Emily, how does your program compare with some of the other programs? Sure. Well, InnovationX itself started really, it's a way to get both faculty and students to get to work with people outside of their discipline together on a project to solve a problem. So it does involve a lot of faculty members, including professors of practice. Often they do partner with outside groups related to maybe like this year we have one related to the Audubon Society, a project called Lights Out Texas. We also have ones that deal with local shelters in terms of food insecurity. And then we even have some, I'm really proud to say, that are former students who have set up their own nonprofits or groups outside who have then kind of come back as mentors to be team contributors to the project. So what we do is we ask the faculty to kind of partner up or pair up in a group and they have to be from different majors in different schools actually. They come up with a proposal for us. We have a large group of faculty who very generously give their time to read the proposals and we see how many we can fund. And then we open it up and have students apply. And we're very clear that it can't just be, I'd like to fund my chemistry project and here are the five chemistry students that I already know who are going to be joining me. We want it to involve people from liberal arts, from agriculture, from engineering, to really make sure that this is something that involves multiple viewpoints. So do you have very much external funding? And if so, is that something that you're driven to do yourself? Sure, so we do have some funding that's internal from the university. And then we've been very fortunate to have funding from the Texas A&M Foundation. So before I was kind of in charge of this program, I wasn't really involved in the fundraising aspect. It was more like here's the amount of money that we have to fund, go forth and figure out how many that we can do this year. And this year was one of the first times where it was kind of like, all right, well, so I'm in charge, a better figure out, let's get some money. So that was one of my new activities that I was able to approach the foundation and kind of pitch them some of the projects and talk about, here's some of the really cool things that our faculty pitched that students, I know would be very interested in and that this would make a big impact. And I was very happy they were so supportive. I think impact is something that comes up frequently with similar programs or those that are external and are driven to have mentors. So impact being the long-term goal. So it's pleasing to hear you say impact. It's an important time. I'm not sure if our viewers are aware of this, but the attention to creativity at the federal level, at the governmental level, it still remains, but not to the degree that it did at the time of Sputnik because as you may know, Emily Sputnik caused people in the government to think that this is a space race and we have to beat that little satellite out and do that is to have programs and creativity. So even for our little ones in the elementary schools, there was a mandate to demonstrate that you were doing something with creative thinking or creative productive thinking and really required or you would need some of your educational funding, but that has gone, has just drifted off. So there's not really that commitment. So with that disappearing at that level, even though there are things that we know that should be going on right now that creativities would play a major role in getting us through some of the strife that we have and maybe in a few minutes, we'll talk about the impact of some of the therapy positions that you've had. But it's just very important at this point to have that connection of mentors and those that really want to give back to students. So what kinds of influences do you think really hold you back or barriers or stand in your way, societal influences? You know, I would say faculty have so many responsibilities that they need to be working on teaching and research and service. So the amount of mentorship that they're able to do through the InnovationX program is fantastic. We try to keep the student amount relatively limited. So it's usually like 10 to 12 students with maybe four or five faculty members. But in terms of matching them with outside people, it takes a lot of legwork to make sure that this is somebody that you want speaking to students to vet them and then also to make sure that you brief the student on what kinds of questions they can be asking. Luckily A&M has a very strong former student network. And I think like you were talking about in the beginning, there is a group of former students around my age or a little older who are really looking to give back in terms of talking about their experience. So it's not just about let me give thousands of dollars, it's been 10 years since I graduated. Let me talk about what that's actually meant in the workforce and what you might not expect when you get out there. When you and I talked a little bit off camera and regretfully it was just a little bit and you mentioned, and I'm gonna glance down here some of the things that you had mentioned about the life choices that so many of young people now coming along face and the influence is such you mentioned pop cultural career dramas and sometimes even breakthroughs and therapy that contribute to the present. Tell us a little bit more about that. Sure. So for me, coming at this from where I am kind of in the middle, I'm not a faculty member. I'm not a student. So I'm obviously still not in the 18 to 22 range. I've been out about 20 years and I've had enough work experience to see in a variety of industries to see here's what can affect your day-to-day life in work. Here's what tends to make the difference and move you in and out of different career perspectives. And I found like you were mentioning pop culture, no matter who you work with, even if you're in a creative area and they're in the accounting department, if you only ever see each other in the elevator, you getting to have that conversation with them about did you see last week's Game of Thrones can be really fulfilling whenever you're having a stressful week. I've been involved, you know, lots, especially when it's a reality show, there are always kind of who's your favorite for project runway kind of internal sort of competitions in the office. And I found that that's a really nice way to break through barriers of different levels of power. Maybe you don't really get a chance to talk to people who are levels above you that often, but everybody tends to have an opinion on who should be the next American Idol or something like that. That's often true, isn't it? Right, right. In terms of career dramas, I do have a background where I worked in the entertainment industry for a bit in New York. So some of it was kind of in the trenches sort of sharing with your coworker, like, hey, did you hear what so-and-so boss did? They threw their phone at the assistant down the hall, kind of stuff like that. I was an intern at Miramax when Harvey Weinstein was there. So just hearing different stories and kind of seeing both as an intern and then, you know, as a full-time employee at some places, school might not prepare you for some things. And it's like, we didn't have a lesson on, this is what you should do when this happens in your internship. So I think that kind of on-the-ground learning was helpful and I'd like to be able to talk about that with the students that I work with to explain, like, this might never happen and I hope this never happens, but just in case. Maybe this will be a thing, ethical dilemmas. I think at least perhaps me being naive, when I graduated, I'd always been raised to think, like, if there's a problem, find an adult. The adult will be the one to help you understand and fix it. And in one of those situations, it was someone in the office who wanted to see if I could fix the American Idol Pool. And- How would you do that? I have no idea. I said, one, like, I definitely don't know how to do that. But two, no. And that was one of the things that made me think, like, I don't know if this is the right place for me. Like, if I had just such a visceral reaction to that. And you think where you want to work is based so much on what you would do in the topic. But sometimes it's a moment like that that hits you and you're like, I don't even think this topic is important enough to me to have to deal with that question on a daily basis. And then I do like to talk about with current students, especially during the pandemic, there has been such a rise in need for mental health services or our students, and I'm sure students everywhere. But I know there's kind of a hesitancy for students, especially the ones that we work with sometimes, like in the honors community, to kind of reach out and say that they need that help because it's a little bit like saying, can't do this all on my own. I might need an extra hand. So I've been honest about saying, like, when I was in college, I did go to school in New York, so it was a different environment, but it was very much like, oh, do you like your therapist? Is that a good one? Can you give me the card? It was much more loud that this was a tool that you would use just like anything else, just like going to the library and studying. So I've had conversations with them about, think of this as a competitive advantage. If you and the guy next to you are taking the same classes, reading the same books, but you have this extra sounding board that he doesn't have to help you collect your thoughts each week, to help you figure out, what am I going through? What am I up against that maybe seems bigger in my head than it is in reality? Then you have a look up on them. So I like to be touchy-feely, but also sometimes it can be kind of competitive if you need me. It makes sense. You used to term also in a conversation that I actually like, and you put it in the context of saying, doing something without succumbing to analysis paralysis. Tell us a little bit about analysis paralysis. Sure, so for me, whenever I graduated from high school, I started taking some career tests. I didn't have any idea because I knew I didn't want to be a lawyer or a doctor or something that was just a single noun. So I thought, okay, I'll take these tests and it'll give me the information, it'll tell me what I should do. And it gave me some results, most of them involved librarian. And then it said on what not to do, don't be a caretaker, which in hindsight, I'm kind of like, that's a little offensive to say like, you are not a caring person, this is not the field for you. But I really kind of emotionally and mentally pushed back against that because I thought like, well, no, I don't want to go to my 10 year high school reunion and say, I'm a librarian, that's too on the nose, that's too much, nerd Emily in high school, I'm not gonna do that. And then as my grandmother would say, come to find out years later, I have a master's in library science now. Some things you don't fight. So they were actually correct about that. Why did that happen? So the pendulum sort of swung after the entertainment industry. And I think in my mind, it was like, I want to be able to provide all information to everyone at an access, there's no velvet rope, there's no, do you know who I am? Are you important enough to get this? There's not a hierarchy in that sense. So that's one reason that I found it interesting to go and learn more ways about organizing information. In terms of analysis paralysis, I assume a lot of other people deal with this too and especially in college, there are so many choices now for ways to tackle a problem, for ways to get help. I was telling you guys before, I have searched sometimes on Google, how to get your beep together, like how to get your life together essentially, as if there would be one perfect source that would have steps that would tell you like, well, here's exactly what you do. So analysis paralysis for me means you get to the point where you have to stop searching, stop collecting sources, start writing, make a decision, and at least start on a path because I could collect a million sources for my thesis before I actually started writing anything and just be happy, just pull in articles and highlighting, but sometimes you need to kind of get a hold of yourself and that for me was a challenge that I know students have as well. You referred to yourself as I was reading some of the things you've said that you're not a regular introvert, you're a cool introvert. I think she's so cool, Emily. Well, so that's specifically for mean girls. So the fact that I'm quoting mean girls automatically means I'm cool. But I guess I'm an introvert in that I'm not nearly as outgoing or getting recharged being around other people that much. So in some ways, unfairly so, the pandemic wasn't as hard initially because I was like, I am used to being at home watching Netflix with my husband. This is not too hard to not have to go to parties and like, oh no, we can't go, that's too bad. But I think because I do like information so much and I do like creative works, it's sort of like a vacuum sucking in all the information. And the biggest, the dream is to get to talk to somebody and have the long conversation of, oh my gosh, did you watch The Good Place? Okay, let's talk about that for the next half an hour. So I think cool introvert is somebody who when you find the right topic, we're okay with breaking out of our shells and bonding with somebody. And implying by being cool that you're probably a very articulate conversationalist. Yes, yes, when you find the right thing, absolutely, you can turn it on. That's good to know, good to know. You also, you really have some striking comments that I've picked up from you and you have another one that intrigued me, we're all lost, don't be afraid to ask for directions. Yes, I don't know if it's my personality or being an only child. So I talk to adults a lot growing up, but I've never really been embarrassed too much about asking for help or asking a question or asking why is this so a way to do it, including, hey, what do you think I should do with my life? Or, hey, do you have suggestions as if this was some sort of magical Sphinx riddle that someone was going to be able to answer for me? I was mentioning, I did go to a job interview one time for a movie studio and it was for a publicity job. And I interviewed and I thought it went pretty well. And then in the end they called and they said, you know, we gave it to someone and she just had publicity written all over her. And I said, completely unembarrassed at the time, do you know what I have written all over me by any chance? Could you, do you have any ideas there? And I think they were just very nice and like, oh, you'll figure it out, it just takes a while. So I think I'm not ashamed of asking, hey, what do you think about this project? Do you have any ideas? Does this seem near to you? Does this seem like, what does this student seem like they're asking in this email when I'm answering this back? Does it seem like I'm really solving the problem that they're talking about? I think also because we're working with students, you wanna make sure that you are recognizing whatever privilege that you have, whatever ways that you're different from that student, aside from the, like, obviously I'm 20 years older than them. Yes. As a white cis, hetero, female who's employed now who had a different college experience that was 20 years ago before Facebook existed, that actually did shock one of my students. They kind of didn't put that together, that that was a time. Yeah, they really don't believe that we didn't have that or Post-it notes was one I experienced. Oh, no. Referring to, I said something like, what did we do before Post-it notes? And she just said, Charlie, was there ever a time it wasn't before Post-it notes? I love Post-it notes, so that would have been a desert. I think it takes a while for anyone to recognize and those of us that do work in creativity and just have a whole background in all dimensions of creativity. We've come across some people that were quite renowned and that normally you would think, oh, they'll never talk to me, Paul Torrance and we're Devono. But I think you've learned very early on that of course we're all people, but they're very flattered. And at the same time, and I expect your students feel that way too, where faculty seem to be on a higher plane. But if you ask them a question, they just, they love to talk about what they're doing and they're the friendship begins. Would you agree? I absolutely would agree. I think, especially with the Innovation X program, that's some of the comments that I've gotten back is that they hadn't had a chance before to really talk in depth about a subject that they were interested in, especially if it didn't have anything to do with their major. Sometimes it's just a topic that they feel passionately about like food insecurity or teaching philosophy to children. That's one that's come up this year or helping junior high girls learn how to make design video games. Sometimes it's just something that they click with the faculty member on. And I think they connect on a different level. And that opens the door for conversations about how did you get to where you are? What are you interested in doing whenever you graduate? And that kind of starts the bond without forms. How do students aspiring to be part of launch and maybe in particular to have a mentorship with a faculty person? Is it open access or is it competitive? Is there an application process? I assume there's an application process. So I think each letter probably has a different process. Sometimes it's, for honors, it's determined by what, yeah. Each letter of launch, you mean, right? Each letter of launch, yes, like each letter of the acronym of launch. Sometimes it's if you sign up for a class that's related to a capstone. Sometimes it's if you kind of opt in and wanna do an undergraduate research and you do kind of work with our undergraduate research people to match you up and find a faculty member that you could work with. Unfortunately for Innovation X, there are always more students that wanna participate than there are spots on the teams. So typically I would say about 50% or yeah, about 50% of the students who apply are able to be on an Innovation X team. So the dream would be at some point to have enough money to where I can fund enough teams to where all students who are interested in this kind of experience wanna have this mentoring and wanna have this chance also to be a mentor because we have undergrads, grad students, professional students and faculty. So there's a lot of chance for them to kind of mentor up and down. So that's the hope is to have more opportunities to do that. This may be a question in the category of perhaps odd. What does your center look like? For example, the incubators center at Cal State Dominguez Hills is bright and here at UCI University of California Irvine, they have a center, the Entrepreneur Center because the anti-grief in the mascot and their surfboards hanging and their Trinitrons up and electures are given and Adirondack chairs. And of course, that doesn't necessarily make the production of that center just because it looks that way but it is inviting. Right, right. So we're bound to wind down here. So if I walked into your center, what would it look like? So for us, it's funny, because of the pandemic, especially a lot of our being a center has had to be over Zoom in the last couple of years. Our building actually is a little bit older and apparently it used to be like an athletics dorm building. So it sort of looks like a high school PS 152 from the 1950s, I would say, but we have definitely decorated it to where it looks like a creative space. I was really excited when I was hired because everybody has their door decorated with any kind of like stickers and labels and picture to indicate whose office this is. Everybody pretty much has an open door policy. So even if we don't have the actual surfboards, we might have some cool surfboard decals to indicate like if you're into this, this guy is the person to talk to. And we know that's not necessary for creative bloom, but it tends to be that way. Emily, it has been such a delight talking with you and I hopefully get to know more about you down the line and you came to us via a very well-known person in the field of creativity and that's Dr. Joyce Jantun. I know that she heads up and we're very grateful to Joyce for suggesting that you join us today. And with that, Emily, we have come to our close and I thank our viewers for joining us today and you have been watching the creative life with Emily Finbow and myself, your host, Darlene Boyd and we return in two weeks and I look forward to having our viewers join us again and until that time, we welcome you back and Aloha. Thank you so much for watching Think Tech Hawaii. If you like what we do, please like us and click the subscribe button on YouTube and the follow button on Vimeo. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn and donate to us at thinktechhawaii.com. Mahalo.