What a yellow squash can teach you about creativity

A metaphor for unleashing your everyday creativity

The story of the yellow squash started in late August 2019. An academic friend of ours gave us the gift of an orange pumpkin and yellow squash. He grew them in his own allotment at the University of Cambridge.

We cooked and ate the pumpkin. Somehow, we forgot about the squash. One day our friend wanted to stay in our house. We did not want him to see that we have not yet eaten the squash, so I brought the squash to my office and put it in a refrigerator in my office.

I did not have any time to cook it, as the academic semester has started. I was too busy with my teaching. The squash stayed in the refrigerator for a couple of months.

The squash made me feel slightly uncomfortable; because I could not make anything out of it. I could not cook it — I did not have any time. I could not throw it — it would be a waste of my friend’s all care and efforts.

I decided to bring it to my class. Here is a short account of that class:

In essence, I thought the best and most creative use of the squash was to use it as a teaching prompt.

I was feeling very nervous about the whole decision. There was a risk that I would make an utter fool of myself. However, I still went ahead. The best decisions of my life were the ones where I made myself vulnerable.

I used the squash to energize my teaching. The squash became the ultimate form of improvisation and surprise.

Students loved the squash, analyzing and exchanging it, and the squash soon became very popular.

I have asked them a series of questions regarding the squash:

Why do you think I brought this squash to the class? What are your ideas/theories?

Instead of telling the reason behind the squash, I created an atmosphere of mystery.

Instead of giving them the answer, I asked them to come up with their own guesses and theories on the squash.

Some students said I would be using it as a prompt to teach something about today’s topic. Another said I have a story to share about the squash. Another wondered if we will use it as a metaphor.

I did not give my students the correct answer. Asking questions matters more than the correct answer. It is about how we think and approach the world. Providing a little mystery is always better than providing information directly.

I have a secret with this squash. What might it be? Please imagine it and write a story around it in 3 minutes.

I gave students a writing and storytelling exercise. I told them I had a secret with or around this squash. What is it?

I wanted them to imagine a story and write it down in 3 minutes.

Was this a dark secret? What was the secret?

Students have gone wild with their theories and secrets. One said it was a murder weapon. Another said it was the source of the Coronavirus (it was just before the start of the pandemic at that time).

It was great fun to listen to these stories and theories.

When you give your brain a task of imagination, your brain loves playing games, creating scenarios, and listing possibilities.

How can you increase the value of this squash? Please come up with at least 10 ideas.

I have asked students to form up teams of four. Each team had 3 minutes to come up with as many ideas as they could to the following question:

How can you increase the value of this squash?

Their goal was to create as many ideas as possible in 3 minutes. I encouraged each team to create a minimum of 10 ideas.

Mini-exercise for you:

Before you continue reading, please do the exercise yourself.

How can you increase the value of a squash?

Please come up with 10 ideas and write them down. You have 3 minutes to do this exercise.

Here are some ideas to increase the value of the squash:

• You can cook it and turn it into a delicious recipe.
• You can cut it in small pieces and sell them for cooking.
• You can draw and paint on it, to make it artwork or an artifact.
• You can turn it into a painting — paint or draw a picture of it and give a title to that painting.
• You can squash the squash and create a squash paste.
• You can combine it with other ingredients and make a creative squash dessert.
• You can write a short story featuring a yellow squash.
• You can create a song including the lyrics of ‘yellow squash’.
• You can write a theatre play which involves a yellow squash on the set.
• You can screenwrite a sit-com episode — incorporating a yellow squash into the plot.
• You can create a recipe book of squash dishes.
• You can create a social media account of the yellow squash and turn it into an influencer.
• You can create a super-hero character and comic book called “Super Squash”.
• You can turn it into a touching or funny animation movie. You can actually create a cartoon or animation series based on a squash family.
• You can create a clothing line inspired by the squash (its colors, textures, or shapes).
• You can create an essential oil or perfume inspired by a fresh squash.
• You can create an art installation or exhibition featuring squashes.
• You can turn the yellow squash into an artwork item in a fine gallery.
• You can cook a squash based charity dinner and raise funds for a cause you care about.
• You can create a magic show featuring a squash (lose or ship it somewhere else, directing viewers’ attention elsewhere).
• You can write a poem with the words ‘yellow squash’ featured in it.
• You can create a brand name inspired by the squash.
• You can create a healthy snack that has squash as one of its ingredients.
• You can squash the squash and use it for a health drink or tea.
• You can do research about the varieties of the squash plants and write a blog about them.
• You can create a toy for children. Brand Name: Squashy Squash.
• You can organize a Halloween party full of squash costumes and characters.
• You can use the squash as the inspiration for a luxurious home (using squash colors and patterns to decorate and design the interiors).
• You can invent a squash dance (you can use the squash as a prop).
• You can create an exercise routine for fitness (using the squash as a prop for the moves).
• You can create new products and services by combining the squash with other complementary items.
• You can also create lots of ideas by building bridges between the squash and other unrelated items. For example, squash and stick. You can brainstorm the highest number of possible combinations (such as creating a sweet squash flavored lollipop, putting squash slices on a shish stick and turn it into a grilled vegan kebab, putting a stick in the squash and prepare a drink, making doodle artwork on the squash using colorful sticks, etc.)

Who volunteers to have this squash until the next class? You will try to add value and share your experiences with us.

I invited student teams to borrow the squash for two weeks until the next class. Who wants to volunteer and add value to this squash?

The team’s mission would be to apply some of their learning and ideas to add value to the squash.

Some students drew a cute face over the squash. The squash was moved from hand to hand throughout the whole lecture.

There was quite an interest and I felt that the squash was getting more and more popular each minute. The squash had become a celebrity and it was crushing it.

A student team borrowed the squash and established a social media channel for it. Students took the squash with them all the time and made sure that the squash had its own share of adventures. Here are some of these ideas:

• The squash is at the gym.
• The squash is attending a lecture.
• The squash is attending a music concert.
• The squash is having a vegan lunch.
• The squash meets the pumpkin in the kitchen.
• The squash is on the bike.
• The squash looks posh with this dark blue scarf.
• The squash is taking a stroll along with the UEA lake etc.

The squash became a cute and popular icon of popular culture at the UEA campus.

More importantly, we all had a nice story and experience to share about the squash. We felt we created something fun and memorable. We created the squash story together. We were part of the whole squash narrative. We were enacting the narrative.

We were not only storytelling, but we were also storydoing.

Creativity starts with a yellow squash

The yellow squash represents the courage to incorporate a bit of improvisation and imagination into our lives.

The yellow squash represents everyday creativity. You do not need to be like Leonardo da Vinci to make an impact. You can start small and use an everyday object — like a yellow squash — and turn it into an object of surprise and improvisation.

The secret of the yellow squash is that there is nothing unique or extraordinary about it — until you realize that everything can be unique and extraordinary about it. It all depends on your perspective.

You can turn the most mundane aspects of your life into things that are more memorable and exciting.

All you need is a sense of play and imagination.

If you use an everyday prompt as a trigger, everything around it can be turned into a game.

You can establish games of creativity and imagination using a simple prompt such as yellow squash.

Take-aways: Creativity is a decision you make

• You can be creative with any topic and in any subject. We started with the yellow squash, but it could also have been red pepper.
• Using a concrete object, such as a squash, as a prompt will help you unleash a lot of creative ideas. The squash becomes your constraint, your amplifier, and your anchor for creating lots of ideas.
• Creativity is a skill that can be developed. It is not an innate talent possessed by some. It can be learned and practiced by anyone through a bit of experimentation and courage. If we trust in our creativity, we can do more than we have ever imagined.
• Creativity is not reserved for a few. It is not something divine or unique. It is as common as the yellow squash. It belongs to us all. It is a choice that we can make and enact every day.
• You should not wait for inspiration or permission to be creative. You become creative when you show up, work hard, and ship your work. Creativity is as simple as the yellow squash — it has no mysteries. It is all about hard work and experimentation.
• You need to find your own yellow squash: What gives you inspiration? How can you find your muse? You can find your own voice and share it with the world.

Fahri Karakas is the author of Self-making Studio. You can explore more here.

Gain Access to Expert View — Subscribe to DDI Intel