Imagineering

For your project to have significant impact it should aim to 'break new ground' and have some innovative and exciting aspects. And for that you need to start with your dreams and imagination - the following has been adapted from Frank L. Baum's description:

'Imagination has brought mankind through the Dark Ages to its present state of civilisation;

Imagination led Columbus to discover America;

Imagination led Franklin to discover electricity;

Imagination has given us the steam engine, the telephone, the car, and the computer for these things had to be dreamed of before they became realities;

I believe that dreams - daydreams, you know with your eyes wide open and your brain machinery whizzing - are likely to lead to the betterment of the world. The imaginative child will become the imaginative man or woman most apt to create, to invent, and therefore foster civilisation.'

The experts on imagination are the Disney Corporation. They changed the noun into a verb. Disney talk about 'Imagineering' and consider themselves to be imagineers²⁹. For Disney this is more a state of mind than a simple recipe to be followed. The imagineers have been responsible for the creation of, and ideas behind, the Disney theme parks. According to Disney's imagineers, to be successful you need to assume that you will be, and avoid being constrained by traditional thought processes. In particular you shouldn't worry about everything fitting together jigsaw fashion early on in your planning, and you must be prepared to challenge every assumption that crosses your path.