creative companion

11/12/2025

New episode out now! 🎧 This week, we are stepping into the world of audio investigation.

I’m joined by Fabio Cervi from Earshot to discuss how sound is used as evidence in human rights cases.

We explore how audio analysis can reveal invisible weapons (like in a case from Serbia) and how field recordings can become tools for advocacy in the Golan Heights.

It’s a powerful conversation about the hidden data in the sounds around us.

Listen to "Audio Investigation for Human Rights" here: https://musicthinking.com/audio-investigation-for-human-rights-with-fabio-cervi/

27/02/2024

How cool is this? You develop a multisensory product to let people experience your ideas about music thinking, and then someone comes along and uses your product for something completely different. 🤔

o.k. before we dive into our conversation, let’s first explain what the jam cards are. Because that is the product we are talking about today in the Power of Music Thinking podcast.

🎶 The jam cards are a set of 38 inspiration plus six cue cards in the size of a 45, or ‘single record’ as they are also called. They are actually very big cards, approximately five times the size of a regular card deck.

All the inspiration cards have multiple triggers, for example:
a keyword that sums up the essence of the card, and an interesting key visual with music-related snapshots or excerpts from paintings from the Rijksmuseum.
There is also a trigger question to spark and diverge your thinking and an inspirational quote from musicians like Brian Eno, Jimi Hendrix or Frank Zappa, and some non-musicians like Florence Nightingale or Steve Jobs. Brilliant quotes that stand out and make you think.
👉 And very unique: every card has a sound trigger you can scan and hear immediately a specific song or spoken word on the Spotify platform.

So, the Music Thinking Jam Cards is an inspirational card set for changemakers, pattern recognisers, innovators, transformers and natural collaborators.

Because we all need extra inspiration, use the jam cards to trigger your ideation session, co-create your purpose, define your design challenge or lay the foundations of your company’s culture or brand story.

For over five years, the jam cards have been available from your local book dealer or online dealers like Amazon. So many creative sessions and brainstorms have been taken with them.

🇬🇧 But today, we speak with Anita Prestidge, an English trainer with experience in theatre, directing, and education.
When Anita picked up the cards, she had another idea of what to do with these cards and developed her own unique method.

So, if you want to speak better 🇬🇧 English 🇺🇸 while using the Jam Cards, connect with Anita online.

Find the podcast on any podcast platform or music thinking .com

If you want to create your own approach with the Jam Cards you can order them at any bookstore or direct at BIS Publishers

Do you want to speak better English while using the Jam Cards? Listen to this podcast and connect with Anita Prestidge.

06/01/2024

I don't do Christmas cards (sorry if you have expected one). I send my greetings in the new year on Epiphany day, the 6th of January and the last day of Christmas.

I have been doing this for 13 years, and it always conveys many reactions and conversation starters with friends.

👈 Look back.
The past year was a whirlwind of growth and opportunities! From speaking engagements at conferences in Germany and The Netherlands to starting as a lecturer at the University of Applied Science in Utrecht for the Creative Business Programme, it's been an incredible journey.

The Power of Music Thinking podcast flourished with 16 episodes featuring remarkable individuals who are also musicians, attracting a growing audience interested in analogies between music, business and society.

Being a guest on three podcasts was an exciting experience, offering a unique glimpse from the other side.

Additionally, conducting workshops and training sessions in Storytelling, Design Thinking Fundamentals, and Music Thinking masterclasses added further layers to this fulfilling year.

👉 Look forward.
But today is the time to look forward to 2024:
I wish you all meaningful epiphanies in the coming year!

🖖 This year's epiphany story is about a shaky business, listening, tuning, playing and performing.
☝ You can read it on the music thinking website!
https://musicthinking.com/a-shaky-business-epiphany-story-2024/

29/12/2023

It is always special to be the first or the last.

Let's close the year with the last episode (of the year) of the Creative Engagement Podcast hosted by Daniel Mandel.

Daniel Mandel Music

After a year of podcasting (I did 16 episodes in 2023 on the Power of music thinking podcast as a host, and being a guest on several other podcasts), this episode brings it together in a compact way, thanks to Daniels' questioning and listening skills.

It is, by the way, a great introduction to Music Thinking. If you have ever wondered what it is, this is a really good start.

So, if you want to hear a compact take on , , and how this goes together with and , be our guest.

Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/episode/3s7D7wMvwijXe87cs297RM?si=dd24cefb6bdb4035

Apple podcast:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/creative-engagement-creative-companion-christof-z%C3%BCrn/id1604629717?i=1000639898560

21/12/2023

The end of the year epsiode is out with short snippets of all guests this year.

This year, we had 15 episodes, and virtually, we travelled to Berlin, Braunschweig, Zürich, London, Oslo, New York, West Virginia, Nashville, Los Angeles, Hawaii, Singapore, Tokyo, Mumbai and New Zealand.

What were the themes?
The overarching themes were , and how music can be used as an analogy to explain the world and work more meaningfully together.

We had some unique themes and zoomed into subjects like of data, and

listen to The Power of Music Thinking on musicthinking.com or any platform where you listen to podcasts

https://musicthinking.com/rewind-2023/

12/12/2023

What are you music thinking on Christmas?

Get a T-shirt as a conversation starter.
Buy now to get them on Christmas
https://musicthinking.teemill.com/

Teemill

22/03/2023

The Music Thinking Masterclass will give you and your team new insights and skills to lead your organisation with Dynamic Strategies.

25/05/2022

Leuke blog over The Power of Music Thinking in managementboek.nl

Wanneer mensen op de werkvloer samenwerken hoor je soms uitdrukkingen zoals ‘dat moeten we beter orkestreren’, ‘alle registers opentrekken’, ‘hier moeten we meer improviseren’, of ‘een beetje jammen’ en ‘in de juiste cadans werke...

04/05/2022

Today we are in New Albany, Ohio. We speak with Paula White, a globally recognised sales leader, leadership coach and author of the book Side B: Remix Your Leadership Style.

We talk about how music can (re)charge the way you are leading and how leaders can work on their behavioural traits based on music principles. Paula shares with us the ten archetypal instruments that are based on a scientific survey. And Paula explains more about the saxophone type that came out of the survey I did before the conversation. All right let’s dive into it.

https://musicthinking.com/finding-your-side-b-with-paula-white/

Side B Consulting Music Thinking Christof Zürn