Awake at the Wheel: Getting Your Great Ideas Rolling (in an Uphill World) [Hardcover]

Mitchell Lewis Ditkoff (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2008

Awake at the Wheel is a book about ideas: what they are, where they come from, and what it takes to manifest them in a world not always ready for the new and the different. Simply put, it's a book about possibility, about the wellspring of creation, about the strange and fascinating process we all go through whenever we have an idea and try to do something about it. And while it's often said that "ideas are a dime a dozen," the fact is that your idea - the one you can't get out of your head - is priceless. That is, IF you make the kind of effort required to turn that top of the line idea into a bottom line reality. Maybe it's an idea for a new business. Maybe it's an idea for a new product...or invention...or a book you want to write...or a school you want to open...or a move you want to make. Maybe it's an idea for something that will change the world...or if not THE world, then YOUR world. Whatever it is, one thing is clear: it's time for you to take the next step. Now!

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Awake at the Wheel is a quick and enjoyable read. I found it so compelling that I read it in one sitting. Like the best-selling self-help book, Who Moved My Cheese, I think corporations that want their employees to be more innovative should buy bulk quantities of Awake at the Wheel and distribute it to them. I highly recommend this book!" -- Chuck Frey "Founder of www.InnovationTools.com"

About the Author

Mitchell Lewis Ditkoff is the co-founder and President of Idea Champions, a leading edge management consulting and training company. He specializes in leading highly engaging creative thinking and collaboration sessions that enable individuals, teams and entire organizations to develop new products, services, and breakthrough ways of doing business. Educated at Lafayette College and Brown University. Since 1986 Mr. Ditkoff has been working with a wide variety of Fortune 500 and mid-sized companies who have recognized the need to do something different in order to succeed in today's rapidly changing marketplace. These clients include: GE, Merck, Allianz, Lucent, NBC Universal, AT&T, Goodyear, Pfizer, A&E Television Networks, General Mills, MTV Networks, Duke Corporate Education, Infosys, Ernst & Young, Moen, and PricewaterhouseCoopers. At the heart of his work lies the fundamental belief that a company's most important capital asset is the collective brain power, creativity and commitment of its work force and that this asset can be significantly leveraged when people are provided with the appropriate setting, systems, tools and techniques to think (and act) out of the box. Prior to his work with Idea Champions, Mr. Ditkoff was a principal in Ki Learning Systems and a Senior Consultant with the Inner Game Corporation - both organizational development firms dedicated to catalyzing superior performance in the workplace. In addition to his consulting work, Mr. Ditkoff is also an accomplished public speaker and writer. Author of Banking on Innovation, Free the Genie, It's AHAppening! and co-author of Ingenuity Bank, the next generation in idea management software, Mr. Ditkoff has appeared on numerous radio and television talk shows. Additionally, he is a poet and founder of Face the Music, the world's only interactive business blues band. He lives in Woodstock, New York, with his artist wife, Evelyne, and their two children, Jesse (12) and Emilia (9).

Product Details

• Hardcover: 117 pages
• Publisher: Morgan James Publishing (May 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1600372961
• ISBN-13: 978-1600372964
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,187,995 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic for Idea Lovers, March 31, 2008

By 

nettie hartsock "nettie" (Austin, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Awake at the Wheel: Getting Your Great Ideas Rolling (in an Uphill World) (Paperback)

If your looking for a book that will inform, inspire and invigorate your idea process at your company this is the book to read.

Ditkoff's take on "Wheely Good Practices" alone is worth the price of the book itself. I particularly loved the "Tooling up Tool Box" and the detailed information on the Edison/Dali creative thinking technique.

Brilliant stuff!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Creative Motivation, March 31, 2008

By 

Garry Kvistad "Owner, Woodstock Chimes" (Shokan, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Awake at the Wheel: Getting Your Great Ideas Rolling (in an Uphill World) (Paperback)

Ditkoff uses his own creativity and humor to convey an approach to utilize both of these essential skills in the work place. Humor is serious business - or should be. I bought copies for each of my top management and will use it as a center piece for discussions at an upcoming manager's retreat. Everyone has many great ideas but few come to fruition without a proper approach. It takes a caveman mentality to help sometimes. Thanks OG!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Really Cool Book, March 31, 2008

By 

New York Reviewers (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Awake at the Wheel: Getting Your Great Ideas Rolling (in an Uphill World) (Paperback)

Mitchell Ditkoff's new book is so cool! Finally, someone has written an innovation book that is fun to read AND provides a roadmap for innovation success. I've read some of his work in the past, and this is the best yet.