Where do you get your new ideas? Not just "ah that's interesting" tidbits, but sparks of insight and fresh perspectives that solidify into greater understanding of what you want to accomplish or can achieve? In our ongoing discussion about making good real estate decisions, we've yet to consider one important element: good places to think.

Too many real estate buyers and sellers tend to keep their thinking "inside the box," therefore, they repeat familiar patterns and follow other people rather than exploring their own unique opportunities. Many restrict their choices to what is familiar without exploring all their options. This makes some cautious about venturing into real estate, keeps others vulnerable to marketing hype and leads some into snap decisions.

Developers and builders often continue with designs and approaches that are not as effective as new offerings because selling anything outside the traditional is difficult. For instance, the new "green" trend has been around for decades, but only a small percentage of discerning buyers could accept the novel concepts involved. Now, many property owners may find their "non-green" real estate will not hold its value if "green" becomes the norm.

Finding a good place to kick-start creative thinking may help you avoid common pitfalls, including buyer's remorse. Until you experience "out of the box" thinking, you may not realize what a rut you are in. There's one overlooked place for "thinking-room" -- both physical and abstract -- that recharges creativity and sparks inspiration–experimental theatre.

Experimental theatre shifts the context of what we know:

• to peel away the obvious

• to achieve deeper understanding

• to draw on creativity which generates unexpected surprise, and

• to slice through complexity and create "aha" insights.

To find the best possible solution to your housing needs and financial goals, these mental breakthroughs are essential to decision making.

The Toronto-based experimental theatre company Small Wooden Shoe (SWS) describes its work as "characterized by a rigorous looseness" which enables them to use humour and entertainment as creative tools for "engaging with the historical, social and political world around us in a critical manner."

Founder and artistic director Jacob Zimmer firmly believes "developing a sound artistic practice shouldn't limit us to one performance style or genre," so SWS productions are clever combinations of talent show, lecture-demo, debating tournament and other elements that encourage curiosity.' Productions are designed to engage "the audience in an honest, casual way while maintaining the need to step up and entertain." SWS's Dedicated to the Revolutions Series tackles each revolution -- Gutenberg, Copernican, Newtonian, Darwinian, Industrial, Nuclear, Information -- in a unique performance that streamlines history through humour and awakes the audience's curiosity by making these milestones relevant to living in the twenty-first century.

Founded in Halifax six years ago by Jacob Zimmer, Small Wooden Shoe continues to search for its own permanent space and in doing so is branching out to perform in non-theatre locations. The SWS search for a home parallels the search that consumers face, so Zimmer's insights, "I'm interested in how we think about the world and how often we don't think about the world around us," may help clarify your thoughts and priorities about real estate:

• Internal space impacts thinking, so where you choose to think matters.

  "We create a space where people are invited to help us, a space where large ideas can be thought about in a way that is not depressing or intimidating, but that is joyful and still critical," said Zimmer. "That is why theatre is different. A lot of movies, television and theatre gives you all the answers, so there's nothing for the brain and the mind can wander ... . The show is not good until the audience shows up! We think a lot about what happens to an audience from when they arrive to the beginning of show—if we ignore that span of time [we're] in trouble."

• Thinking outside the area you know is a challenge, too. "Toronto is such a city that it is hard to imagine moving out if its neighourhoods."

• "[SWS] is not so much about a building, partly because it is not realistic any more. The 'hay day' of being able to buy a building is gone," said Zimmer explaining that being part of a community is much more important. Relationships with the , Harbourfront and local research development centres help establish SWS's audience community. MaRS, a medical development centre and business incubator, will host Small Wooden Shoe during July's Fringe Festival.

• Affordability is not a constant. Zimmer and the theatre community moved into one down-and-out area, invested their creativity in their homes and workspaces, and now are being priced out of this gentrified neighbourhood. This pattern of increased property value has led forward-thinking property owners and developers to seek out these creative tenants.

• Owing real estate is a goal that begs creative solutions. SWS's physical space is a corner of Zimmer's living room and a shared rehearsal studio. The goal is a rectangular, pillar-free 40 x 40 rehearsal space. Individually, most actors and artists are tenants, but increasing numbers go beyond relying on family financial support to buy with friends.

Instead of settling down in front of the TV to dodge decisions, consider a shared experience at your local theatre, or even range a little further. Zimmer emphasizes that the theatre experience is different for each individual: "Only a small shift in anything you look at can cause you to think about it from a different angle."

Not a bad perspective for real estate decisions.

Published: June 5, 2007

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Futurist and Strategist PJ Wade is "The Catalyst" -- intent on "Challenging The Best Become Even Better." PJ earned this title by translating the dynamic impact of Boomers and their multi-generation families into relevant insights that start people thinking and taking action—in business and in life. Author of 7 books and more than 1600 published articles, PJ encourages individuals to become their own futurist. PJ writes and speaks about the insight, knowledge and solid decision-making skills that professionals and their clients need to live and work in this vortex of change. For instance, since PJ knows that home is headquarters for the new decades-long "unretirement," she wrote the popular book "Reverse Mortgages: Best Friend, Worst Enemy... Your Choice! (CatapultPublishing.com), which is filled with suggestions and insight on protecting and using home equity. Her new business book, "What's Your Point?," which identifies 7 common mistakes professionals unknowingly repeat to their detriment, will be published in 2009. As The Catalyst, PJ provides strategic communication, client appreciation and advanced education services to the financial, tourism, lifestyle and service sectors -- and the clients they serve. A frequently-quoted financial and business commentator, PJ is a thought-provoking strategic speaker who offers practical, real-life suggestions on leaving "the box" behind and embracing Forward Thinking -- a talent she regularly demonstrates in this column. For more on blogs, books and topics, visit TheCatalyst.com.