At IDEO, Shoshana Berger is learning that creativity is a muscle you can strengthen with focus and intention. But her own personal story of creative confidence was much more homespun: striking out as an independent voice in the early digital publishing world; building a magazine from the ground up, at 29, with ten credit cards and a dream. Shosana will share the entrepreneurial lessons she learned along the way, and why being bold, embracing risk, and learning to love ambiguity will always lead you to creative breakthroughs.

As the editorial director at IDEO Shoshana leads the development of new publishing tools and platforms. Before joining IDEO, Shoshana was the cofounder and editor in chief of the national DIY design magazine ReadyMade. Over eight years, she grew that publication to 350,000 circulation, launching ReadyMade’s website, products and events. ReadyMade was a finalist for National Magazine Awards in 2005 and 2006 and was acquired by Meredith Corp. in 2006.

Shoshana has been a writer and editor for: WIRED (launching the web channel Wired Design), Amazon, The New York Times, Travel + Leisure, Sunset, Marie Claire, Budget Travel, Business 2.0, Popular Science, SPIN, Salon and Raygun.

Publications include: Unscrolled (Workman, 2013); ReadyMade: How to Make Almost Everything (Crown, 2005); and Worldchanging: A User’s Guide for the 21st Century (eds Alex Steffen, Al Gore, and Bruce Sterling) Follow @shoshanaberger on Twitter.