The creator of Calvin and Hobbes shared his creative philosophy with Kenyon College graduates in this rare public address. He explained that producing 365 ideas a year requires cultivating a kind of mental playfulness — not switching off the mind (which he compared to a car battery that recharges by running), but letting it wander into new territories. Watterson illustrated this with his own experience of putting himself in the mind of a fictitious six-year-old each day, rediscovering his own curiosity through Calvin. He'd been amazed at how one idea leads to others when you allow your mind freedom to explore. 'I know a lot about dinosaurs now,' he added, 'and the information has helped me out of quite a few deadlines.'