January 23rd, 2016
We are all creative. Some of us excel at conjuring up new concepts, others can spew out one idea after another. Then there are the countless people who need something to get them started but they are geniuses at connecting ideas, adding and improving on the original concept. As children, this creativity is a given, we say whatever comes to mind and blur the lines between fantasy and reality on a daily basis. We "think outside the box", never question our ability to do things and, remain open to all possibilities.
At some point, we begin to equate creativity with artistic skill and we learn to think of ourselves as either artistic or not. This is unfortunate because creativity is like a muscle that gets stronger with practice. Let's try to stir up creativity in your life.
1) Grab an object from your environment and try to list as many uses for it as possible. Robin Williams did this during one of his stand up routines. He grabbed a woman's scarf and proceeded to transform it into a skirt, a veil, car wash curtains, hair, a hat, a bullfighter's cape etc.
2) Change the order that you do things every day; eat breakfast for supper or read your paper at the end of the day.
3) Eat different foods, whatever you would normally avoid.
4) Ask "what if" questions such as..."What if I didn't need money?", "What if I was a man/woman?", "What if children made all the decisions?", "What if no one would know?".
5) Write down a problem and ask five individuals to read your description and suggest solutions in writing. They may see the problem more objectively and propose very different perceptions.
6) Expose yourself to new ideas by reading different kinds of books, travelling or studying other cultures, visiting museums and art galleries, hanging out with a new crowd, taking the bus (instead of your car), listening to a type of music you never explored before or pursuing activities that are not in your comfort zone.
7) Challenge people around you to come up with crazy stories like the "Two truths and a lie" game where people lie about themselves but include a bit of truth. Listeners need to find which part of the story is true."So there I was"....
These seven activities can help you rekindle your creativity. This is important because the business world is now realizing the value of creative thinking especially when it comes to problem-solving. Brainstorming has been well-established as an effective tool for generating solutions to existing problems. In brainstorming, you withhold judgment and share as many ideas as possible while someone writes all of the ideas down onto a piece of paper. Then you pick through the information and attempt to build on some of the ideas that have the most potential, sometimes connecting the strongest ones and creating something new.
Similar to Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) where you manipulate experiences on the screen of your mind, it can be useful to play with problems.
What does the problem look like? Draw it or create a maquette of it.
What is the opposite of this problem?
How would a five year old deal with this?
Trace a map and see how you can get from point A, "You are here" to point B, where you want to be. Explore all possibilities.
Describe the problem from the point of view of each person involved. What do they have in common?
Walk backwards through the problem from the outcome to the beginning. Where could we make changes to avoid the outcome?
Where does this problem fit into the big picture of this relationship, family or business?
Compare it to another industry. How would they deal with it? If you're struggling with student retention in a college program. Think about somewhere everyone wants to go like Walt Disney World. What do people enjoy about this environment? How can we make our college program more like Walt Disney World?
You may need to see a problem from a different angle. How would this look from a bird's eye view? What if there was another point of entry?
Whether you are brainstorming at work, trying to motivate your children or simply looking for ways to spice up your life, creativity can help you expand your horizons, see issues from different perspectives and come up with original solutions to everyday problems.
Anne Walsh
www.artnsoul.org
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