Boosting Creativity

The first thing to understand about creativity is that there are no specific processes one must follow in order to be creative. Creativity, by definition, means not necessarily adhering to social norms and common practices.

To be creative you have to start with a clean slate which means distancing yourself from all preconceived ideas about how one should go about being creative. This may include what you learned in school, heard in a seminar or course, or even what your employers (current or past) have told you.

It's fine to be aware of different processes, but don't let them hold you back if your creative impulses have a tendency to drive you in a different direction.

Barriers To Creativity

Creativity is a form of purity and to become good at it you have to remove barriers from your mind. For instance, this means not trying to accommodate creativity with what others would want of you.

For example, you cannot truly be creative in a work environment where demands are being placed on you such that people are monitoring your activities and how much time you spend on them. You are working against yourself trying to do two opposing things at once, or even harboring the belief that you can. It's better to realize this and reserve your true creative efforts for where you are actually in control.

It is true that many companies like to think of themselves as fostering creativity but in reality true creative endeavors will generally be viewed as wasting time, inefficient, or even insubordination.

If you are naturally a creative person who is free spirited then it may very well be that a traditional job is not your calling and being self-employed is. But that's a whole other topic for another post.

We are born curious about the world and over time many (most) of us have become followers rather than independent thinkers. It's just the path of least resistance for many and it may seem better than the alternative, which is disagreeing and being in defense mode all the time.

Personally I prefer to distance myself as much as possible from the herd rather than try to cope with them. And as long as I am honest and am not harming anyone, I can be as creative and free-willed as I want.

A Potential Drawback To Creativity In A Team Setting

The other point to make is that team environments aren't necessarily conducive to creativity. This is especially true if there is competitiveness present, meaning there are team members who want to stand out among their peers. What often happens in these situations is that up-front mediocre ideas take precedence over great ideas, which may take longer to arrive at. Many people are so afraid of being "unproductive" that they would prefer something fast and mediocre over taking extra time for the great solution. This can also result in the set back of individual members who don't do well in a rushed environment and who need more time to contribute their share of value.

To develop creativity it is best to work by yourself where you are not under a schedule.

Method Of Savings And Removing Emotional Attachment

The Method of Savings concept in Psychology applies to creativity as well. By spending more time in the beginning to get the best start you save time later on because you are not trying to catch up and undo components that were lackluster.

Creativity can be thought of as having a passion and running with it. In a way, it means re-awakening your child-like curiosity, which may have been suppressed over the years. You let your creative path evolve and don't resist how it evolves by removing emotional attachment. This is similar to how some writers say that stories write themselves and they don't always know how the story will turn out ahead of time. Indeed, they might even be saddened by the way the story turns out.

Creativity is closely related to Critical Thinking and Problem Solving.

Strategies and Mental Checklists For Stimulating Creativity

I'm going to outline some creativity-inducing strategies and checklists that have helped me in the past and which may help you:

• Remove distractions. This can include noise, television and even certain people

• Let your internal voice settle. Allow yourself to calm down before beginning the creative journey

• What is your objective/goal? It helps to clearly define what you want to do. But it's also true that the direction can become clearer as you progress

• Background reading - what have others done before you? Or is this something totally new?

• Have a pencil and paper handy in case inspiration strikes, as it can happen anywhere. Or make a mental note and write it down as soon as you can

• What environment do you work best in? Make that your working environment if possible

• Even if you don't have a clear idea of where you're going start working on it anyway as that will help creativity flow (a kick-start)

• What do you need to facilitate your creativity? It helps to have a place to "build", such as a workshop, with tools, raw material, etc. These are the resources necessary to help bring your visions to reality

• Write down ideas and draw sketches. This helps solidify the concepts in your mind

• Are you holding any limiting assumptions that may be preventing you from full exploration? If so let them go

• Is there anyone you can ask who has succeeded at this endeavor, whom you can consult for guidance in case you get stuck?

• Branch out the main ideas into their components and expand on those components as well. This allows you to cover a larger scope

• Don't constrain yourself to a time limit. This is not a race

• Get in the "zone" where ideas flow (enhanced focus)

• Take extra time to go off on tangents, even if it might mean you spending extra time on things you didn't anticipate

• Sharing ideas with others is okay, as long as those people are supportive. This helps keep you in a positive state of mind

• Even if an idea seems ridiculous with only a glimmer of plausibility write it down anyway. Explore it and exhaust it. Writing it down is like marking with a peg where you've been without losing track, or forgetting later on. This becomes increasingly necessary as your "flashes" of insight accumulate

• Let your mind wander. I find creativity happens in spurts. I would turn something over in my mind until I think of something. I then write it down along with the other ideas it gives rise to

• If you're designing a machine or mechanism of some sort you will likely be combining art with science. Satisfying the science and making the invention practical and aesthetically pleasing is where the art comes in

• Imagine a solid block where you are carving the idea out of it, rather than building it up from the different pieces

• Imagine seeing the ideas (or different ideas) in front of you and having to pick which one you like the most. Let that be the main idea you focus on

• Go back to the ideas you wrote a few days before, and clarify anything which made sense in the moment you wrote them, but which may not be clear now (a form of proof reading)

• Think positively and enjoy yourself. This has to be something you would be gladly willing to try again with renewed enthusiasm if success doesn't happen right away

• Think in simple terms and try to avoid unnecessary complex paths, such as layering complex solutions on top of previous faulty solutions to make them work. In this case it's better to start from scratch with a clean slate (no emotional attachment)

• Keep good notes and date them so you can follow chronologically what you did in case you have to look back later on

• Can you use visualization tools, such as computer simulations, CAD drawings, etc?

• Sleep on it. Allow your unconscious mind to work

• Allow your ideas to evolve over time, even after you've found the "best" way