9 Practical Techniques To Ignite Creativity And Innovation

Forbes Leadership Leadership Strategy 9 Practical Techniques To Ignite Creativity And Innovation Eli Amdur Contributor Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. Leadership professor, job market journalist-analyst, business advisor. Following Oct 25, 2023, 09:27pm EDT | Press play to listen to this article! Got it! Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Creative concept.

Creator. Visual contents. getty “What we need around here is more creativity.

” Those eight words – one mighty concept leading to one daunting challenge – were spoken in 1997 by a client of mine, the CEO of a private investment firm, in his Wall Street office. Little did he know that his entreaty would ignite a spark in me: What, exactly, is creativity? What does creativity look like? Where does creativity come from? How does creativity work? How do we foster creativity? How do we increase our individuals’ and our organization’s creative competitive edge? Heady questions, no? What is creativity? Back to my client’s office. He’d just asked me what would become a life-changing question, to be returned by one of my own: “Just what is creativity, anyway?” I shot back.

And hs reply was classic: “I don’t know, but I know it when I see it. ” Well, that did it. I have spent the past 26 years researching and writing on creativity; experimenting with it; conceiving, designing, developing, and delivering a graduate-level course called Creativity, Change, and the 21 st Century Leader ; and consulting to more than 20 companies on “Becoming More Creative.

” I’m not nearly done, but here’s what I can tell you now: MORE FOR YOU ‘The Fall Of The House Of Usher’ Dethroned In Netflix’s Top 10 List By A New Show Elon Musk May Have Given Up On Privacy For His Jet Travels But Taylor Swift Hasn t Starfield Just Made Microsoft And Xbox A Ton Of Money The Truth About Creativity Creativity remains, to most people, a mysterious quality owned exclusively by the few, such as Steve Jobs, Albert Einstein, The Grateful Dead, Henry Mancini, etc. , and unreachable by most of us. Not so, as we will see.

Here are three unassailable truths: 1. Every individual has the innate capacity for creativity. However, more than 90% of people responding to surveys did not consider themselves creative.

2. Every organization can enrich its environmental creativity. Many executives still don’t see it this way, but in this, most rapidly changing time in history, they have little choice but to sign on.

3. Creativity is the only sustainable asset that any individual, organization, or nation will ever again have. All other traditional assets are more vulnerable than ever: capital is under attack by cryptocurrency or is susceptible to radical changes in the business environment; labor is being redefined and is morphing along with technology; technology is changing so fast – A.

I. , in particular – that today’s tech is tomorrow’s trash; leadership and management can crumble under the weight of their own inertia; and natural resources are subject to depletion or obsolescence. Only creativity can keep itself in a state of perpetual life.

It is, by nature, sustainable. Therefore, we must work to keep our creativity edge. As that is a challenge, due to the mysterious nature (to most) of what creativity is, let’s take a look at a “How To” of creativity and innovation.

Hey, wait a minute! We’ve been talking about creativity but now comes innovation. Aren’t they the same thing, you might ask. No! Creativity is a quality and a process; innovation is what creativity looks like when it is applied.

Creativity is potential; innovation is the result. Nine Practical Tips To Ignite Creativity and Innovation Everyone agrees we “need more creativity around here” but doesn’t know the steps to take in applying creativity to problem solving. Far short of the total picture, her are nine practical techniques.

Creativity Technique #1: Make the problem worse. Analyze the problem by discussing it with team members. Ask: Is this a part of something bigger? (It usually is.

) Discussing with a team gains perspective. The more you find out about a problem’s dimensions, the more likely you are to break it down into its components. That’s where solutions begin.

Creativity Technique #2: “Mind Sketching” The team discusses and agrees on the problem. Individually, sketch it out on plain paper. (Rough drawings are best.

) Pass your sketch to teammate. Put words/phrases on teammate’s sketch…or…make a new drawing of your own. Collect and aggregate.

Now look at the collective “mind sketch. ” The problem looks different, doesn’t it? Creativity Technique #3: Drill down and resurface. Get picky.

Drill down. What are the smaller issues beneath the surface? What are the components of the problem? Keep going. Get granular.

What do we know about it? Who? What? Where? When? How? Why? Redefine and work back up. Now…what’s the big problem? And now… what’s the big solution? Creativity Technique #4: Think backwards. Start at the end – what will success look like? What would be the last step to reach it? Working backwards, what would you have to do just before that? And before that? Sooner or later, you get back to where you are now.

Now move forward with the answers you already have. Creativity Technique #5: Listen to new voices. Identify, discuss, and define the problem.

Work thru x techniques (optional at this point). Now show the problem to people with no direct experience or expertise. Be an “active” listener.

” Carefully register their thoughts. Discuss new ideas from new voices. Synthesize and filter.

Creativity Technique #6: Classic brainstorming Write the problem on a whiteboard – visible to all. Each member articulates problem in their own words. Solicit unlimited thoughts, ideas, and observations.

No judgment – not right now. Keep shaking the tree. Needed: Rule enforcer and Scribe.

Inductively, what big ideas or issues have you found? Creativity Technique #7: Ben Franklin To evaluate an idea, don’t judge initially. Make three lists: positives, negatives, neutral that could go either way. Now weigh, compare, contrast.

OK, now judge. Creativity Technique #8: The Trigger Team discusses – and agrees upon – problem. Individually – write thoughts and ideas in short phrases, even single words.

Each member reads list aloud. All others cross off duplicates and write down newly-triggered ideas. Each member reads list.

Same procedure. Go around twice. Create aggregate list.

Creativity Technique #9: Lateral thinking Step sideways. Gain a new perspective. “I can’t get the cat to stand still on the scale so I can weigh him.

” Whom can I get to stand still (hold the cat? Now, how much does the cat weigh? Creativity techniques; changing for results The nicest part of using creativity techniques is that, the more you use them, the more they tend to morph into hybrids. Which is what creativity is all about. Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn .

Check out my website . Eli Amdur Editorial Standards Print Reprints & Permissions.