Creative thinkers combine
ideas and information in ways that form new solutions, ideas, processes, or
products. “The hallmark of creative
people is their mental flexibility,” says creativity expert Roger
von Oech. “Like race car drivers who
shift in and out of different gears depending on where they are on the course,
creative people are able to shift in and out of different types of thinking
depending on the needs of the situation at hand.” Look at table
below to see some primary characteristics of creative people. Underneath all
these qualities lie a desire to learn,
a drive to question, and a commitment to keep an open mind.
CHARACTERISTIC
|
EXAMPLE
|
Willingness to take risks
|
Taking a difficult,
high-level course
|
Tendency to break away from limitations
|
Entering a marathon race
|
Tendency to seek new challenges & experiences
|
Taking on an internship
in a high-pressure workplace
|
Broad range of interests
|
Investing new moves on
basketball court and playing guitar at an open-mike night
|
Ability to make new things out of available
materials
|
Making curtains out of
bedsheets
|
Tendency to question norms & assumptions
|
Adopting a child of
different ethnic background than the family’s
|
Willingness to deviate from popular opinion
|
Working for a small,
relatively unknown political party
|
Curiosity and inquisitiveness
|
Wanting to know how a
computer program works
|
Source: Adapted from T. Z.
Tardif and R. J. Sternberg, “What Do We
Know About Creativity?” in The Nature
of Creativity, ed. R.J. Sternberg (London: Cambridge University Press,
1988).
Try some or all of the
following strategies to boost your creative abilities.
Be curious. The
more information and ideas you gather as you think, the more perspective you
have to build a creative idea or solution. Collect information and ideas from
reading materials, people, the Internet, anywhere – and record them on
smartphone or in writing. Branch out and cultivate new interests. Seek out new
experiences and take in the ideas and perspectives that you encounter.
Shift your perspective. At first, a problem may look like: “The house isn’t
quiet when I study.” If you take a wider look, you may discover hidden causes
or effects of the problem, such as “I haven’t chosen the best time of day to
study” or “I haven’t let my housemates know that I need quiet.” Question your
assumptions; ask people you trust for their perspectives; read in order to
discover new ways of looking at situation.
Don’t get hooked on finding the one right answer. There can be lots of “right answers” to any
question. The more possibilities you generate, the better your chance of
finding the best one. Also, don’t stop the process when you think you have the
best answer – keep going until you are out of stream. You never know what may
come up in those last gasps of creative energy.
Break the rules sometimes. All kinds of creative breakthroughs have occurred
because someone questioned a rule or an assumption. Women and members of
minorities can vote and hold jobs because someone questioned a rule – a law –
many years ago. Even the rules of logic don’t always hold – following strict
logic may cause you to miss analogies or ignore your hunches. At one time in
the not-so-distant past, for example, it made no logical sense that two people
could talk to one another while in different cities – and now the telephone is
a fact of life (Just thinking, how logical it was for you to read my blog from
you smartphone or laptop from the invisible World Wide Web in the year 1800).
Ask “what if” questions. Set up hypothetical environments in which new ideas
can grow. “What if I knew I couldn’t fail?” “What if I had unlimited money or
time or energy?” See what idea, however outrageous, comes from a “what if”
question – and then think about how
to make it happen. Don’t necessarily make
it happen, but – think. Just by asking the question “what if” you can boost
your creative ability.
Take risks and, when necessary, embrace failure. Even though failure is always a possibility, taking
risks is the only way to make your highest goals reachable. If you insist on
playing it safe, you may miss out on the path – often paved with failures –
leading to the best possible solution or situation.
Lord, Give
Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)
References and Suggested Readings:
1. Roger von Oech, A Kick in the Seat of the Pants (1986)
2. Roger von Oech, A Whack on the Side of the Head (1998)
3. J.R. Hayes, Cognitive Psychology: Thinking and Creating
(1978)
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