This article was inspired by a dialogue that I had with someone who commented on one of my blog posts. The post was about the resources that were required for Creativity. The person was looking for a definitive manual, a list of everything that they would need and the steps that they would need to go thorough. On reflection, my reply was probably less than helpful, but in a roundabout way I indicated that no such thing existed.
I still maintain that this is the case and if anyone tries to sell you such a manual then beware, however what they really needed was something to learn from, perhaps some case study material for a situation similar to theirs.
Putting together a creative system is a little like putting together flat pack furniture but without the instructions. If you have a reasonable skill level and knowledge of how such things are assembled then your furniture will grow out of the pile of pieces. If you are at the other end of the spectrum then you will be screaming for the instructions!
But what if the instructions do not exist, simply because every time the furniture is built by different people the result is different (but still a perfect piece of furniture)? What you need then are not instructions but an example of how the pieces fit together and a list of the tools required so that you can construct your unique item of furniture.
This is why we have components and tools to help you use creativity in business but the instructions are not included.
