+44 (0)114 400 0236

Business Creativity & Innovation

Kick Start Your Creativity

Kick start your creativityMany people get “Creative’s block” when they are faced with a requirement to come up with ideas or solve a problem. At other times their creativity overflows! Others, after having no time to play or practise, wish they had more free time, and when they finally get it, they are not in the mood. This article provides some tips which might help you kick start your creativity if ever you get stuck. These suggestions might not cure your problem but they should start you on the path to finding something that will. Note that for this to be useful in the world of business you should have some use in mind for this else it is simply messing around (but good fun).

Make time for being creative. With the demands of business/life, you will never get round to being creative  ever again! Try to spend at least half an hour doing something different. Maybe sketch an idea that you have had for a while, measure out a prototype in your office or go and look for some appropriate new colours. If you’re creative activities relate to generating ideas then make sure that you have a notepad and pen handy to capture them.

Plan ahead. If you know that you are going to have regular ‘creative breaks’ then think about what you would like to do or achieve in them. If you need specific tools (A4 paper, pens, juggling balls, mat to lie on) then get them ready in advance. Spend your time being creative not getting ready to be creative!

Keep a creativity journal. In this journal, you can write down any ideas that come into your head any time of day or night (yes you should keep it beside your bed). These can be ideas, problem solutions, preferences, questions or just a list of things to try.

Gather ideas from your surroundings. Look all around you, outside the window, on the shelves, under the bed, on the counter… take photos or look at something interesting from more than one view. But be patient: It may take some time to try to find an interesting subject to play with! Try to do different things to force changes in your surroundings. Take a new route to work, catch a different bus, go to a different sandwich shop, sit the wrong way round in the bath (but mind the taps). If you need to store these then make use of your creativity journal.

Gather knowledge. Learn from the greats and the not so greats! There are plenty of things out there that you can learn and master, and even more failures that you can learn from. The internet, TV, newspapers and just listening to your elders all provide a rich source of knowledge.

Take photos. Many of us have cameras or smart phones. Take pictures and use the voice recording feature also. Anything captured can be used to help present your ideas or to act as a springboard for future creativity sessions.

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *