Being able to “think outside the box” and “push the envelope” may be well-worn phrases used to define the use of someone’s creativity, but the concept they convey has never been more important than in today’s business market.
According to a recent article in BusinessWeek, students who are able to answer the question of why some companies can innovate and why others can’t are just the type of talent companies want these days. As important issues such as sustainability, the international marketplace, ethics and the economy weigh squarely on the shoulders of business people all over the world, organizations are in need of bright ideas and the people who generate them.
That means that job seekers just entering the job market, as well as those who have their career firmly in place, need to consider how they can improve their ability to think beyond current boundaries and generate new ideas or put a different twist on an old concept.
Enhancing Creative Problem Solving Skills
According to experts, there are often impediments to creative problem solving. Issues such as not asking enough questions, defining a problem from only one viewpoint or based on a person’s knowledge of past problems, and seeing only differences instead of commonalities can lead employees to not properly define the actual problem. That is why it is important for employees to work through these blocks in order to jumpstart their creativity.
While there are several different methods by which employees can generate new ideas, here are three ways to get the team thinking creatively:
- Brainstorming. When the team is up against a problem or needs to explore new ideas for a project, one of the best things to do is brainstorm. Brainstorming allows the team to generate several ideas at once as long as they stick to the rules. That means quantity is valued over quality, defer judgment, the wilder the better (it’s easy to tame them later) and build off each new idea.
- Divide and Conquer. Another method for generating new ideas is to expand on current ideas by dividing them into smaller parts. For instance, how many uses are there for a ping pong ball? Generate a list. Then look at the specific attributes of the ball – weight, color, shape, and so on. Now see if the team can think of more uses. The thought is that it is easier to come up with alternative ideas or solutions to a problem this way.
- Elimination. Want to come up with creative solutions to systems or procedures? Consider if you really need them. What would happen if your team no longer performed a process? Would it (should it) fall on someone else’s shoulders? Is there someone else in or outside the organization that would be better equipped to handle the process? Could it just go away all together? Sometimes we continue doing things because that’s the way it’s always been.
Developing Personal Creativity
In order for employees to expand their way of thinking and develop or enhance their own personal creativity, they need to build flexibility into their thinking. Here are three suggestions of how:
- Relax. Sometimes breaking out of a routine and taking time to relax will free the mind and allow it to form new ideas.
- Read. The only way to learn new things is for employees to explore the world around them. They can do this through continuous learning.
- Congregate. One of the best ways to develop personal creativity is to hang out with other people who are creative.
As employers seek people who can help solve business issues and identify the next big market trend, soft skills, especially creativity, become an even more important part of an employee’s repertoire.
Deborah S. Hildebrand - Deborah S. Hildebrand is a freelance writer & HR consultant with 20+ years in human resources & a Bachelor's degree in Business.
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