Some people think you are either a creative person or you are not. Some people may be more inclined to think creatively than others; creativity is like a muscle that can be exercised & improved upon. Here are some Ways to Improve Your Creative Thinking.
Creativity isn’t a like a lightning bolt that strikes seldom & can’t be predicted. Maybe you have a job that needs a lot of creative thinking – or maybe you would like to sharpen your creative skills for future job opportunities & business ventures. If you can’t get your creative juice flowing, you will be in a soup.
Ways to Improve Your Creative Thinking
1. Consume Content That’s Outside Your Comfort Zone
We all love to read about things in our industry & of our interest, but usually, this doesn’t boost creativity. If you are lucky, it may help to get motivation or inspiration.
If you are trying to get your creative juices flowing, consume the content you wouldn’t normally consume. Read blogs & articles outside of your industry or interest. Read books outside of your favourite genre of choice. Try to know more, regardless of the topic. It is hard to say which element will help to unleash your creativity.
2. Make Your Own “Three ifs”
Many good creative thinkers take an existing object or situation & ask thoughtful questions to modify the very concept of it & make something new. Steve Jobs didn’t begin with the idea of an exclusive smartphone. He thought about an existing cell phone & asked a simple question: how can we develop it to make it better – or the best one?
Let’s be clear: there are no complete recipes for creative thinking, & each person should grow their own approach based on subject, interest, type of thinking, or even the type of team they are a part of.
You can try to build creative thinking around “Three ifs”:
- What can happen if I modify it (the object/ system/ social relationship/ value etc.)?
- What would I alter or improve about this thing if I wanted to use it in 5 years?
- What would I do if I came across a one-million-dollar investment to develop it?
3. Write A 500 Word Article with No Fixed Topic
This is a fun exercise & one of the best Ways to Improve Your Creative Thinking. You can open a blank document & start typing or take a diary & start writing. No headline, no topic, no rewriting, & most significantly, no self-critiquing.
Just let your fingers start typing or move the pen & let your brain decide what words to write next. Usually, you will end up with some quite weird & crazy thing you will never share, but you will feel a boost of creative energy afterwards.
4. Watch A Movie in a Movie Theater
Yes, you might have a Netflix subscription & stream movies on your 65-inch smart TV, but movies on the bigger scene are one of the last few places you can have a total sensory-captive experience.
The enormous bright screen. The state of art surround sound. The smell & taste of freshly popped popcorn or freshly fried hotdog. The comfy recliner seat on which you feel you can even sleep. After you leave a movie theatre, your mind will always spin with thoughts & ideas.
5. Try To Imagine Alternate Endings
You read a book or watched a movie but didn’t like the ending. Sounds familiar? It happens to all of us. Based on the characters & story of that book or movie, try to imagine an alternate ending. Make your mind a movie theatre in which you will watch the ending which suits you best. This is one of the best Ways to Improve Your Creative Thinking.
Do you remember the Marvel animated series What If…? In which they presented some alternate scenarios to the ones depicted in their movies. Like, what if Peggy Carter gets the super soldier serum instead of Steve Rogers? Or what if Yondu kidnaps T’challa instead of Peter Quill, or in a universe where Thanos is not the real villain, it is the Gamemaker? Try to think like that & create your own story.
6. Take A Break
While creativity is totally a skill you can train yourself to be better at (rather than the concept of simply waiting for creativity juice to flow), it’s vital also not to put too much pressure on yourself. If you are sitting at your desk for hours desperately trying to get new ideas & solutions & coming up with absolutely nothing, you should take a break.
Change the scenery, go for a walk or have a cup of coffee, clear your head, & take your mind off the job at hand: when you come back to it with a fresh set of eyes & fresh mind, you may suddenly find the idea you have been waiting for was waiting in front of you the entire time.
7. Do What You Love
When you genuinely love your job, you are obviously going to be more inspired & enthusiastic about creative problem-solving & presenting new ideas. A job you don’t love is challenging to approach with a positive & creative attitude.
You can find a hobby that allows you to be creative and that you love to do, like playing an instrument, gardening, painting, or even a sport that places you in the present. Having a hobby is one of the best answers to the question ‘ How to Develop a Creative Mind.’
8. Minimize The Distractions
When you need your creative juice to flow (though you can’t force it), sit quietly in a calm mind & try to minimize the distractions. Try to turn off your mobile phone’s data to ensure you don’t get disturbed by constant alerts of emails or messages, or notifications from social media.
When you are trying to get your creativity flowing, a notification of a photo of your friend with his spouse eating in a fancy restaurant is not going to help.
Many research studies have stated that coffee shops are the best place for creativity, mainly because, in nearly all coffee shops, the noise level is modest. Too much noise can be distractive, but a lack of “acceptable” noise can also be demotivating.
What are the Benefits of Creative Thinking?
Creativity is an exceptionally helpful skill, regardless of your aspirations & objectives in life. Creative thinking can be useful when you are playing word games with friends or family at home, taking up a new hobby like playing an instrument, or trying to address an unexpected or unforeseen issue in your company & particularly if you are trying to build a career in which creative thinking is an essential skill.
If you can’t unleash your creativity, there are certain Ways to Improve Your Creative Thinking.
FAQs
Q: Is creativity linked to innovative thinking?
A: Of course it is. Creativity inspires innovative thinking.
Q: As a kid, I was never creative. How to get the power of creativity?
A: Regardless of age, it is never late to hone the power of creativity. There are several Ways to Improve Your Creative Thinking.
Q: Does creativity has any application in the corporate or IT field?
A: People with creativity are welcomed in all fields where offering new ideas & troubleshooting capabilities are highly appreciated.
