Creativity is that magical process that happens when two or more unrelated things come together. It can happen randomly or through methods that encourage creativity.
Sometimes, in the beginning, this creative thought may seem a little wild, but then our brains connect it to usefulness and value. It forms a consensus around an idea with value that makes us smile in the first stage. Creativity is a muscle that gets stronger the more we practice it. Our brains become trained and skilled in generating these thoughts.
But what makes us think we're not creative? Usually, we blame the limiting environment for our lack of creativity. However, a challenging environment can foster creativity because creativity thrives on limitations and pressure.
Who hasn't heard the saying, 'think outside the box'? Managers and colleagues often say it to encourage us to be creative. However, it's precisely us who need to be inside the box.
Let me explain. The 'outside the box' part is about our ability to look at different and unrelated connections outside the context of our challenge. There isn't necessarily much creativity but research and imagination in this aspect. Creativity comes into play when we introduce limitations such as time, budget, manpower, physical constraints, etc. These are essentially the walls of our box.
So, what hinders us from being creative? What usually hinders our creativity is established thought patterns in our daily lives, whether in daily actions or how we approach predefined processes in an organized manner in our minds because we're accustomed to it.
Imagine looking at a baby who, whenever they encounter an obstacle, tries a new way to overcome it because they don't have established thought patterns for dealing with the challenge or process.
So, we can all be creative; all it takes is breaking the constraints and limitations.
How can we identify creative thoughts? Let's check if they meet these three conditions:
Something new – It's new in your thoughts, not necessarily new in the world.
Useful idea – It can be harnessed for someone's benefit. Adding value to the idea is essentially innovation.
Surprising thought – It makes you smile.
Try to think of such thoughts every day and train your brain to be creative.
Share a thought of yours that meets these three conditions."
