Creativity is Good for Business
So often, we assume that creativity belongs to the artists and to those in fields such as architecture and design. Have you ever considered that creativity is good for business? Industry abounds with creativity, and it always has -- even if it’s sometimes hard to see in an age of mass production.
Managers often talk to their staff about thinking “outside of the box” and allowing fresh, unusual perspectives to guide their employees into new revenue and new opportunities. The latest idea in management is to think like the box never existed and completely remove previous iterations & restraints.
A recent IBM survey states that Creativity, a.k.a. Innovation, is the most important criteria for businesses facing the demands of the global market. So what does creativity look like in a business setting?
How do we inspire innovation amid constant deadlines and demands? It seems complicated because no one has ever taught us to think creatively. Being an innovator means doing things differently or something you’ve never done before -- taking new directions instead of following old patterns. When we need to solve a problem, we fall back on the same old approaches to the problem. The “tried and true” becomes a tether that prevents us from taking the next step forward!
When we free ourselves from the rules of previous iterations, we’re approaching our problem solving with creativity; and that opens us up to gains and benefits.
We get really curious. Curiosity allows us better to understand the situation and all of its complexities. It is being willing to ask new questions. Curiosity opens us to information we might otherwise ignore as unimportant.
We look at the challenges differently. Instead of just our usual straight-on gaze, creativity allows us to view our challenges from many different perspectives. We are getting out of hyperfocus into more big-picture observation.
We allow ourselves to explore many new ideas. Brainstorming opens all of the tensions to our different perspectives; to get involved and reframe the mystery of resolving our issues. We’re using multiple perspectives to see our challenges in three dimensions.
Creativity is another word for connectivity. We listen to ourselves, really hearing our colleagues, noticing their strengths, and listening to what our clients need.
Take Creative Brain Breaks: Block off 5-minute breaks during your workday to do something you love. Take a walk, listen to music, read. By interrupting the cortisol, you manage your stress and stay open to innovative solutions that will boost your productivity at work. Give it a try!
Creativity opens us up to new possibilities or solutions!
So many people have bought into the cult of focus. While this is important at certain times, we also miss brilliant new innovative possibilities when we are so focused on a singular task. Think of your focus like a flashlight. Focus allows us to see what is directly in front of us. But sometimes, we need wider high beams to see some crucial yet unknown elements awaiting our attention in our periphery. Shifting out of hyperfocus into relaxed creativity is the secret to seeing the bigger picture. If we stay so focused on our task, we might miss what the competition is working on, or we might miss a brilliant solution or option in the left field.
David Kelley of Ideo says, “Belief in your creativity lies at the heart of innovation.” So, remember to listen, trust and create-- because you are creative!
I wish to share the story of David, a successful businessman who fostered his creativity. This simple change had a powerful impact on every aspect of his life. David is a collector of my art. He is a successful wealth manager and a family man with a ton of charisma and style. David had followed a stable financial path; he had become successful with consistency, repetition, and a focused vision towards his success.
One day at coffee, David asked me if I could teach painting to someone with no artistic talent. He wanted to know if it was even possible that he could just step in and start learning something new; at his age and with his background. You see, David had reached his financial goals, yet he felt a nagging void. Like something was missing.
David felt he was asleep at the wheel of the habitual patterns he had built for himself. He was beginning to feel as if his batteries were low. David came to me because he wanted something new and exciting in his life. He was at the crossroads of his life and ready for a change.
I became David’s creative tour guide. Over the weeks and months that followed, I took him on an immersive creative journey. He painted. He sculpted. He sketched. He even went to tour museums, not as a gawker, but as someone who was beginning to understand and engage and understand his tastes and why he liked or disliked specific artworks we visited.
David left his comfort zone, found himself thinking and looking at life differently. He became bolder and more comfortable with making and discussing art. He started to trust his tastes and opinions even though he was not a professional. He developed a creative mindset. He let his perfectionism go and started to be more daring in all aspects of his life. He enjoyed the process of engaging with his ”own creativity.”
While his creativity was sparked in the studio, his creative mindset impacted every aspect of his life. David discovered Creative Confidence -- having the freedom to take creative risks knowing that all of the ideas you create have value. He said that, even though his work & daily life remained the same, he now saw them differently, and he felt more alive.
He started testing his limits at work and brightened his office with art that he chose. He still had the same staff meetings, but now, he shook them up with Ted-Talks, to inspire new thinking in his staff. Even his clothing changed: although he still wore suits, he wore more daring, colorful ties.
David Got Curious & trusted his own opinion -- and gave his employees room to trust theirs. Developing a creative outlook impacted David’s whole life.
David is now using his love for connecting and financial knowledge to create a sculpture garden in his hometown. David now trusts his creative instincts. This has had an impact on all aspects of his life.
David got out of his corporate silo. He brings all of himself to his life. This is David’s journey, and it can happen to you; by engaging in something, that is calling you. Perhaps it is taking an art class, maybe it is trying something new at work, or perhaps it is returning to an activity that you loved as a child. The key is to listen, trust and create, from within yourself.
This is what I want for you! Let me teach you to trust that innate creative, powerful place in yourself. Give imperfection a try! It is so much more exhilarating! You lose your creativity when you learn to mass-produce effects to clinical perfection. So, go for it -- try as many solutions as possible until you stumble in the right direction! In design thinking, we call this approach “rapid innovation.” Go for it, “Build the plane as you go and get out of your own way.”
Creativity is great for business and life! Here are two great articles for further reading:
Einstein’s Theory of Creativity
Harvard Business Review: The Art of Happiness
If you are ready to make a change, you want to find more fulfillment, or maybe you want to figure out your “next chapter,” you don’t have to do it alone! Let me be your creative life coach.
Join me for Creative Life Coaching. Want to have some fun with your friends? Let’s have a “Cocktails and Creativity Party” It is a party for you and your friends in my studio or online. I’ll be your host. Or join me for a “Creative Immersion Experience” -- no artistic abilities needed. Read more about these offers: www.mgargour.com.
Let’s talk. Please schedule an appointment and sign up for a free discovery session.
Remember, “Creativity is a Mindset, not a Skillset.” Joined me and Let’s start living a fulfilled, creative life!
Creative Life Coaching • Creative Immersion • Cocktails & Creativity • Workshops