What do you do if your leadership is facing a creative block?

"When creativity stalls, the best remedy is to embrace change. Comfort zones are creativity’s greatest adversary. Look at shifting your routines, draw inspiration from sectors outside your own, or alter your physical workspace. These changes can trigger new ideas, offering you the fresh perspectives needed to overcome creative blocks. Be open to all experiences—each one has the potential to ignite a spark of innovation that revitalizes your vision and propels you forward."

With every change there comes some resistance. Sometimes it’s positive but often it’s challenging. The fact that the pace of change is a new experience for many of us and as leaders when we deal with people we need to learn to manage the journey. Great Sponsorship To Change is about depth of the Vision and understanding how to engage and motivate stakeholders. When the vision becomes clear, people take on their responsibility and support to drive the change to implementation.

While everyone understands stagnation gets in the way of progress, the resistance to change continues not because of lack of knowledge but fear of the unknown and a reluctance to disrupt established hierarchies, because when the dust settles, things will look different. So as an executive coach, besides that usual items such as reverse mentoring, external inspiration, an so on, I'd spend time understanding the power play at work - what's in it for whom, and address that.

When faced with a creative block, my first step is to embrace change. This might mean altering my routine, changing my working environment, or even revisiting and revising my goals. Embracing change helps to disrupt the status quo and sparks new ways of thinking, providing fresh perspectives that are often the antidote to creative stagnation.

What a brilliant question! First thing I now do is acknowledge it. Sounds so simple yet it took me a long to do this act. I would "push through" but all that did was create frustration, doubt and in the end nothing creative. Now when this happens embrace it as a normal part of being a business owner. Best action to take for creative unblocking...walking. Put on my ear buds, some music that lifts my energy and go outside. The power of nature transforms lack to abundance. I may not have all the answers at the end of the walk but certainly am more receptive and ready! - Brian G. Bachand

Offer multiple channels for gathering feedback, such as anonymous surveys, one-on-one discussions, or structured feedback sessions. This allows individuals to provide input in a manner they're most comfortable with, fostering candid and constructive feedback.

Siempre es bueno usar un modelo de retroalimentación, a mí me funciona el modelo "Retroalimentación Apreciativa", que se desarrolla y se explica bien en el libro "Personas compran Líderes". Este modelo es parte de los recursos que regala el modelo "Liderazgo Ecléctico".

Leveraging the team is my favorite tool for boosting creativity. During the pandemic, one of my leader clients felt stuck because so many things were changing rapidly, and she couldn't find a way forward. I encouraged her to be transparent and vulnerable, and she did that. She was pleasantly surprised to find that her team was creative and resourceful. It not only helped her gain momentum, but it also improved the team morale and strengthened the team's cohesion.

Actively seeking feedback from diverse perspectives can help break through creative blocks. Engage with your team, customers, and stakeholders to gain fresh insights and uncover blind spots. Implement mechanisms for open dialogue and actively listen to suggestions and critiques. Feedback can spark new ideas and challenge existing assumptions, ultimately fueling creative problem-solving.

3 benefits of Feedback when stuck: 1. Identifying Blind Spots: Allows you to see challenges and opportunities from different angles. By understanding the impact of your actions through the eyes of others, you can identify areas for improvement and more innovative problem-solving. 2. Stimulating New Ideas: Engaging in discussions with others encourages collaborative thinking and can lead to solutions that you might not have developed on your own. It's a dynamic way to harness collective creativity and break through personal mental barriers. 3. Enhancing Decision-Making: Real-time insights into your perceived effectiveness can inspire you to experiment with new approaches and take calculated risks, fostering a more adaptive leadership style.

Homogeneous teams often struggle with groupthink, limiting their ability to generate novel ideas. As a leader, it's crucial to cultivate diversity of thought within your organization. Assemble teams with diverse backgrounds and perspectives. Encourage healthy debate and respectful dissent, as these can lead to creative breakthroughs. By embracing cognitive diversity, one can increase the likelihood of identifying innovative solutions to complex challenges. Remember, overcoming creative blocks requires a combination of openness, collaboration, and a willingness to challenge conventional wisdom. By embracing change, seeking feedback, and cultivating diversity of thought, you can unlock the creative potential within your leadership.

Encourage leaders to participate in external learning networks, such as industry forums, conferences, or online communities. Exposure to diverse viewpoints and experiences outside the organization can inspire fresh ideas.

To overcome creative hurdles, I engage with diverse sources of inspiration. Whether it's reading outside my usual genres, attending workshops in different fields, or collaborating with professionals from other industries, diversifying my inputs helps to broaden my thinking and sparks innovative ideas

When your leadership is stuck in a creative block, it's essential to step back and look at things from a fresh perspective. Encourage them to take a break, go for a walk, or engage in activities they enjoy to clear their mind. Sometimes, simply changing the environment can spark new ideas. Encourage them to brainstorm with their team or seek inspiration from other sources like books, movies, or nature. Also, remind them that it's okay to make mistakes and that creativity often comes from experimentation.

What do you do if your team is facing a creative block? Start by reflecting on the engagement of your leadership team. -Are all your leaders contributing to the discussion? Or is the conversation dominated by a few? -How often are new constructive ideas raised vs comments to support ideas already tabled? As a leader, one of your roles is to encourage all voices and ideas to be heard. Begin by asking all for their thoughts and ideas in the meeting. For those less comfortable speaking up approach them one-on-one to encourage their engagement. In all cases be sure to reward and recognize the valuable contributions of all and take steps to create a balanced voice at the table.

As a leader here are some ways that I follow to get more out of rest and reflection: 1. Scheduling "Thinking Time": Blocking out dedicated time in my calendar for brainstorming, reflection, or simply letting my mind wander. 2. Engage in Activities I Enjoy: I take up few activities that help me relax and recharge, whether it's reading, exercise, or spending time with loved ones. 3. Maintaining a Journal: I use a journal to capture ideas, reflect on challenges, and track my progress. 4. Seek Inspiration: Exposing self to new ideas through art, music, nature, or conversations with others outside my field.

Descanso e reflex?o s?o importantes para restaurar a criatividade. Quando estamos bloqueados, dar um tempo para descansar e permitir que a mente vagueie pode ser benéfico. Isso n?o significa ficar ocioso, mas dar espa?o para a mente fazer novas conex?es. Medita??o, passeios na natureza ou dias desconectados do trabalho podem levar a revela??es criativas. O descanso é essencial para estimular a criatividade.

Taking a break is the best way to get unstuck. The optimal creative state is when you are in "Flow". This is defined as when you feel and perform at your best (Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi) Flow has a defined cycle and this includes feeling struggle (the typical creative block). When this happens, you need to enter the "release" phase where you give up on forcing for ideas and do something else. My favourite way to get unblocked is to take a walk. Just try to clear your head as you go (no thinking!). When you get back to your desk you will often find that inspiration has come back with you.

Dialogical practice is an approach that involves active dialogue and the exchange of ideas between people. It can be applied in different ways to rest and reflect. The important thing is to create moments to connect with others and with yourself, promoting rest and reflection.

Creativity needs frequent empty slots in our calendar but also empty slots in our brain. While we might get very creative in very odd situations, both Strategy and Innovation need to be planned and nurtured. Leaving creativity to randomness can result in little to no outcome.

Sometimes our creative process is blocked because we are unable to do what our competitors are doing. Our mind goes back to their processes to only feel frustrated about us not being able to follow them. I would advise my clients to have a few team brainstorming sessions right from the newest youngest on the team to the most experienced. 1) Not the ideas shared and gathered 2) Conversations with the team will stimulate your own thinking to come up with bold- out of the box solutions that work for you. Not every problem can be solved alone.

Invite your leadership team to a creative exercise to come up with 100 ideas within a short period of time. Allow them to remove themselves entirely from the question at hand and give them the space to come up with their most creative and wild ideas without any expectations of execution and right or wrong. Remember, in order to get to brilliant ideas, we first need to capture the obvious, boring, wild, and beyond to land on something great.

When leadership faces a creative block, encouraging bold experimentation is key. This involves taking calculated risks and embracing the possibility of failure as a step towards innovation. Promote a culture where your team feels safe to try new approaches, prototype ideas, and learn from the outcomes, regardless of success. This approach fosters a resilient and innovative team environment and helps move beyond creative stagnation by valuing progress and lessons learned over immediate perfection.

When you feel you/your team are facing a creative block, take action! Taking actions can move you past the creative block and allow for reflection and learning to happen. The first step to seeing change is to take that first step.

Angewandte Improvisation ist ein besonders effektives Mittel, um die Kreativit?t zu steigern. Durch die Natur der Improvisation werden Teilnehmer ermutigt, spontane Ideen zu entwickeln und diese sofort auszuprobieren. Dies geschieht in einer Umgebung, die Freiheit und Experimentieren unterstützt, wobei Fehler als Lernerfolge und nicht als Misserfolge angesehen werden. Diese Methode kann helfen, mentale Barrieren zu durchbrechen und das kreative Denken zu f?rdern. Dabei kommen Aspekte der Improvisation wie beispielsweise das "Ja, genau!" zum Tragen. "Ja, genau!" ist eine Technik, bei der Sie Ideen akzeptieren und darauf aufbauen, statt sie zu blockieren. Dies schafft eine positive Atmosph?re, in der Kreativit?t gedeihen kann.

Getting a perfect start as we hit any roadblock could be a sweet mix of “awareness of the current context” and “imagination around emerging possibilities”. While awareness has to be as objective as possible, imagination is first ideating around all possible options and then dialling up for the best possibilities. Here, we must display creative and hence divergent thinking first as we imagine all options and then a convergent thinking as we close on to the best option.

Stay curious and flex your imagination. How can different insights and wisdom be used in new ways? Where can you find overlap? Think interdisciplinary and remain open to different insights.

Curiousity has often led to the most creativity in my experience. I haven't always been naturally curious, and I have to work at it - and it always yields amazing results. One of the things I love in my work is challenging clients assumptions. When a client says, I'll get to that in 3 years and I ask, what is in the way of starting tomorrow, they often cite all the excuses, and when we question those, we are slowing breaking down the walls to creativity. All the sudden, there are new ideas showing up, new ways of thinking that give them a different result, much sooner. So when you hear yourself in that black and white thinking, pause and ask yourself some questions. You might be surprised at the answers - and the creativity!

Cuando siento que mi liderazgo se enfrenta a un bloqueo creativo, ha llegado el mejor momento, porque es cuando se que voy a romper barreras y mejorar; Te invito a mantener la curiosidad como prioridad. Fomenta tu sentido de asombro y exploración constante, hazte preguntas, profundizando en nuevos temas y desafiando suposiciones. Esta mentalidad curiosa convierte los bloqueos creativos en desafíos emocionantes que abordo con entusiasmo y persistencia. #LiderazgoCreativo #Curiosidad #InnovaciónEmpresarial #DesafíosCreativos #Persistencia #ExploraciónConstante #SuperaciónDeBloqueos

In my experience, fostering curiosity is not just about personal growth, but it's a strategic leadership tool. Leaders who remain curious are better equipped to navigate the complexities of today's business world and drive innovation. By embracing curiosity, leaders can dismantle creative blocks by approaching them with humility and humor, turning challenges into opportunities for growth and learning. This approach has served me well throughout my career, both as a CEO and as an executive coach. STAY CURIOUS MY FRIENDS!!!

Exploring different physical spaces to gain new perspectives is a great strategy. Additionally, considering what someone you admire would do can help you tap into alternative approaches and insights, inspiring creative solutions.

When faced with a creative block I have used the "Six Thinking Hats" framework to change my team's approach to problem-solving. The tool is designed to create an environment and process where problems are looked at from different perspectives and overcome groupthink. Roles and "hats" are assigned to support different thinking perspectives and directions: White - Facts & Information Yellow - Positive Black - Negative Red - Feelings and emotions Blue - Big ideas and perspectives Green - New ideas I've found this approach helpful to get the team to look at problems in a broader, less biased way.

De los trabajos más maravillosos que he hecho como coach es contribuir para que los líderes aprendan a confiar y delegar en las personas, que luego se conforman en equipos. Este aprendizaje contribuye a 3 cosas principalmente: 1.- Elevar la confianza del equipo. 2.- Al líder le permite ganar tiempo para hacer cosas más estratégicas. 3.- Al desarrollo personal de todos los involucrados.

Identifica algún tipo de Autosabotaje Formas de autoenga?o, para las cuales tenemos justificaciones, que nos impiden avanzar. Ejemplos: Anticipar malos resultados antes de emprender la acción Aplazar las decisiones o pasos importantes Inventar excusas con argumentos que nos protegen de las consecuencias de afrontar algo difícil Buscar satisfacción inmediata con las peque?as tentaciones, permisos, que nos llevan por el camino fácil Permitir que mis creencias me lleven a hacer lo contario al comportamiento esperado para evitar consecuencias “negativas” Incrementar la queja sin emprender la acción Usar distractores,que sé, me desenfocan de mi meta Dejar las cosas a medio camino Alto Perfeccionismo Justificar lo que ocurre o la inacción

Beyond the immediate strategies, it's crucial to balance intuition with analysis. While data and feedback are critical, trusting my gut feeling often leads to the most genuine and impactful creative decisions. Additionally, maintaining a supportive network that encourages creative risk-taking can provide the safety net needed to explore new ideas freely.