What is Creative Thinking Anyway?

Perhaps this should have been the subject of my first newsletter? Would that have been the product of a creative mind? Is creativity about being different? Is creativity born, or can it be bred? Can you learn to think creatively?

Previously?have used this argument, "creativity is like being cool; the more you try, the less coll you are." We've all met the person who tries too hard to be cool; it is the source of many a 15-year-olds parental embarrassment. I don't think one should ever try to be creative, but I believe you can learn to be more creative, and this short guide is designed to help you understand "being creative".

How People Think Creatively

Some people are naturally creative, while others need to be taught to think creatively. The moment that kid in the art class was described as "creative", and the school stared in wonder at their creation. The non-artists, the science kids, the maths kids, the kids bumped from school choir or not taking extra music, they were all damned to the non-creative pool, that's wrong. The good news: No matter what you're like when it comes to original thinking, you can improve your creativity and problem-solving skills by practising.

Defining Creativity

There are as many definitions of creativity as there are stars in the sky. Personally, I always go to "the ability to create something of value from nothing." I like this because it leads us to question "value" and the notion of nothing." In this 21st century, we are challenging the 20th-century version of value; value is losing, at last, its monetary attachments. Value in this 21st century is in the eye of the beholder; relationships, a sense of pleasure, peace or well being, certainly health. Value is about feeling, not profit. What constitutes nothing is really interesting; I think of "nothing soup", a mass of what has gone before, it used to be something, but now it is a collection of nothing. Its what is in the past, what we used to do or think, in the soup of our conscious. Making something out of nothing has a whole new meaning as we immerse ourselves in our sector of interest, knowing all we can and reading around the subject. Then we can create something new. From Popstars comes The Voice, from a world of Ray Harryhausen and Tolkien, comes Game of Thrones.?From The Empire State Building comes the Berj Kalifa. Even that blank sheet of paper now complete is a conglomeration of all that came before.

So creativity, at its core, has been described as a process that involves three elements

1. Convergent thinking—where people focus on solving a problem or completing a task.
2. Divergent thinking—the ability to consider and analyze lots of different options and perspectives.
3. Creative-thinking skills like divergent and convergent thinking. Creative-thinking skills enable an individual to combine ideas from disparate sources in unique ways.

How to Improve Your Creative Thinking Skills

One way to improve your creative thinking skills involves learning how to have more aha moments. An aha moment, also known as an epiphany, is a breakthrough thought or realization that comes out of nowhere but ends up being incredibly useful. It's what separates creative thinkers from practical thinkers—and it happens when you least expect it. The tricky part is getting yourself into a position where you can have one of these eureka moments.

My free ebook helps you find a space where those epiphany moments are more likely to come. You can download it here. You can read more in my free ebook https://www.thisdigitalspace.com/pl/2147542137 . The key is not to try!

Creative Thinking Techniques

Creativity can be sparked in many ways, but first, you need to learn how to create it. Many people don't realize they possess creativity, or it was damaged when you heard the art kid described as creative. They just think it's something other people have. But with proper training and some dedicated practice, anyone can find their creative side! Here are some tried-and-true methods for unleashing your inner artist.

1. Kids, work with young people, do some volunteering, take the kids in your family for a day. You will find your inner kid before the anti creativity of life damaged your creative self.
2. lego, not the kit building lego, but get together a bad of bricks and build something
3. play sims, build a house.
4. write a journal, don't start on a novel.
5. be interested, in stuff, read around the subject
6. watch one TV show a week you would never dream of watching, write down your thoughts about the show.
7. you know that thing in your pocket, yup, your phone. use the camera, tell a story with one still picture
8. talk with people, no, not on messaging apps but use your mouth.
9. travel to work in a different way, bite the bullet and try another coffee shop.
10. think, find a place, sit and think just for 10 minutes, don't walk, or read or reach for your phone, just think, eyes open, no coffee or pret sandwich. Walk into a church or mosque or synagogue, go to a gallery in a wood, a park, next to water, anywhere

When was the last time you ever did that, no need to chant or take up yoga? The no-cost freedom of sitting watching the world go by, the patterns in the water, the wind in the trees. That is the best value you will get from your time today.

If you enjoyed this, do consider subscribing to my youtube channel, it is the product of a creative mind made by dyslexia https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIj_GnbU1UNjsaplzdHeHHA

about me

Jonathan Glazier is a Visiting Lecturer at the University of Creative Arts

Television Executive and Multi-Camera Director

Public Speaker and Creative Coach

Content Creator of Digital Content and TV Formats.

for a full CV, visit https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/jonathanglazier/