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Wednesday, June 03, 2009

WHAT MAY/MIGHT BE or IS CREATIVE THINKING?

For me it is simply creating, generating, discovering, using ideas that are from new just to me or perhaps new to my occupation or profession, new to my town, city, state, country or even the world.

or it is the combining of existing to ancient ideas in new ways or combinations to solve problems in new ways.

If you ask this question of 1,000 people on twitter you may receive 1,000 slightly to vastly different answers.

That is still okay.

Each is their answer, their creative answer.

Creative thinking can create problems
Creative thinking can create chaos
usually
Creative thinking produces new ideas that will lead to new solutions.

Yet too many people resist to protest creative thinking.

Do you?

Why?

as Dr. Phil says: "What's that doing for you?" or "How's that working for you?"


Choose to think more creatively today.

Choose to think creatively more today.


Best wishes,

Alan
alan@cre8ng.com
http://www.cre8ng.com
WHO CAN THINK MORE CREATIVELY?

Everyone

you
your spouse
your children
your neighbors
your friends
your relatives
your fellow employees
your supervisors, managers, bosses
your fellow students

strangers you meet

everyone of the 6+ billion people on the earth.

Why aren't you?

Why aren't we?

Why aren't they?

My hope for you that these annoying, in-your-face, questions spark you to deliberately choose to think creatively each day, more each day.

Best wishes,

Alan
alan@cre8ng.com
http://www.cre8ng.com
WHERE TO THINK CREATIVELY?

At home
at school
at work
on the street

these are simple places where you THINK CREATIVELY.

The question is do you?

Does your teacher,
do your parents,
does your supervisor, manager, boss
do your friends

actually encourage you to THINK CREATIVELY?

Do you encourage your spouse, children,friends, employees, total strangers to be creative?

Each day consider WHERE ELSE MAY/MIGHT I THINK CREATIVELY or MORE CREATIVELY.

Perhaps carry a reminder card that simply says


THINK CREATIVELY MORE TODAY!


or


HOW MIGHT I THINK CREATIVELY RIGHT NOW?


Best wishes,


Alan
alan@cre8ng.com
http://www.cre8ng.com
WHEN oughta/mighta/shoulda/coulda/woulda we think CREATIVELY?

How, Why.....now When?

In the morning
In the afternoon
In the evening
Late at night

at home
at work
at school
on the way to work or school

with family
with friends
with fellow workers
with clients
with strangers

The more often we take 10 to 15 minutes to think creatively before doing something the more creative we will become.

Every skill needs to be practiced, developed, enhanced.

Deliberately choose each day to think creatively.

At the end of each week spend 30 to 60 minutes reviewing when, how, where, when, why, with who/whom you were creative.

Then list how did you gain from being creative throughout the week.

Do not take your creativity, creativeness, creative traits, your creative thinking skills for granted.


Deliberately, purposely, consciously think creatively each day.


Alan
alan@cre8ng.com
http://www.cre8ng.com
HOW OFTEN SHOULD WE THINK CREATIVELY?


Every day
for at least 10 to 20 minutes.


On every challenge, problem or project we work on.

With each person we work with, love, meet.

To improve your abilities to think creatively you can approach every aspect of your life with this question or statement:

How may/might I do "X" more creatively?

Then do it.

From when you wake up in the morning to when you lay down to sleep for the night.

Periodically ask yourself that simple question:

How may/might I do "X" more creatively?

Then use one of the ideas you think of or discover.


The famous 3M corporation is known for its 15% Rule that was started in the 1940s by their CEO Terry McNight. Any employee may spend up to 15% of their week's work time working on a new potential project / product or to improve an existing one. One requirement is that they complete their assignment work in the other 85% of their work week. Though not all employees uniformly do this many do. It has become part of their highly Innovative Company's culture over the past nearly 70 years.

Make it part of your culture, your life, your workplace, your family.

Simply ask yourself throughout the day HOW may / might I do "X" more creatively.

Then as NIKE says so strongly JUST DO IT!
WHY THINK CREATIVELY?

The first of the classic 6 questions I asked was How?


The second is WHY?


Why would any of us on this planet want to, need to, desire to think creatively?

We have problems.
We have challenges.
We have goals.
We have dreams.
We have needs.
We have desires.

Using only old, tried, conventional thinking rarely can get us out of the holes or problems we are in.

Einstein is given credit for saying

"We can not solve our problems using the thinking that created them."

In some cases using someone else's thinking, "Best Practices" or systems may temporarily solve or appear to eliminate or stop a current problem of ours.

Seldom are the results lasting.

Why is this true?

Generally because "OUR" problem was not exactly like the problem that they person/company/profession solved.

Our situations, the variables were different. We didn't have the same resources, same clients, same real challenges, they typically only looked the same.

We need ideas. Hundreds to thousands to perhaps millions to solve the many problems we need or have to solve in our lives let alone around the globe.

Set a goal each day to spend 10 minutes thinking creatively about each challenge you have. Give yourself the benefit of those 10 minutes before you do what you would normally do.

Make it a habit daily!

Soon you will see changes happen.

Alan
alan@cre8ng.com
http://www.cre8ng.com
HOW TO THINK CREATIVELY?

News writers, thinkers, problem solvers all use the classic 6 questions:

WHO?
WHAT?
WHEN?
WHERE?
WHY?
HOW?

Do you?

Let's start with HOW? in this message.

HOW are you creatively thinking in your personal and work life?

How are you using creativity or your creativeness, your creative thinking traits in your life?

How are you supporting, promoting, recognizing/rewarding, encouraging/educating, applying, developing your creative thinking and your growing thinking skills and traits?

How are you supporting, promoting, recognizing/rewarding, encouraging/educating, applying, developing creative thinking and the growing thinking skills and traits in other people around you at work or at home?

My hope is that these annoying questions, perhaps personally affronting or challenging questions spark at least short lists of ways you are doing these things.

How will you today?

How will you tomorrow?

How will you next week, month, year?

Conscious efforts will increase, strengthen, broaden and enhance your existing creative thinking traits, skills and the tools you learn.

Alan
alan@cre8ng.com
http://www.cre8ng.com