New Insights into Creative Thinking Strategies

According to the majority of people, creativity is a kind of an inborn trait which is or isn't possessed by a person. Definitely, there is a grain of truth in that, as some individuals are more prone to creative thinking as compared to others, but it is far away from being that obvious. The thing is that creativity shares much with the human muscle system that needs to be developed and trained regularly. The idea of creativity has been in the spotlight of many researchers. Though, it is better to dwell on the most applicable techniques that can help you unchain your creative thinking.

Restricting

According to some studies, it is a good idea to pose some restrictions on yourself in order to enhance creativity, since you will have to work out of comfort zones. In such a way, an individual who tries to restrict the workflow will experience a flow of creative ideas in brain as to how they should finalize the project within set parameters.

Coming Up with a New Concept of a Problem

Another observation of researchers is that creative people are inclined to change the concept of a problem they have to tackle. Thus, they develop a new vision over it before beginning to work by examining it at different angles, rather than using a set approach.

Separation of Work and Consumption

This approach allows to effectively combine work-related activities with creative thinking. Basically, people are in two different states of mind as they absorb an activity (when you just familiarize yourself with the problem), and when you create something new. To put it simply, it is useful to switch off the working process and enjoy the consumption of information through observation or reading.

Using the Rule of "Three Ifs"

Good innovators tend to use an existing object but apply a different perspective over it in order to see it differently. To tell the truth, there is no such a thing as a universal recipe for any innovation, innovators develop brand new concepts starting out from their interests, specialties or types of thinking. There are three ifs each one should consider when developing a new idea.

• What would happen if I change the concept of a certain object or idea?
• How would change if I wanted to exploit it in the 10-year time?
• What would I do with it if there were 1 million dollars of investment in it?

With the help of these questions, you will tap the potential of the thing you consider. You can also come up with your own set of questions regarding the things or ideas you analyze as long as they enable to discover their potential.

Dreaming

Creative thinking is not the result of your IQ, it is a fruit of a well-trained imagination, which requires regular practice combined with dreaming and observation. Due to information overload as well as hectic lifestyle, we often lack this element. People tend to be overly concentrated on the major activity in the pipeline as they spend all their mental potential on the routine activities, including SMS or Twitter. In the course of the day, we waste our creativity potential on these minor activities without actually completing anything in a creative manner. No matter what you are doing, either it is work or hobby you should try the rule of "three ifs".

Learning Content out of the Typical Field

Despite the fact that people tend to enjoy reading those materials that relate to their spheres of specialization, this does not help to enhance the level of their creativity. However, this can actually boost your motivation and inspiration. In order to build on your creativity, you should try dealing with the information that is not related to your typical comfort zone. For that matter, you can read some blogs that are not devoted to the issues of your industry or read those books that are different from the typical genre.

Brainstorming

When exercising this activity, you should consider joining efforts with another person. You can hold a brainstorming session lasting from 45 to 60 minutes. To make it more efficient you should not criticize each other, the use of technological gadgets is also unnecessary. So, you simply need to raise a certain topic and discuss it from different perspectives. Here, you should note every idea that pops up during discussion without criticizing it. It is vital to avoid any feedbacks on these ideas in the process. Even though you may have lots of terrible ideas on your list after brainstorming, you will definitely find a few bright ones out of all.

Changing Eating Habits

With plenty of research on how eating habits influence our way of thinking, you should consider trying different foods and you will notice how the level of your creativity increased after you started eating healthier foods.

Using a Cohesive Approach to Creative Thinking

It is indicated in every book on creativity that one should allocate a set period of time for developing new ideas. However, people might just feel unready for that, and they would fail to generate any new ideas. There are two reasons behind such state of mind, namely a lack of dreaming and a lack of concentration on a cohesive idea. So, the rule is to allocate time for thinking about a certain thing, no matter whether it is one hour during the day or during the week.

Writing an Article of 500 Words on No Specific Topic

This may be a fascinating exercise if you cannot concentrate on something or generate any worthwhile ideas. Therefore, you can just open a new document and begin typing the text without anything particular in mind. There is no need to type any topics or headlines or criticize what you are writing. Instead, just type whatever comes to your mind. As likely as not, you will have some weird stuff after you finish, but this will definitely enhance you creative thinking.

Using these techniques in your daily activities will enable you to change the perspective over your routine and transform the working process into a game you will definitely enjoy. You can try dealing with anything in the pipeline and success won't be long in coming.