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Are you looking for ways to improve your creative writing, drawing, musical composition, or analytical problem-solving skills?
Creativity is the capacity to create or somehow bring into existence anything novel, be it a novel approach to a problem, a novel tool or technique, or a novel work of art.
Creativity is often seen as an innate talent, an ability reserved for artists. But like most things, we believe creativity is a skill that can be learned, practised and nurtured. Imaginative thinking, original ideas and innovation are all incredibly useful skills for any of us to possess. While we think of certain creative people as the great writers, artists, and musicians of the world, there is far more to it than that, and creativity comes in so many different forms.
A lot of the world's best scientists, businesspeople, and sports stars can attribute at least some of their success to creativity. It can form a part of divergent thinking and problem solving, too, useful in every walk of life.
How to boost creativity? How to boost creative thought?
In this guide, we explore 6 different techniques that can help you or your student boost creativity. We hope you take away some practical tips and apply some of these techniques to your creative projects.
1. Reconceptualise The Problem
Einstein once said, “If I had an hour to solve a problem I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions.” Einstein knew a thing or two about solving problems.
Researchers have found that creative people exhibit this discovery-orientated behaviour, and reconceptualise the problem before starting a creative task. Often, this is about changing the way you think about things and which proverbial angle you are going to approach the problem from.
When starting an art project for example, instead of thinking “I need to create a beautiful art piece to impress the class”, try re-visualising the problem from other angles first. Instead of thinking "I need to make an amazing new product" think of the problems people are struggling with, and what some potential solutions could look like.
Who is my audience? What inspires them? What feelings do I want to evoke? Try it yourself; you may end up with a more creative idea. This exercise is useful for a variety of different creative tasks, from statistical analysis, web design, musical composition to sculpture or creative writing.
2. Take Inspiration From Art
Depending on what you are looking to create, it can help to draw inspiration from other pieces of art. If there is a particular song, movie, poem or book that has caught your interest in the past, then you can use the thoughts that this had stimulated in your mind to create. You can use this energy to help you with your next creation.
Sometimes, stepping away from a problem, and practicing effective listening to others can be a way to ensure that you are absorbing creativity and knowledge.
Remember that you have complete freedom with your work. So if you are working on a creative writing piece for English class then you can of course draw on some ideas that you had when listening to your favourite jazz album or a painting that you saw in a shop window.
In fact, the more art that you consume the more inspired you will likely be to create something of your own. This can be a great motivation if you are a student looking to write your own poetry or work on your performance in music class.
When looking at how you can increase creativity, reading is one method that is especially important. If you practice reading regularly and manage to integrate it into your schedule around school it will open your mind to whatever topic you decide to delve into.
Reading gives you a glimpse into the minds of those who are creative, making it the quickest approach to understanding how others think creatively and adapt their methods. It is also advantageous for a variety of other reasons as well, not the least of which is the development of patience and sustained concentration, two essential qualities for any creative work.
You should read endlessly and voraciously to learn from the finest thinkers and creatives of our time first-hand. Even if you have suffered in education and not got the right grades for your ambitions (yet), one of the best methods can be taking inspiration from what others are doing. Other media can also be channelled in this way so be sure not to limit yourself in what you consumed for inspiration.
3. Counterfactual Thinking
What may have been thinking is known as counterfactual thinking. and it has been demonstrated that doing this improves short-term creativity. This method really helps to get your creative juices flowing, therefore I find it to be especially helpful as a creative writing or even reflection practice.
The Big Bang Theory provided a humorous illustration of this when one character quipped, "In a world where rhinoceroses are domesticated pets, who wins the Second World War?"
Try this method for yourself by recalling an earlier occasion and picturing a different conclusion. You can use a "subtractive mindset" by removing details from the event and considering how that affects the result, or you can use an "additive mindset" by including elements in the event.
When tackling creative problems, this method can be used to add or remove "what if" scenarios and consider how this can affect the result. It can be a difficult concept to get your head around, but it can certainly boost your creativity. The following video can help you to understand what this method of thinking really means:
4. Try Exercising or Walking Daily
One of the most effective methods for stimulating creativity is walking. Bipedalism, the ability to stand erect on two feet, has given human hands and minds the freedom to create in ways that no other species can.
Additionally, research supports the idea that active minds are more creative than inactive ones. Numerous studies have backed this up, and we know from anecdotal evidence that exercise can help us. When we go out for a walk, some of our best ideas come to us. We should thus incorporate this into our morning routine, isn't that reasonable?
Besides the health benefits, just a short morning stroll will go a long way to boosting your mood, and sharpness and even in stimulating some interesting ideas in your mind. Since maintaining a creative mindset is often fatiguing, being in the good physical condition is also important and can help you to avoid fatigue.
If you look at the daily routine of any successful entrepreneur, they will likely rise during the early hours of the morning and the first thing that they will do is go for a walk, run or participate in some sort of exercise. So if you are looking for ways that you can boost your creativity, this is certainly a great place to start!
5. Create Psychological Distance
Do you find that it always seems easier to solve someone else’s problem, than it is to tackle your own? It turns out that there’s an explanation for that. Research shows physiological distance occurs when you experience something as not happening here, now, to yourself.
In other words, the further away a problem seems, the easier it is to solve. This psychological distance makes the problem less concrete, and more abstract to you. This distance makes it easier for you to form “unusual connections” and free yourself from assumed limitations. You can create psychological distance by changing your perspective, and looking at the problem from another person’s perspective.
Another study on the subject discovered that participants produced more original ideas when they believed their work will be used by someone else in the future. In one experiment, participants were informed that someone else would use their drawings to develop a tale.
Consequently, compared to those who weren't informed, the participants produced considerably more "creative" drawings. Try thinking about how someone else might enjoy using or repurposing your creation while beginning a creative project!
The following, "Lessons from a Faraway land: The effect of spatial distance on creative cognition" is a great read if you wish to fully understand the concept of distance and how it can help.
6. Taking a Step Back
Being creative is extremely taxing on the mind, you will likely have heard of the term ‘writer's block’. The term describes the mental fatigue or lack of creative ability amongst writers who often lose momentum and inspiration for their work.
In order to sustain periods of creativity or inspire creative thinking you will often have to ensure your brain is well-rested. In order for your mind to fire on all cylinders and let the creative juices flow you will sometimes need to take a step back in order to recharge.
There will be moments when you hit a wall and can’t seem to make any more progress on a creative endeavour. You might even feel that you have reached a dead end with your work. It is preferable to take a step back and use the snooze button in these circumstances, you can’t rush creativity.
In reality, several of the greatest artists, thinkers, writers and scientists have linked their achievements to their dreams. This startling insight often referred to as the Illumination Stage, might result from working hard on an issue and then taking a breather.
You can see that stepping back and getting rest, can also give you some inspiration for your work. There are countless tips and studies out there, these are just a few that we found useful. If you are in the process of one-to-one tuition, as either a student or as a tutor, it can be a really good idea to spend time thinking about creativity and how it can play a big part in your learning.
Please share your own practical tips to boost creativity, in the comments below! We’d love to hear from you.
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