“When I became floor manager I had to facilitate our team meetings. It worked out well… until it didn’t anymore. My team needed new ways to think and I wasn’t able to provide it. During the creativity workshop I realized we were lacking cooperation in our meetings. I stopped giving everyone 1 piece of white paper, but instead we all write on the same big poster when brainstorming. You can see each other’s ideas and build on them. I didn’t know it was that easy.” –  attendee ‘Boost your Creativity’

Whether you are looking for a catchy brand name, you are hiring your first team member or figuring out what to have for dinner today: your employer or the voice inside your head tells you to come up with something new. Think creatively!

If you look up some brainstorming methods, you can easily find 10 different approaches to explain the steps of the creative process. A number of steps vary between 3 and 10. Some of them start with Inspiration, others with Research, and a ton of them with ‘Get an idea!’ There are blogs that focus on the creation process, others focus on generating ideas. Authors tell us to activate our brain in a different way by relaxing, channelling emotion, having a conversation… There’s so much out there to help you on the buffet of creativity that is the internet, that you almost feel guilty you can’t find the thing that works magic for you.

So what could laughter and play really do for your work? How come you always go from cool idea to unexciting execution? How many possibilities do you really have to freestyle in your workplace? Is the secret really in beanbags and post-it-wars? 

During the past 12 years, I’ve had the opportunity to intensively study child play and art. I’m not an artist, mom or a kindergarten teacher. I was genuinely intrigued by what children and artists have in common. As a youth worker, I saw how young people lose their creativity during puberty when they are forced in a system that knocks the creativity out of you by forcing you to reproduce fixed knowledge. As a cultural worker, I was fascinated by how art manages to break through conventions and presumptions. The common ground here is the ability to look at things differently.

Being creative doesn’t mean having a constant flow of enlightenment. It’s state of mind and you can channel it through very small actions in your everyday workday. Try giving one of your co-workers the role of “critic” or “optimist” during your next meeting. Or check one of your ideas with someone who is unacquainted with your work and ask for their advice. You will find yourself talking about your vision instead of focusing on the technical details over and over again.

Author

Lieve D’haese has been working as a coach, trainer and organisational leader for over 6 years in Belgium. She has coached over 50 different organisations on subjects as creativity, art, youth work, educational programs and cooperation.