"...thinking outside the box, wizardry, divergent thinking, free thinking, blue sky thinking, creative thinking..."
All of these terms refer to one thing, the ability to consider something in a new way. To look at a situation or problem from a new angle, to bring a new perspective to an issue and find a resolution.
I have spent my whole life as a creative thinker.
We all know the proverb "Necessity is the mother of invention", it simply means, that the primary driving force for most new inventions is a need. The other mantra that I live by is ‘if there is a will, there is a way”.
Knowing that you can make that change, resolve that issue or overcome a problem is empowering.
People often say to me ‘I don’t know how you do it…’ my answer is simple, because I have to, and because I can.
Employers across every industries want to employ people who can think creatively and bring new perspectives to the workplace, it’s a driving force for growth, innovation and originality.
What can I do to think more creatively?
It starts with a mindset. Can you think differently to those around you? Can you take a side step and come up with an alternative path? Can you see a pattern that isn’t the same as the one you have seen before?
One of the most important elements of being a creative thinker is to be able to take a risk, to give something a chance and to be prepared for it not to work.
If you try something different and it fails, you have lost nothing.
If you try something different and it works you have created something entirely new and you have provided an option where there wasn’t one.
The first step to being a creative thinker is simply to take a step out of your own headspace and free yourself from the boundaries of your daily routine.
If there is one thing the pandemic has taught us all, it is that nothing is impossible, creative thinking can change the world.