“Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.”
Steve Jobs, Apple Computer
You might be wondering what creativity has to do with productivity. As professional managers, bankers, lawyers and other traditionally “non-creative” types, we might lull ourselves into believing that creativity is the dominion of those wacky marketing folks down the hall. But as information becomes increasingly commoditized through easy 24/7 web-access, the clear competitive advantage becomes not what we know but our ability to put data and ideas together to solve problems or drive innovation.
Creative Thinkers Soar
As author Daniel Pink claimed in a New York Times story about the new creative economy, in which even old-school corporations like GM increasingly value imaginative “right-brain” thinkers, the Master of Fine Arts degree is the new MBA.
According to the research of Micael Dahlén, a professor at Stockholm School of Economics, a company’s success in terms of sales, market share, profitability and customer satisfaction can be correlated to two primary areas: creativity in marketing and creativity in product development. Everything else is secondary to creativity. All the elements we typically focus on, efficient operating systems, financing and supply-chain management, are not going to make a difference if you don’t get the creative part of the equation right first.
Building Creative Panache
Coming up with smart solutions fast or new ideas efficiently is becoming a requirement for us all. And that means keeping our creative “right-brain” muscles in shape so they’re at the ready when we need them most. Here are some simple “steps” you can use to boost your creative style:
Step Up: Letting yourself off the hook by saying you’re not creative is a rookie mistake that becomes the ultimate self-fulfilling prophecy. Everyone has the potential to tap into their creativity. You just need to start by stepping up to the challenge. The more often you demand yourself to be creative, the easier it will become for you.
Step Away: Ideas are delicate and creativity is easily spoiled by stress. Sitting at your computer coercing ideas to make a command performance just doesn’t work. When you’re stuck, try stepping away from the problem by engaging in a physical task that requires only part of your mind’s attention. This is an easy way to trick yourself into shifting the focus away from the problem so ideas can flow more naturally.
Step Out: Change your location. Step out of the office. Change the meeting venue. Or just have everyone sit facing the back of the room. You’ll see that a change of scenery can help create new connections in your mind that will take you in new creative directions.
Step Into: Consider how a similar problem is solved in other worlds. Step into the world of soap operas, religion or nature and explore whether there are any lessons you can borrow from these other worlds that might open up different possibilities.
Under pressure to perform at our best, we challenge ourselves to find new ways to work smarter and increase productivity. Our aim is to set ourselves apart from our peers. So why make the mistake of assuming creativity is a fad that will quickly go out of fashion? As experts increasingly assert creativity as the new black, with a little training you’ll be able to add creative flare to dress up your business profile in style.
Franca Miraglia is a senior PR professional who provides media interview, storytelling, presentation and creativity training. With over 25 years of experience, Franca has worked with hundreds of executives, Olympic athletes, recording artists and television personalities.
If you’re interested in learning more about how to stretch your team’s creative muscles please contact us at [email protected].
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