Creativity

 

Vocabulary

gather	sense (3)	time immemorial
hunt	advance	agriculture
survive	come about	capability
harness	invention	driving force
prosper	compose	Sistine Chapel
gifted	broad (2)	extraordinary
narrow	space (2)	accomplish
recess	practical	immemorial
latent	potential	innovation
task	existence	responsibility
muscle	quarter	proportional
thrive	dynamic	obsolescence
doom	hold true	associate (2)
fate	flip-side	simply put
reward	destined	stream (2)
lift (2)	weights	strengthen
stuck	average	conversely
activate

 

Creativity

Creativity. What exactly is creativity? And more importantly, how can we harness it to better our work and lives?

When people think of creativity, they associate it with painting the Sistine Chapel or composing great works of music and writing classical literature — something that only a few, gifted genius and those with extraordinary talents can accomplish.

Improvement

While this certainly holds true, it’s too narrow a definition. In a broader sense (in practical, everyday terms), creativity simply means improvement.

Everything that you do that improves on or makes anything better is a creative act.

Progress

This goes far back in time. Since the beginning of our existence, humans have been moving forward, from hunter gatherers to agriculturalists to space travelers. Each advancement came about as a result of new ideas, discoveries, innovations and inventions.

And the driving force behind it all is the creative mind.

Good News

The good news is that creativity isn’t something you have to be born with: everyone has the potential to become very creative.

But for most of us, creativity is a latent force that lies deep down in the recesses of our intelligence.

It can, though, be activated and harnessed. You see, creativity is a skill . . . It’s like learning to use a computer or riding a bicycle; you can become more creative by learning how and practicing.

Practice

As with any skill, this happens when you place more challenges on your creative capability (it’s like lifting weights; the added resistance strengthens the muscles).

Simply put, the more you look for ways to improve things, on a day to day basis, the more creative you become.

Line of Sight

At work, every person has what is called a line of sight. In all organizations, the line of sight is what you see when you look around you: it’s the responsibilities and tasks you do, and what is going on around you.

And everybody can find ways to improve their line of sight, and to do something about it.

New Ideas and Business

In the business world, profitability and success is directly proportional to the quantity of good, new ideas that employees come up with on a day to day, week to week, quarter to quarter and yearly basis.

This is due to the dynamic nature of business, technology, society. Because of the rapid obsolescence of products and services, the more and better and faster the ideas that you can generate in your organization, the more likely you are going to survive and thrive and prosper in the years to come.

On the flipside, an organization what does not continually come up with new ideas is one that is doomed!

Human Capital

When we talk about organizations, this means organizations are simply people. And it is the people that determine the fate of an organization.

A person who comes up with a continuous stream of good ideas, or even average ideas is a person who is destined to great success and rewards.

Conversely, people who come up with no ideas or very few ideas are usually stuck where they are.

So look in your line of sight. What do you see around you that can be improved upon?

Questions

1. What do people normally associate with creativity? What is the writer’s definition of creativity?

2. Creativity goes back to Ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome. Yes or no?

3. Only a few genius and very talented individuals can be creative. True or false? Does everyone have the potential to be very creative?

4. Is it possible for anyone to become (more) creative? How can people increase their creativity?

5. Were analogies given? What analogies were given?

6. Creativity is vital in the business world. Is this correct or wrong?

7. Is there a difference between people and companies that always come up with many new ideas and those that do no?

 

A. Who is the most creative person you know from school, work or your community?

B. Has your school or organization changed a lot over the years? How has it changed?

C. What is your “line of sight”? How can you improve your line of sight?

D. Do you make a lot of suggestions, improvements, or innovations in your line of sight?

E. What changes or improvements would be very beneficial and profitable for you and your company?

F. How can you be more creative or innovative?

G. What will happen in the future?