A good way to develop your creative thinking is to ask "what is the concept behind that idea/approach" and then see how you could do it.

I couldn't help think about the thinking or concept behind the name of Microsoft's search engine 'Bing'

Bing is a Short Sharp 'Ping' sound of only one sylable which is the antithesis of Google - which has long 'ooo' sound, rich and two sylables

Say them out loud - you couldn't get more different sounds.

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Saw this quote in "A Thousand Paths to creativity" by David Baird

"If necessity is the mother of invention, its opposite is the father of creativity"

And made me think - what does spur creativity?

Is it the need for seeing things in a different way?

Desire to do more, to do differently?

Is it sparked by seeing something out of the ordinary and your brain searching for more ideas?

What do you think?

Today is the day to switch on your creativity – whatever day it is.  Here are a few tips to harness it on a daily basis.

Monday – Work the plan – Plan out your week and set time to think about key issues. Short, sharp thinking sessions of 30 minutes will create breakthroughs. Read more

Here is an interesting test - 54 questions on your thinking preference.According to the Art Institute of Vancouver...

"Being creative or artistic doesn’t mean you know how to draw or play an instrument. Being creative is a way of thinking, a way of viewing the world.

Creative people use the RIGHT side of their brains more than the LEFT. Take the test and find out if your brain is RIGHT for a creative career."

Take the test

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Are you about to go through the pile of christmas cards in your lounge room/office - pulling them down off the mantlepeice or off the ventian blinds?

Do you have any that are so cool you just want to keep them?

Why would you keep them? because they are creative? memorable? different?

Now think "how can I apply this concept to next year's card, birthday cards, my resume, marketing proposal?"

Here is a christmas card I will keep because of it's creativity and memorability. Read more

Many practitioners in the creativity field believe individuals can develop skills that open them up to thinking more creatively.  Edward de Bono is one of the more well recognised of these, but the teaching of creative thinking goes back much further to people like Alex Osborn (Brainstorming), Sid Parnes, Paul Torrance and many others.  Read more

In recent days I have been following a fascinating discussion between colleagues in the creativity and innovation field around whether or not being creative is a skill that can be learnt and developed, and how long it takes to become a proficient creative thinker.  As you might imagine, there were many viewpoints that followed different paths.  Read more

How much time to you spend on the road? At airports? On planes? How can you best utilise the time to be more innovative?

There are some real opportunities while sitting on a plane. Take it from me — this month I travelled to Abu Dhabi, Dubai, South Africa, Bahrain and am currently in New Zealand running workshops. This non-stop travel has brought to mind some great ways to make use of all that transit time:

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Feeling the effects of the recent global financial crisis? Want to find a cave and hide until things get back to normal? It is natural to want to revert back to the safe, tried and true methods in times of crises.  Cut down on expenses, consolidate your portfolio, put off projects, ride out the storm. Read more

You are standing there, watching the sea of black suitcases go around the luggage belt. Then suddenly you spot it.

Tied in a multitude of knots, around the handle, is THE yellow ribbon, signifying ‘my suitcase’. You instantly pick it up, knowing that you have the right bag.

Often it is just the way it is tied or located. It could be the type of ribbon or, in my case, one of my husband’s neckties, ceremoniously cut up. It is amazing how one little point of difference can stand out and instantly help you claim your luggage.

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Creativity really is simple as 1,2,3 (and 4,5,6). It is a common misperception that you have to be born creative or a real maverick in order to think creatively.  Creativity is a process and rule followers are generally more successful in creativity sessions.
 

Marketing guru, Alex Osborn, who coined the term ‘Brainstorming’, and Dr Sid Parnes, developed THE creative problem solving model.

6 Steps/Stages to cre8ive problem solving

Stage 1: Objective Finding (or Mess Finding): Sensitise yourself for issues that need to be tackled.

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In tough economic times, should you innovate?  Yes!! was the unanimous message from the speakers at the Australian innovation conference, InnoFuture 2008.

Key messages from Day 1 Read more

Highlights from the Boston Consulting Group’s report “ Innovation 2008: Is the Tide Turning” which was produced in conjunction with “Measuring Innovation 2008: Squandered Opportunities” – See other blog post

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Click on attachment below to download the full report.

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Here are some key points from the report that I think are relevant for innovation practitioners

“If you plan on remaining a going concern, you need to be able to successfully innovate”

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Here are a few highlights from the Boston Consulting Group’s report “Measuring Innovation 2008” which was produced in conjunction with Innovation 2008: Is the Tide Turning – See other blog post Click on attachment below to download the full report.

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Robert F. Eberle was an educational administrator in Edwardsville, IL. He wrote about creativity for

children and teachers. His most famous creative thinking resource book for creativity instructors is

SCAMPER, which is still widely used and available.

A Leader at CPSI for over 30 years Bob was influential in the integration of creativity principles to Read more

In one of my recent Masters classes, one of my students presented some information on Swarm Creativity, which I had not previously heard of by that name.  While the class worked on a team projects I was able to power browse the book, and later did a bit of research on the web.

The book Swarm Creativity: Competitive Advantage through Collaborative Innovation Networks by Peter A. Gloor is an interesting look at group creativity.  A quick Google search takes you to www.swarmcreativity.net which opens with the following: Read more

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Welcome to the Creative Thinking Group Read more

There has been a major evolution in human thought. Linear thinking developed into lateral thinking. Now we have Radiant Thinking. Intelligence has realized that it can understand, analyse and nurture itself, developing new ways of thinking and creating that are far more flexible and powerful than the traditional modes of thought. Tony Buzan explains Radiant Thinking in relation to your brain, communication and creativity with activities to expand your own thinking skills. 1 x CD

by Edward De Bono

62 Exercises to Develop Your Mind

Try this...

Choose two random words from the following:
Cork - Politician - Menu - Power
The aim is to find a connection between your chosen words and the word ''doctrine''. Remember, there may be an intermediate item that connects the two.