CREATIVE THINKING

A major obstacle to creative thinking is the fear of criticism, the fear of ridicule, scorn or rejection. We have been conditioned from infancy to seek and value the approval of others and if we feel a new idea will trigger laughter or cause us to feel foolish afterwards, we just keep our mouths shut.


It is useful to remember that ideas that originally sounded ridiculous often become the basis for major breakthroughs.


At the beginning of the space race to put a man on the moon, the major obstacle to be overcome was one of weight. The problem was that fuel is very heavy and if the rocket were to carry enough fuel to break the earth's gravity, travel to and land on the moon and then blast off again breaking the moon's gravity to return to earth, it would be too heavy to leave the earth in the first place. A real Catch-22.


The breakthrough idea was when one of the scientists suggested that perhaps the whole rocket need not be landed on the moon’s surface. This idea led to the development of the lunar module, and the landing on the moon by Neil Armstrong in 1969.


Challenge your assumptions continually. What are you assuming to be true or fixed that might not be true at all? We have been "conditioned" to accept many things as true, or not to ask questions, or not to delve too deeply into a situation.  Do not be afraid to ask questions.  Do not be afraid to investigate.


What can you change?


Be prepared to suggest ridiculous approaches to a need or obstacle. Be as silly as you can. This approach often triggers creative breakthroughs.


Two things can stimulate creative thinking: intensely desired goals and pressing needs. Your creative capacities need something to home in on and your job is to provide it.


Intensely desired goals, clearly defined with detailed plans for their accomplishment, act as a continual stimulus for ideas to achieve them.


To trigger your imagination, write out a clear description of your ideal end result or goal. Be clear about the goal, be flexible about the process. Think about it, visualize it as realized over and over. Project your mind forward to the picture of the realized goal and then look back to the present.


Think on paper. Make a plan and then work on the plan, updating it, changing it, adding to it as you think of new ways to work toward the goal. The more clearly defined and keenly desired your goals, the more of your natural creativity will be released for goal attainment.


The second stimulant to creativity is pressing needs. A need is commonly mis-identified as a "problem".  All problems are needs in disguise.  The key to idea generation when you face a need is to approach the need confidently, expectantly, with the attitude that there exists a logical, practical solution just waiting to be found. The most creative people have a relaxed attitude of confident expectancy that causes their minds to function in original and imaginative ways. Remember, need (necessity) is the mother of all invention.The solution for today's needs cannot be found with yesterday's thinking.


Define your needs clearly in writing. Accurate diagnosis is half the cure. Sometimes you will find that you are dealing with a "cluster need," one that is made up of several smaller need. Your job is to sort them out and then go to work on each one separately.


In many cluster need, there is a core issue surrounded by a lot of symptoms. Creative thinking requires that you separate the core issue and then focus on resolving that before worrying about the smaller needs.


Be absolutely clear about your goal. Write it down and make a plan to achieve it. Think of different ways you could accomplish it.


Define your needs clearly and then make a list of all the possible solutions to your need. Take action on at least one idea immediately.