Tapping Into Creativity at Work

Embrace Your Right-Brain

I don’t often think of “creativity” and “business” in the same sentence. Of course there are businesses in the creative sector, but I’m talking about jobs in which most people toil day to day. These folks are rewarded for analytical thinking, decisive actions and level-headedness. Too much creativity might get you marginalized.

But as an artist, business owner and corporate-world survivor, I think there’s a place for being creative in business. My feeling is that thinking creatively can unblock those stuck points. You know what I’m talking about - you have a presentation to give, a report to write and you’re drawing a blank. Here’s where you summon up that “right brain” stuff.

There has been much research on use of our left and right sides of the brain. The left is said to control logic and rational thinking; the right side, the intuitive, creative thinking. A physics professor might be said to be left-brained and an artist, right-brained. (Here's a fun, short test to see if you are right- or left-brained: Are You Right or Left Brained? FYI - I scored 35% left brain and 65% right brain.)

So if you’re a typical “Left-Brainer,” how do you unlock the right brain goods? Here’re a couple ideas:

    * Carry a small sketch pad or blank tablet and doodle or draw whenever you can. Who cares if stick figures are your forte? No one is grading your work.
    * Play music and clear your mind of those pressing deadlines.
    * Visit an art museum or put down those biz books and pick up a novel.
    * Borrow a kid. They have no trouble tapping into their creative sides.

I try to stay out of the biz book isle as a rule (sorry, but there’s too much repetition and useless stuff there for my taste). But a perusal of Amazon.com brought this one to my attention. I haven’t read it, but the reviews make it sound interesting:  Creativity in Business  by Michael Ray and Rochelle Myers.

So go forth and create. I bet your next status report to the boss will look a little different.

This is a guest post by Nancy LaFever. You can read more from her at the Centre for Emotional Wellbeing blog.

Comments

[Kristen King]

Great suggestions, Nancy. I've recently begun starting my days with three pages of longhand writing, which is jumpstarting my creativity and helping me to dive into work more effectively each morning.

[Talia]

I'm with Kristen on long hand writing to help with creativity and ideas. Also mind mapping can be great.

The other tip is to just do nothing. Sit quietly for a few minutes and let ideas come instead of trying to do the pros and cons and the SWOT analysis

[Amy]

Hmmm. I've done morning longhand pages before, and my hands can't keep up with my brain, which is more chaotic and a good deal scarier than reflected in the choices given in the quiz. (40% Left, 60% Right). I had a boss once though that, whenever we took on a new task would see how we did it the first time, and then say, "Okay, how can we do it differently to make it easier?" Best. Boss. Ever.

[Barb_Beth Guarnieri]

I really enjoyed reading this blog entry. The author had some good suggestions.
I'm Looking forward to more.
Thnx,
bg