12 tips to Improve your creative abilities

Research studies prove that "people who keep learning and stay mentally active increase their odds of retaining good brain function as they age. The more you use your brain, the stronger it gets — and the longer it stays strong."

Can we improve our creative abilities?

If we are aware of the importance of "creativity" then we can definately try to improve it. We as a teacher usually don't encourage creativity among children. We are used to a system which teach us to follow instruction and we judge the best students by estimating the level they follow the teachers. It is good that development in education system has made it possible to develop creative skills.

According to "Wikipedia":

"Creativity is a mental process involving the generation of new ideas or concepts, or new associations of the creative mind between existing ideas or concepts.

From a scientific point of view, the products of creative thought (sometimes referred to as divergent thought) are usually considered to have both originality and appropriateness. An alternative, more everyday conception of creativity is that it is simply the act of making something new."

Another definition says: "Creative thinking is the process we use to develop ideas that are unique, usefulm and worthy of further elaboration"

These tips are provided by the "University of Michigan College of Engineering" which is a global leader in engineering education and research.


"Tips to Improve Your Creative Abilities"

1- Keep track of your ideas at all times. Many times ideas come at unexpected times. If an idea is not written down within 24 hours it will usually be forgotten

2- Pose new questions to yourself every day. An inquiring mind is a creatively active one that enlarges its area of awareness.

3- Keep abreast of your field. Read the magazines, trade journals, and other literature in your field to make sure you are not using yesterday's technology to solve toady's problems.

4- Engage in creative hobbies. Hobbies can also help you relax. An active mind is necessary for creative growth.

5- Have courage and self-confidence. Be a paradigm pioneer. Assume that you can and will indeed solve the problem Persist and have the tenacity to overcome obstacles that block the solution pathway.

6- Learn to know and understand yourself. Deepen your self-knowledge by learning your real strengths, skills, weaknesses, dislike, biases, expectations, fears and prejudices.

7- Learn about things outside your specialty. Use cross-fertilization to bring ideas and concepts from one field or specialty to another.

8- Avoid rigid, set patterns of doing things. Overcome biases and preconceived notions by looking at the problem from a fresh view point, always developing at least two or more alternative solutions to your problem.

9- Be open and receptive to ideas (yours and others). New ideas are fragile; keep them from breaking by seizing on the tentative, half formed concepts and possibilities and developing them.

10- Be alert in your observations. Look for similarities, differences, as well as unique and distinguishing features in situations and problems.

11- Adopt a risk taking attitude. Fear of failure is the major impediment to generating solutions which are risky (i.e., small chance of succeeding) but would have a major impact if they are successful. Outlining the ways you could fail and how you would deal with these failures will reduce this obstacle to creativity.

12- Keep your sense of humor. You are more creative when you are relaxed. Humor aids in putting your problems (and yourself) in perspective. Many times it relieves tension and makes you more relaxed.


Source

More links:

- CREA Italia is a non-profit association dedicated to the development and promotion of creativity and Creative Problem Solving in Italy and in Europe, mainly in sectors such as education and business, but also for all those people looking for new and innovative personal development paths.

- THE AMERICAN CREATIVITY ASSOCIATION is a primary resource for learning and applying creativity, innovation, problem-solving, and ideation theory, tools, and techniques.

What they offer: They offer a global network of creative professionals in disciplines ranging from business and industry to education and the arts.

What is creativity and how to be creative?

Creativity is a skill which can be developed like other human abilities.
As a teacher I am appreciated for my creativity skills, but whenever I asked to do some creative work, I was not quite sure how to be innovative or more creative? So this article is first for myself and then for all who want to know what is creativity and how to develop this natural skill?

What is creativity?

According to a definition from California State University,Northridge
"Creativity is defined as the tendency to generate or recognize ideas, alternatives, or possibilities that may be useful in solving problems, communicating with others, and entertaining ourselves and others.

In order to be creative, you need to be able to view things in new ways or from a different perspective. Among other things, you need to be able to generate new possibilities or new alternatives. Tests of creativity measure not only the number of alternatives that people can generate but the uniqueness of those alternatives. the ability to generate alternatives or to see things uniquely does not occur by change; it is linked to other, more fundamental qualities of thinking, such as flexibility, tolerance of ambiguity or unpredictability, and the enjoyment of things heretofore unknown"

Enchanted Mind says:
"Creativity is an attitude that can be cultivated and expanded. Once you have learned how to maintain a creative attitude, you can apply it to anything you set your mind to. The way to develop a creative attitude is to stretch and stimulate the mind daily to keep it flexible and resilient. Expanding your brain and mind will accelerate your creative potential.

Science has proven that if you exercise the brain beyond your current limits, you create new neural pathways. Neurologically this is called "use dependent plasticity". In laymen's terms it means use it or lose it. If you attempt to reach beyond the obvious solutions to a problem, you will be permanently opening new neural pathways in the mind. Practiced daily, this technique will create those permanent pathways."
Enchanted Mind provides you stuf to create a daily experience of humor, inspiration and creative problem solving. The combination of these three elements, if practiced daily, will open the mind, allowing creative genius to blossom. With this method you can stimulate creative thinking habits and add a little delight to your day.

An article about Inner creativity at Enchanted Mind.

* A breif Review of Creativity at "Personality Research.org"

* What is Creative thinking? From Brainstorming.co.uk

Creative thinking techniques at "Brain storming.co.uk

Sure Start.gov.uk is a government programme which aims to achieve better outcomes for children, parents and communities by:

Increasing the availability of childcare for all children, improving health and emotional development for young children, supporting parents in their aspirations towards employment.

Sure Start.gov.uk explains in "Why Creativity?":

"Creativity is part of every area of the curriculum and all areas of learning have the potential to be creative experiences. The creative process which includes curiosity, exploration, play and creativity, is as applicable to Personal, Social and Emotional Development; Communication, Language and Literacy; Mathematical Development; Knowledge and Understanding of the World and Physical Development as it is to art, music, dance and imaginative play.
We can use creativity to solve problems and think of new ways to deal with challenges. We can use creative role-play to widen our horizons and creative thinking is an important part of science and maths.

Why is creativity important?
Being creative helps us to adapt and respond to a rapidly changing world. We don’t know the challenges that the children we work with will grow up to face, but we do know that for them to meet these challenges they will need to be creative and imaginative."


Creativity Pool Free Ideas and Creativity Resource. Search the database for solutions and inspiration, or donate your unused creativity.
Some links from the site:
- Getting Free ideas
- Their forum has totla 4655 members, with 12586 posts, including 4652 topics.

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