of evolving new ideas. I recently read an article which looked back at the predictions that were made in the 1960’s about what life would be like in the year 2000. While it was possible to predict many of the technologies we have

today, some things are a complete surprise and novelty. Mobile phones and the World Wide Web are just two examples of generation through novel thinking.

I’m quite aware that some people may say that a mobile phone isn’t novel – it’s just a ‘better’ telephone, isn’t it? In my opinion, those that say "there is nothing new under the sun" are basically limiting their ability to create. It’s a bit like saying that there can be nothing new in literature because we all use the same 26 letters of the alphabet!

My point is that it’s harder to learn and create if you only sort for similarity. An important part of creating a lea

Creativity is an area that has fascinated me ever since I first became interested in personal development, hypnosis and NLP. What intrigues me is the structure underpinning abilities that we consider exceptional or extra-ordinary.

Creativity is an interesting area to explore, as so few people know how they are creative. And the limitations in thinking about creativity often become apparent as a result of a few simple questions.

What do I mean by ‘limitations’? There are many popular presuppositions about creativity that can be very limiting.

A common idea is that there is such a thing as a ‘creative person’, implying that creative people are born, not made. If you refuse to believe that, it opens up the possibility that anyone can learn to be more creative.

More creative? Doesn’t that imply that we’re all creative in some way? That leads us to the next limitation - a rigid idea of what constitutes creativity. Does the term only apply to musicians, artists and writers? Or genius inventors? Or can engineers and tennis players be creative too?

What is creativity?

It’s necessary that we develop a working definition of creativity in order to focus in a useful way. The dictionary defines creativity in three ways:

1. marked by the ability or power to create : given to creating

This first definition refers to the ability or power to generate something new. It doesn’t describe how – and the word ‘how’ implies a process.

2. having the quality of something created rather than imitated

The important part of this second definition is that it makes a distinction between ‘creating’ and ‘imitating’ something, with a line drawn to separate the two.

Betty Edwards challenges the precision of that definition in her excellent book “Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain”. Think about this:

Is tracing a photograph ‘creative’? Is copying a drawing of a scene ‘creative’? How about copying the actual scene? Is that last example different from painting a landscape? Where should the line be drawn between creation and imitation?

3. managed so as to get around conventional limits

This is the ‘thinking out of the box’ that we hear so much about. ‘Conventional limits’ is an ambiguous term and could mean ‘normal limits’ or ‘limits defined by agreement or consensus.’ From a practical point of view, both add up to ‘perceived limits’.

Creativity of this sort can involve achieving things that were previously thought to be impossible, such as breaking the sound barrier. Or this definition could equally apply to the breaking of established convention with each new artistic movement. Impressionism and Cubism both defied previous norms in art, for example.

In light of those definitions:

• Do you consider yourself to be creative?
• What creative resources do we all have?
• How do you know how creative you are / can be?

There are ways to be more creative. Most approaches focus on strategies for creativity – and there are many. However, virtually all of them seem to fit into four broad categories. In this part, we’ll explore the first category – Generation.

1. New ideas - 'Generation'

Creativity through generation is the process of evolving new ideas. I recently read an article which looked back at the predictions that were made in the 1960’s about what life would be like in the year 2000. While it was possible to predict many of the technologies we have

today, some things are a complete surprise and novelty. Mobile phones and the World Wide Web are just two examples of generation through novel thinking.

I’m quite aware that some people may say that a mobile phone isn’t novel – it’s just a ‘better’ telephone, isn’t it? In my opinion, those that say "there is nothing new under the sun" are basically limiting their ability to create. It’s a bit like saying that there can be nothing new in literature because we all use the same 26 letters of the alphabet!

My point is that it’s harder to learn and create if you only sort for similarity. An important part of creating a lear

y? That leads us to the next limitation - a rigid idea of what constitutes creativity. Does the term only apply to musicians, artists and writers? Or genius inventors? Or can engineers and tennis players be creative too?

What is creativity?

It’s necessary that we develop a working definition of creativity in order to focus in a useful way. The dictionary defines creativity in three ways:

1. marked by the ability or power to create : given to creating

This first definition refers to the ability or power to generate something new. It doesn’t describe how – and the word ‘how’ implies a process.

2. having the quality of something created rather than imitated

The important part of this second definition is that it makes a distinction between ‘creating’ and ‘imitating’ something, with a line drawn to separate the two.

Betty Edwards challenges the precision of that definition in her excellent book “Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain”. Think about this:

Is tracing a photograph ‘creative’? Is copying a drawing of a scene ‘creative’? How about copying the actual scene? Is that last example different from painting a landscape? Where should the line be drawn between creation and imitation?

3. managed so as to get around conventional limits

This is the ‘thinking out of the box’ that we hear so much about. ‘Conventional limits’ is an ambiguous term and could mean ‘normal limits’ or ‘limits defined by agreement or consensus.’ From a practical point of view, both add up to ‘perceived limits’.

Creativity of this sort can involve achieving things that were previously thought to be impossible, such as breaking the sound barrier. Or this definition could equally apply to the breaking of established convention with each new artistic movement. Impressionism and Cubism both defied previous norms in art, for example.

In light of those definitions:

• Do you consider yourself to be creative?
• What creative resources do we all have?
• How do you know how creative you are / can be?

There are ways to be more creative. Most approaches focus on strategies for creativity – and there are many. However, virtually all of them seem to fit into four broad categories. In this part, we’ll explore the first category – Generation.

1. New ideas - 'Generation'

Creativity through generation is the process of evolving new ideas. I recently read an article which looked back at the predictions that were made in the 1960’s about what life would be like in the year 2000. While it was possible to predict many of the technologies we have

today, some things are a complete surprise and novelty. Mobile phones and the World Wide Web are just two examples of generation through novel thinking.

I’m quite aware that some people may say that a mobile phone isn’t novel – it’s just a ‘better’ telephone, isn’t it? In my opinion, those that say "there is nothing new under the sun" are basically limiting their ability to create. It’s a bit like saying that there can be nothing new in literature because we all use the same 26 letters of the alphabet!

My point is that it’s harder to learn and create if you only sort for similarity. An important part of creating a lea

creating’ and ‘imitating’ something, with a line drawn to separate the two.

Betty Edwards challenges the precision of that definition in her excellent book “Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain”. Think about this:

Is tracing a photograph ‘creative’? Is copying a drawing of a scene ‘creative’? How about copying the actual scene? Is that last example different from painting a landscape? Where should the line be drawn between creation and imitation?

3. managed so as to get around conventional limits

This is the ‘thinking out of the box’ that we hear so much about. ‘Conventional limits’ is an ambiguous term and could mean ‘normal limits’ or ‘limits defined by agreement or consensus.’ From a practical point of view, both add up to ‘perceived limits’.

Creativity of this sort can involve achieving things that were previously thought to be impossible, such as breaking the sound barrier. Or this definition could equally apply to the breaking of established convention with each new artistic movement. Impressionism and Cubism both defied previous norms in art, for example.

In light of those definitions:

• Do you consider yourself to be creative?
• What creative resources do we all have?
• How do you know how creative you are / can be?

There are ways to be more creative. Most approaches focus on strategies for creativity – and there are many. However, virtually all of them seem to fit into four broad categories. In this part, we’ll explore the first category – Generation.

1. New ideas - 'Generation'

Creativity through generation is the process of evolving new ideas. I recently read an article which looked back at the predictions that were made in the 1960’s about what life would be like in the year 2000. While it was possible to predict many of the technologies we have

today, some things are a complete surprise and novelty. Mobile phones and the World Wide Web are just two examples of generation through novel thinking.

I’m quite aware that some people may say that a mobile phone isn’t novel – it’s just a ‘better’ telephone, isn’t it? In my opinion, those that say "there is nothing new under the sun" are basically limiting their ability to create. It’s a bit like saying that there can be nothing new in literature because we all use the same 26 letters of the alphabet!

My point is that it’s harder to learn and create if you only sort for similarity. An important part of creating a lea

sort can involve achieving things that were previously thought to be impossible, such as breaking the sound barrier. Or this definition could equally apply to the breaking of established convention with each new artistic movement. Impressionism and Cubism both defied previous norms in art, for example.

In light of those definitions:

• Do you consider yourself to be creative?
• What creative resources do we all have?
• How do you know how creative you are / can be?

There are ways to be more creative. Most approaches focus on strategies for creativity – and there are many. However, virtually all of them seem to fit into four broad categories. In this part, we’ll explore the first category – Generation.

1. New ideas - 'Generation'

Creativity through generation is the process of evolving new ideas. I recently read an article which looked back at the predictions that were made in the 1960’s about what life would be like in the year 2000. While it was possible to predict many of the technologies we have

today, some things are a complete surprise and novelty. Mobile phones and the World Wide Web are just two examples of generation through novel thinking.

I’m quite aware that some people may say that a mobile phone isn’t novel – it’s just a ‘better’ telephone, isn’t it? In my opinion, those that say "there is nothing new under the sun" are basically limiting their ability to create. It’s a bit like saying that there can be nothing new in literature because we all use the same 26 letters of the alphabet!

My point is that it’s harder to learn and create if you only sort for similarity. An important part of creating a lea

of evolving new ideas. I recently read an article which looked back at the predictions that were made in the 1960’s about what life would be like in the year 2000. While it was possible to predict many of the technologies we have

today, some things are a complete surprise and novelty. Mobile phones and the World Wide Web are just two examples of generation through novel thinking.

I’m quite aware that some people may say that a mobile phone isn’t novel – it’s just a ‘better’ telephone, isn’t it? In my opinion, those that say "there is nothing new under the sun" are basically limiting their ability to create. It’s a bit like saying that there can be nothing new in literature because we all use the same 26 letters of the alphabet!

My point is that it’s harder to learn and create if you only sort for similarity. An important part of creating a learning environment is to prevent people from sorting for similarity too soon.

Let me give you an example. I used to teach Chemistry to final year degree students. Talk about a tough audience! The prevailing attitude was:

• You’re about to talk about X
• X is a lot like Y
• and I know all about Y.

Willingness to learn had ceased for most, as they had only sorted for similarity. To open up the channels of learning, it was necessary to encourage them to compare what they really knew with what they should know – a strategy of sorting for differences.

If you see the world through a filter of difference, there are new ideas all the time. A small difference results in incremental change – a ‘slightly better’ paperclip, for example. Generation demands a large difference - which results in something novel.

This creative strategy is great for problem-solving – many of our innovations have been developed as the solution to a pressing problem. So let’s put it to work.

Exercise: Problem Solving Through Generation

Do you have a (practical) problem with no current solution? Or would you like a better way of doing something?

Apply one of the following strategies:

1. The Magic Pill Scenario

Ask yourself:

“If you were to take a magic pill that meant you would wake up tomorrow with the problem completely solved, what would have changed?”

This presupposes that there is a solution and you are free to discover for yourself what changes you need to make. It’s also an explicit request to focus on differences between the ‘problem state’ and the ‘solution state’.

1. Learning From The Future

Imagine a time in the future when the problem has been solved or the goal has been accomplished.

Bring yourself forward into that imaginary future, knowing that one day it will be a reality.

Check that the end result is satisfactory. If it’s not, change it until you’re completely happy with it.

Now look back towards the present and notice all of the events that took place before that result - those actions which allowed you to accomplish that.

Be aware of what you did each step of the way and allow your mind to fill in the details as you go.

Now you know how you will get there and have a complete plan.

Further Ideas

These are just a couple of ways in which you can apply strategies to generate novel results and solve problems in the process. As I said before, there are many strategies for creativity. And you can use these strategies to evolve more new creative methods.

Next time, I’ll explore the second category of creativity – Synthesis.