5 Steps to More Creative Brain
James
Clear
In
this insightful article James Clear explains how the creative process works to
generate great ideas. Creative thinking is one of the most useful skills to
have. You can benefit from innovative
solutions, lateral thinking, and creative ideas.
You
can learn to be creative by using the five steps. Uncovering your creative
genius needs courage and regular practice
The 5 Stages of the Creative Process
In
1940, an advertising executive named James Webb Young published a short guide
titled, A Technique for Producing Ideas. According to Young, creative thinking
is not about generating something new from a blank slate, but rather about taking
what is already present and combining those bits and pieces in a way that has
not been done previously.
Most
important, the ability to generate new combinations depends upon your ability
to see the relationships between various concepts. If you can form a new link
between two old ideas, you have done something creative.
Young
believed this process of creative connection always occurred in five steps.
1.
Gather new material. At first, you learn. During this stage you focus on
1) learning specific material directly related to your task and 2) learning
general material by becoming fascinated with a wide range of concepts.
2.
Thoroughly work over
the materials in your mind. During this stage,
you examine what you have learned by looking at the facts from different angles
and experimenting with fitting various ideas together.
3.
Step away from the
problem. Next, you put the problem completely
out of your mind and go do something else that excites you and energizes you.
4.
Let your idea return
to you. At some point, but only after you have
stopped thinking about it, your idea will come back to you with a flash of
insight and renewed energy.
5.
Shape and develop your
idea based on feedback. For any idea to
succeed, you must release it out into the world, submit it to criticism, and
adapt it as needed.
The
creative process is the act of making new connections between old ideas. Thus,
we can say creative thinking is the task of recognizing relationships between
concepts.
One
way to approach creative challenges is by following the five-step process of
1)
gathering material,
2)
intensely working over the material in your mind,
3)
stepping away from the problem,
4)
allowing the idea to come back to you naturally, and
5)
testing your idea in the real world and adjusting it based on feedback.
Being
creative isn't about being the first (or only) person to think of an idea. More
often, creativity is about connecting ideas.
You can read the full article here
