Creating Creativity

My colleagues and I love to hear about the latest innovative marketing strategies or social media campaigns. And whenever we have a sudden burst of creativity, we like to develop our own new ideas. But creativity doesn’t always come naturally, and generating new ideas can be daunting. This AdAge article inspired me to write about ways to promote creativity. The writer asked executives whose jobs require a constant stream of creativity to weigh in. I’ll discuss my favorite excerpts from this, as well as some other tips for generating creativity:

Avoid a creative routine: Trying to develop a common procedure for generating creative ideas can be stifling. After all, the best creative ideas are out-of-the-box and extraordinary – the exact opposite of routine.  “Doing my own art and side projects keeps me excited as a creative person and it forces me to think differently.” This is how creative director Doug Pederson avoids falling into a creative rut. Similarly, Ernie Schenk believes, “you’ve got to be in a perpetual state of reinvention…you can’t accept the idea of a comfort zone.”

Word maps: Also called mind maps or tag clouds, these handy tools can help you visually organize your ideas. Using wordle.net, you can type in any text or url and the website will form it into a word map. If you’re trying to come up with a new marketing campaign, try creating a word map of text from your company’s website or blog. Here’s a word map of this blog post:

Recognize that bad ideas are good, too: More than good, they are necessary. The best creative minds in any industry don’t sit around generating one groundbreaking idea after another.  One amazing idea is the product of hundreds of bad or mediocre ones. So next time your idea doesn’t work out, just think: you’re that much closer to a great one.

Hire people who are smarter than you: Everyone has a different skill set to offer, and having a staff with diverse career backgrounds and experience can help keep you on your toes. Loni Peristere, the founding partner of Zoic Studios suggests, “Replace yourself. The intern program at Zoic is loaded with young super creatives. Their inexperience with production and process often opens the doors for huge ideas. We also hired a number of industry veterans of 30 years or more…These legends also bring amazing solutions. How do you keep sharp? Surround yourself with people who will call you out when you are dull”. Start a reverse mentorship program at your office by having young employees teach older ones a new skill and vice versa.

Keep a notebook nearby: Creative ideas can come to you at the strangest times.  Always have a notebook on you to get the idea down before it slips away. For on-the-go idea catching, I like Field Notes.

Stay informed: Reading about the latest entrepreneurial ideas is sure to get your head spinning. Julie Bowman, founder of freelance network Giant Noodle, believes “You have to be a student of the industry. You have to research what’s making it into the award shows; you have to pay attention to the industry pubs…It takes a lot of effort because everything moves so quickly these days”. My personal favorite source of new business inspiration is Springwise.com.

Last, but certainly not least…

Chocolate: I’ve found that the occasional trip to the Lab42 candy jar helps get my brain going. Eating foods that fuel your brain can lead to ideation. Check out this article for a complete list of brain food.

What is your favorite way to get creative?