Tag: creativity

Generating More Ideas

by Bright Osadiaye, posted in Health & Well-Being, Improve Academy, Leadership, Management, Personal Development, Workplace Learning
Photo by DS stories on Pexels.com

Ideas are everywhere. But ‘to create something novel, you must know what already exists.’

‘A thorough understanding of the subject matter allows anyone to understand the familiar baseline of their medium.’

‘If seeing something more makes you like it more, how can we use that to create hits?’

‘The more we’re exposed to something, the less we fear it.’

‘Familiarity doesn’t make us like things more. Rather, it makes us fear things less.’

‘The individuals who ultimately become known as creative geniuses know to abandon ideas long before they ever reach this point.’

When you peocess things deeply, you take time to evaluate them, and your competing emotions involving familiarity and novelty come into play.’

‘Experience makes generating ideas easier, but what happens if you don’t have experience?

‘Consumption provides the fuel. But how do you turn that fuel into conscious ideas?’

‘Structure, formulas, patterns, recipes, norms, and so forth aren’t a burden at all; in fact, they’re widely considered tools of the craft.’

‘Creation mostly has to do with the adaptation of something familiar. ‘There aren’t many truly original ideas. Originality and creativity are really just about clever remixes.”

Constraints, in fact, enable a ‘remix culture.’

Source:

Allen Gannett (2018). The Creative Curve: How to Develop the Right Idea, at the Right Time

Why Leading With Gratitude Is More Important Than Ever

by Bright Osadiaye, posted in Health & Well-Being, Improve Academy, Leadership, Management, Personal Development, Workplace Learning
Photo by alleksana on Pexels.com

Gratitude is not a strategy. It is a way of life. It is how you see the world around you. It is how you see yourself. It is how you do your work. It is how you treat people. It is how you face challenges. Above all, gratitude is a way of saying, ‘Life is great, no matter what!’

According to Adrian and Chester, ‘A lack of gratitude is a form of stupidity. It leaves on the table an enormously powerful tool not only to inspire people to reach their potential, but to actually better understand the true nature of their contributions.’

‘Developing genuine gratitude involves carefully observing what employees are doing, walking in their shoes, developing greater empathy, and sincerely trying to understand the challenges they face.’

‘Developing respect is about helping others grow and supporting people who make honest mistakes. It includes sharing the credit and absorbing blame when needed.’

‘When the right behaviors are in place, there is little time spent in fear.’

‘… gratitude provides clarity about whether the work they are doing is correct, valued by the boss or others, and making a significant contribution to the business.’

‘Expressing authentic gratitude is about much more than what a leader says, or even how she says it- it’s about why she says it.’

‘If employees are afraid of punitive actions, they are more likely to try to cover up problems.’

‘Leaders who develop empathy for others are great enablers of authentic gratitude.’

‘Creativity requires trust. Cultures of low trust, where managers react badly to failure, create too negative an environment for productivity and innovation to flow.’

‘Avoid the over-ask- especting too much from employees by asking for ideas that are out of their purview or asking too many questions at once.’

Source:

Adrian Gostick and Chester Elton (2020). Leading with Gratitude: Eight Leadership Practices for Extraordinary Business Results