Creative Problem-Solving

These courses have been developed over many years of working in the field of creativity, innovation and change. They provide an introduction to the precepts of creative management and the concepts of ‘Technologies for Creating’, a system designed to develop the creative process through the interaction of conscious choices and intuitive knowing. This process develops ‘open mode’ and lateral thinking and involves shifting from the reactive-responsive modality to the orientation of creativity.

How do you derive the ‘what’ in the question, ‘what do I want’? The answer to this question is a profound secret of the creative process and is known either rationally or intuitively by people who are actively involved in creating, whether that means deciding on your lifestyle or designing state-of-the-art computer technology.

Creative problem-solvers are able to use the three-stage creative cycle and harness the structural tension between their current reality and their vision of success in order to build momentum.

The 3-stage Creative Cycle:

• Germination: new beginnings, the energy of innovation and fresh starts.
• Assimilation: implementation and manifestation.
• Completion: achieving the desired result, celebrating, reflecting on and learning from the process; moving forward to the next cycle.
  

Our approach combines theory with practice and multisensory learning. Ideal for team-building and group assignments.

The 12 Precepts of Creative Management are defined under 4 group headings:

1. Curiosity

This refers to the human drive to try to understand, explore, experiment, etc. It covers precepts that all link to the idea of curiosity:

• Adopt a ‘set to break all sets’: challenge mind-sets; break habits; value change for its own sake; query the ‘tried and tested’ methods.
  
• Explore the ‘givens’: question terms of reference; deconstruct the ‘obvious’; take things apart to see how they work; ask ‘why’ and ‘how’.
• Broad picture, local detail: stand back to gain a wider perspective; dig deep to find out more about it; move back and forth between ‘open’ blue skies mode and ‘closed’ mode of practical action; use mapping and modelling to focus in on detail.
  

2. Forgiveness

This refers to an acceptance that people need to try things out on the understanding that they may not work, provided that the risks of failure are managed sensibly and are not too great.

• Value play: the parallels between children’s play and adult creativity; does not suggest that errors no longer matter, but a certain element of risk is recognized as inevitable by-product of a wider set of relationships and processes and therefore tolerated.
• Build up, don’t knock down: learning to say ‘yes and’ Rather than ‘yes but’
• Live with looseness: new ideas are unpolished; value them in spite of their ambiguity, inconsistency, shapelessness and fluidity.

3. Love

Charles Handy’s approach to ‘unconditional personal regard’: valuing, trusting, caring, etc., are central to reliable long-term relationships amongst colleagues; valuing and being valued make it easier to explore, take innovative risks, to openly share associated thinking.

• It’s already there, nurture it: if it is valued, supported and given space, the creativity, which is part of everyone, can be released.
• Involve others: interested people can be one of the best sources of ideas, except if they are overwhelmed or manipulated.
• Connect and be receptive: even the plainest environment can be a rich source of stimulation if you appreciate it.

4. A sense of direction

Creativity is more than just curiosity, forgiveness and love – it needs the ability to steer the process to achieve its goals. This often involves what McCaskey (1988) calls ‘controlling, but not controlling’.

• Know what you really want: sometimes defining the goal may be the core of the challenge.
• Cycle often and close late: the best route from A to B is not necessarily in a straight line; problem-solving may involve blind alleys, often going backwards for a while in order to go forward eventually somewhere new and exciting.
• Manage the process: many aspects of the process of creative problem-solving will run better if carefully managed. This includes giving attention to the interpersonal aspects, the management of atmostphere and climate, time and process.

 Contact us now to discuss your needs

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