We often want to be more creative. We know that creativity is needed to develop new products, improve organizations, and solve social problems. We also intuitively understand that creativity is something we can train, just like strength or fitness. But despite this insight, surprisingly few people regularly use creative methods, set aside time for reflection, or let their thoughts develop in peace and quiet.
There are several reasons for this, but a central obstacle is that creative tools are often perceived as too simple to handle difficult questions.
Trivial methods = profound results
Many creativity methods are so basic that they almost feel banal. We have heard of brainstorming, mind mapping, random words, sketching. We know they exist, but we don’t really believe that they can lead to new solutions to complex problems. In fact, it is precisely their simplicity that makes them powerful. When used correctly, they open up thinking, force us to break patterns, and ensure that we don’t get stuck in predictable solutions.
Methods like random words, where a randomly chosen word is linked to the problem you are trying to solve, may seem ridiculously simple. But they work. A team developing a new digital banking service might be given the word “hammer” as a random word. It sounds unrelated, but it leads to discussions about robustness, power and tools. This can in turn spark thoughts about creating a system where the user can build their own digital bank, which becomes a more flexible offering.
Another example is the PMI method (Plus, Minus, Interesting), where an idea is not only analyzed in terms of pros and cons, but also what is unexpected, curious or potentially useful in a more open sense. This means that ideas are not dismissed too quickly and that more possibilities are explored.
The productive role of procrastination
An often underestimated tool in the creative process is delay itself. Procrastination is usually seen as something negative. An obstacle to action. But in a creative context, it can serve an important function. When we don’t rush to a solution but keep the problem open over time, our subconscious mind is given the opportunity to work on it in the background. This so-called incubation phase is in creative research. Many times the best ideas don’t come when we are actively trying to solve the problem, but when we let it go for a while.
Allowing ourselves to wait, to go for a walk, to write freely, to let ideas germinate. It’s not laziness, it’s strategy. Always making quick decisions makes us efficient, but not necessarily wise.
Examples of different types of problem solving
Problem: A municipality needs to increase voter turnout among young people in local elections.
Standard solution: Create a campaign in social media that informs about the importance of voting.
Creative solution (through random words and PMI): By using the random word “festival”, the idea arises to create a physical event for young people, a “democracy festival” with music, conversation and the opportunity to vote early. The PMI analysis shows that although it is expensive (Minus), it has the potential to create engagement (Plus), it is unique and therefore Interesting.
Making creativity a habit
To actually become more creative requires practice. Here are some concrete ways to start:
- Use random words: Take a word from a book or generate a digital one and connect it to your problem.
- Use the PMI method when evaluating ideas so that you don’t dismiss the unknown too quickly.
- Create space for incubation: go for walks, write morning pages or set aside breaks where you let ideas rest.
- Practice mindfulness to get better at staying on the question and not rushing to an answer.
Examples in different contexts
Product development: A company developing a new bicycle brake tests ideas by having engineers use the PMI method instead of just technical evaluation. A “dumb” idea about using magnetism becomes “interesting”.
Organizational development: An organization that wants to increase collaboration uses the Café method. Instead of traditional meetings, effective discussion groups are created that change participants, leading to the emergence of new connections.
Community development: A city with problematic segregation uses random words and citizen dialogue to find unexpected solutions. The word “shovel” leads to the “common cultivation sites” initiative where people from different areas collaborate.
Being creative does not require some advanced kind of breakthrough insight, it requires practice and structure. The problem is not a lack of methods, but an unwillingness to use them. We must learn to take the methods seriously, even if they are simple. We must give ourselves space to think, pause, procrastinate productively. And we must understand that creativity is not a state we fall into, but an attitude we can practice. An attitude we can practice every day.
