CREATIVITY AND HUMAN RELATIONS

1. Chapter 12 CREATIVITY AND HUMAN RELATIONS

2. The Creativity Connection • Creativity • *Ability to produce ideas or problems to solutions that are unique, appropriate, and valuable. • Related to self-esteem and relationships. • Business factors (the number and quality of products) are affected by the creativity of employees. • **Many companies and some countries have started taking creativity seriously but most companies don’t.

3. What is Creativity • Creative people have flexibility and fluency in ideas. • Distinction between creativity with a big “C” and with a small “c.” • Big “C” sees creativity as a new concept valued by society, and produced to fulfill that role. • Small “c” is related more to one’s personal experience.

4. What is Creativity(Idealization Creation) • Creative people • Usually average/above average in intelligence. • Although smart, are also often naive. • Should be able to engage in “divergent thinking.” • Being a genius does not make someone creative.

5. Perception and Creativity • **Groups have their own beliefs about what should be done and how it should be done; this is called collective habits of thought. • Perception is the way in which a person views the world. • Sometimes people’s perceptions are blocked or distorted by rules that they think they need to follow.

6. Perception and Creativity • Characteristics of creative people • Expert knowledge. • Openness to new experiences. • Independent spirit. • Internal motivation. • Persistence. • **Intuition

7. Inside the Creative Process • Graham Wallas described four basic steps in the creative process: • Perception and Preparation • Incubation • Inspiration • Verification

8. Inside the Creative Process • Step One: Perception and Preparation • *Perception is the beginning point. **Make sure that you perceive the problem accurately • Make sure the idea is useful and real. • Step Two: **Incubation • Might take minutes, hours, months or even years. • May involve research and experimentation. • Step Three: Inspiration • Also called “illumination.” • Incubation and struggle come together to form a real concept. • Wallas called this step the ‘happy idea(s).’ • Step Four: Verification • This is an important step. • The newly created concept/product/service is proven to be worthwhile.

9. Creativity in the Workplace • An effective manager must encourage creativity among employees by creating a climate of deferred judgment. • They may use a formal method for receiving suggestions, with all employees knowing the procedure. • Companies are beginning to use reward systems to encourage creative suggestions.

10. Creative Methods for Groups • Brainstorming • **Spontaneous group discussion to find multiple solutions for problems. • Devised by Alex Osborne in 1934. • Consists of two sessions. • Works best for solving simple, well-defined problems; can also be used in any context.

11. Creative Methods for Groups • Brainstorming - First session: • Participants speak in phrases. • Hitchhiking on others’ ideas is encouraged. • Criticism is forbidden. • Silliness is encouraged. • Climate is relaxed. • All ideas are recorded. • A large quantity of ideas is encouraged.

12. Creative Methods for Groups • Brainstorming - Second session: • Return to rational mode. • All ideas are analyzed and prioritized. • Idea duplications are eliminated. • Ideas are ranked in order of importance. • Everyone gives evaluative input.

13. Creative Methods for Groups • The Nominal Group method • Encourages creativity in a group by allowing everyone to offer individual, anonymous ideas. • **Effective when used with shy/unassertive people. • Involves six steps.

14. Creative Problem Solving • Intrinsic motivation is more powerful than extrinsic motivation in encouraging creativity. • Companies focus more on extrinsic than on intrinsic rewards for creativity. • Intrinsic rewards drive employee self-esteem. • Creative problem solving is a useful skill that all employees will need to develop.

15. Strategies for Success • Increase your creativity: • Get into the open mode. • Think of yourself as a creative person. • Learn to see problems as opportunities. • Look for more than one or two solutions to a problem. • Learn to play the violin.

16. Strategies for Success • Increase your creativity (cont.): • Turn your ideas into action. • Don’t be afraid to break some rules. • Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. • Spend time with creative people. • Capture creative ideas when they happen.

17. Strategies for Success • “Ten Mental Locks”: • Look for the one right answer. • That is not logical. • Follow the rules. • Be practical. • Play is frivolous. • That isn’t my area. • Don’t be foolish. • Avoid ambiguity. • To err is wrong. • I’m not creative.

18. Strategies for Success • Use Bob Eberle’s SCAMPER to solve problems • Substitute - Is there a person, place, or object that might work better? • Combine - Are there ideas, goals, or purposes that could be combined? • Adapt - Are there parts of the plan or the process I can reshape or fit to this issue? • Modify - How and what can I alter, revise, enlarge, or shrink to resolve this issue?

19. Strategies for Success • Use Bob Eberle’s SCAMPER to solve problems (cont.): • Put to another use - What can I put to different or new uses to resolve the problem? • Eliminate - What can be omitted, simplified, or removed? • Rearrange - Can I change the order of events, the plan itself, or the desired outcome?