Professor Roger Mumby - Croft Professor of International Management Practise Anglia Ruskin University Centre for Ente

1. Professor Roger Mumby-Croft Professor of International Management Practise Anglia Ruskin University Centre for Enterprise Development and Research (CEDAR)

2. Creativity and Problem Sharing

3. Barriers to Creativity • Avoiding Ambiguity • Fear of looking a fool • Fearing mistakes and failure • Believing not Creative Searching for One right answer Focus on Logic Blindly following Rules Being Practical Seeing Play as Frivolous Becoming Specialised

4. Personal Barriers to Creativity • Assumptions of the analyst • Expecting pattern/single answer • Need to conform • Lazy about challenging the obvious • Evaluating too quickly • Fear of looking a fool

5. Stages of Creative Thinking • Arouse Interest • Preparation - Find enough Facts - Redefine the Problem • Frustrating Effort - On the tip of my tongue • Incubation - Sleep on it • Insight - Ah-ha! (like Haha) • Evaluation

6. Critical and Creative Thinking Creative thinking, Lateral PROBLEM Critical thinking, Vertical ANSWER PROBLEM ANSWER

7. The Amazing Brain LEFT BRAIN WordsLogicNumbers Sequence LinearityAnalysisLists RIGHT BRAIN Rhythm Aware of Space Whole Picture Imagination Daydreaming Colour Dimension BRAIN

8. The Creative Person • Processes information in new ways • Has conceptual fluency, mental flexibility and originality • Suspends Judgment • Will question Authority • Is Tolerant to the ideas of others, accepts on impulse.

9. How to Generate More Ideas • If you think “I’m no good at coming up with ideas”, then you are wrong • To generate an idea is to create something- and we are all creative.

10. Creative Boosters - Analogy • A manufacturer of Furnaces needed to find a new and improved way of lining the furnace • A member of the team suggested they draw an analogy with how a thrush lines its nest • Looking at this stimulated them into coming up with a successful new method of boiler lining.

11. Creative Boosters - Clearing out Mind Blocks • Mind Blocks are impediments to creativity and insight • Here are a few examples of mind blocks of which you may have to unburden yourself

12. Clearing out Mind Blocks • Conformity - when you succeed in your own business you are going to stand out from the crowd. • Fear of Looking foolish - Are you afraid of making yourself look foolish? Who isn’t? You have a sudden flash of inspiration and are about to give voice to it when you hesitate. “people will say that’s a daft idea” you think to yourself. So you say nothing and let it drop.

13. Creative Boosters - New Environment • Experience has shown that very often creativity can be improved by a change of environment • It may be that the environment in which you are trying to work is a negative one.

14. Creative Boosters - Analogy • Here they drew an analogy with nature, you may also be able to use this technique to come up with an improvement to a particular project • Or you could draw an analogy with an improvement made by somebody else to a different product, and then apply it to your own.

15. Creative Boosters - Goal Orientation • Goal Orientation is a technique for improving your attitude and state of mind • Close your eyes and picture yourself one year from the date you launched your business

16. Creative Boosters - Deadlines • We are all aware that too much pressure results in stress • There is good reason to believe that a limited amount of pressure can be beneficial • For example, if we have a deadline to work to, this seems to give a greater sense of purpose, and a sense of urgency stimulates us into quicker thinking.

17. Creative Boosters - Negativity • Rid yourself of a negative attitude, and then stay away from others who still suffer from it.

18. Clearing out Mind Blocks • Passivity - Are you a person who accepts things as they are, or are you the sort of person who challenges, who does not simply see things as they always have been? • “One way” of thinking -Do you think there is only one way to do something? There is rarely only one way to do anything, and if you are stuck on “the proper way” then unbend and start to think creatively.

19. Creativity • “THE THINKING PROCESS THAT HELPS US TO GENERATE IDEAS” Majaro • “INVENTION IS 1% INSPIRATION AND 99% PERSPIRATION Edison • “FORTUNE FAVOURS THE PREPARED MIND” Pasteur

20. Brainstorming • Undoubtedly, a major benefit of brainstorming is that the group will come up with ideas that you on your own would not have thought of. • One member has the seed of an idea, another adds to it, and somebody else develops it further: building together, bringing forth something jointly which would not have been achieved by them as individuals.

21. Creative Boosters - Brainstorming • A brainstorming session involves a group of people coming together for the sole purpose of generating ideas. • Brainstorming only works if certain ground rules are strictly adhered to by all members of the group • Rule 1 - There must be no criticism during the session of the ideas generated - The sole purpose at that moment is to generate ideas • Rule 2 - There must be no negativity - If you are one of those people who can always spot immediately the weak points or the problems, then in a brainstorming session you are banned from mouthing these thoughts.

22. Applying the Techniques of Brainstorming • Brainstorming does not work unless the rules are rigidly adhered to • The sole purpose of the group is to generate business ideas • No evaluation of the ideas during the session • No criticising what other people say during the sessions - you need a supportive encouraging atmosphere