Cultivating creativity

Numerous studies have shown that your best, most creative, ideas are often your last ideas. Recent research, however, has found why many people often give up before reaching the best choice.

Researchers Brian Lucas and Loran Nordgren conducted the study to investigate creative processes and found a concept they call the ‘creative cliff illusion’. Many people experience this illusion which hinders our creativity. The creative cliff illusion predicts that we assume, because our productivity declines over time, our creativity declines over time too. This illusion results in people opting for their first, most obvious, ideas rather than ‘sticking with it’ and developing better, more creative solutions.

Many of us underestimate the importance of persistence, meaning that we don’t carve out the time necessary for innovation. To cultivate creativity and produce better ideas, you have to persevere, even if you think your initial idea is good enough.

Try to set aside more time for yourself, or your team, to brainstorm so that you have a greater chance of uncovering those more imaginative ideas. The researchers also noted to ask your team to offer more ideas than you need, to help them push their creative boundaries.

Although we all may differ in our particular creative processes, it’s essential to invest time in them if you want quality outcomes.