Creativity is all about having new lines of thinking, approaches, and solutions to problems. While of utmost importance in more artistic fields, being creative is also a competitive edge in other industries as it can help provide new perspectives. Turning your workplace into a creative factory for novel ideas is a critical factor for the success of your business.
There are many ways to spark creativity in the office setting. Here’s a few suggestions that you could implement to boost creativity in your workplace.
Play some music.
Music stimulates the brain in various levels. A 2012 study published on the Journal of Consumer Research found that ambient noise (at 70-50 dB volumes) helps increase creative output. Drown the sound of silence by playing music at low volumes in your workplace.
Music allows your mind to wander, an important factor in creativity. When your mind wanders and flits from one thought to another, various solutions to a problem could sometimes jump up out of nowhere.
Power naps instead of coffee breaks.
While coffee does have a positive effect on focus, it hinders creativity by preventing your mind from wandering. Coffee is ideal for repetitive, menial tasks that require focus. For cultivating creativity, try power naps. It’s a well documented fact that power naps (napping for 10-15 minutes) restores energy and boosts creativity, productivity, and cognitive skills.
Just take a cue from Google and their numerous napping pods all over their headquarters.
Reward good ideas.
Where do you get ideas? While it’s hard to map out how an idea comes about, one thing’s for sure: Getting rewarded for them is a great feeling. It doesn’t have to be a monetary or an extremely valuable reward, any form of appreciation encourages people to share their ideas.
Make sure that your employees know that you value their creativity by showing them that good ideas are rewarded.
Have informal meetings.
In fact, don’t have informal meetings at all. Have conversations instead. When brainstorming for new ideas, it’s better to meet out in new places and not get stuck in a traditional office setting. By reducing tensions and formalities, people tend to open up more.
Effective conversations allow people to speak their mind. It’s important to create conversations where people are not afraid to share their ideas no matter how weak they might seem. Conversely, these conversations should also be a bit critical so that everyone involved feels challenged and steps up their game.
Instead of having strict agendas, prepare guide questions to ensure that the group achieves still its goals.
The Creative Factory
If you want to ignite creativity in your employees, it’s important to provide an environment where creativity can thrive in in the first place. There are no hard and fast rules about fostering creative talents. Experiment with (not on) your employees and see what works for your company.
Don’t think you can sustain a creative environment in your office? Try looking into Creative Process Outsourcing. Download our free eBook on CPO here.
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