Why creativity is one the skills of the future?

While making projections about the future of work, many researchers emphasize the value of creativity as one of the future skills highly appreciated by employers. Managers discovered that by crafting a creative work environment they create conditions for better collaboration, innovation and as a result support the growth of their business. Creativity is a skill that builds the foundation for other skills, including problem-solving, generating ideas, coming up with non-standard game-changing solutions, and combining different perspectives thanks to flexible thinking. It involves a conscious and focused thought to bring together diverse ways of thinking to leverage existing information to create new patterns and perspectives.

Although it might seem as something reserved to the few, in fact it is a skill that can be developed and trained, and everyone can foster it with some practice.

Managers that want to develop creative skills within their teams can start with these simple steps:

Start with trust and provide a space to collaborate and share

At the beginning you need to be the facilitator of the process, providing your team with the tools and environment that just gives them possibility to share their ideas, contribute and collaborate on a given challenge. Make them co-creators of this process to let them feel they can influence the way of working per their preferences. Encourage everyone to communicate often and listen to what your employees tell you – they already might have the solutions you are looking for, but were never asked to share these. Let everyone be heard.

Be open to other perspectives and ideas

Nothing kills creativity that effectively as the desire for one common perspective. Creativity thrives when different ideas can be exchanged and only then the best solution can emerge. Keeping everyone in the same old and rigid way of thinking will not help you bring fresh ideas or discover new opportunities for your business.

Help your team come from ideas to solutions

If you already have a creative environment, and your team members trust one other to openly discuss any challenge, your role is to support them with implementation of their ideas. Even the greatest idea will not have any value being expressed on paper only. You need to know how to convert a great idea into a new products, service or offering. Getting from creation to implementation is crucial for your success.

Remember about sharing

Every new creative process is a unique opportunity to learn and grow – your team will be learning throughout the process new way of approaching a problem, creative thinking techniques, and ways to boost idea-generation skills. Do not let these great insights be missed – make sure you gather these learnings, discuss the improvement opportunities and leverage your progress to grow as a team.

Enjoyed this post and are you ready to embark on your creative journey?

Start with our basic creativity training to build a foundation for your team's creative growth!