It is very exciting that creativity is getting more attention in research. An understanding of what creativity is is necessary to maximize creative potential. Five fundamental insights of creativity to consider include: 1) Creativity takes more than originality; it is a combination of originality and task appropriateness. 2) There are different levels of creativity: “mini-c” […]
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Metaphors which connect the mind (ideas) to the body (concrete acts), such as “think outside the box” and “on one hand, then on the other hand,” can activate cognitive processes that facilitate the generation of new ideas and connections. What metaphors can you think of to fit recurrent challenges? What are your observations about […]
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Findings are still unclear about exactly how stress effects creativity. Studies do show that highly evaluative contexts decrease creative performance and low evaluative contexts increase creative performance. This tells us that evaluating creative acts can be helpful if done more casually and constructively and criticism is less likely to spur improvement. How do […]
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Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep, the phase of sleep when dreams occur is shown to allow integration of previously unassociated information. Creativity is enhanced when information can be consolidated and associated in our sleep, but sleep is most elusive for busy parents! If life starts to feel like rocket science, check your sleep and see […]
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Did you know that thinking “off the beaten path” can stimulate creativity? Before attempting to take the road-less taken, what’s your primary problem-solving style anyway? While we all employ both of these styles in problem solving, we might have a tenancy to use one style more frequently than the other. Each style has it’s merits […]
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Did you ever emerge from a daydream with a “eureka?” On the contrary, can you recall as a child (or even an adult!) being reprimanded for daydreaming? What’s the deal with daydreaming and is there any benefit to it or is it a sign of weakness? Creativity research suggests that engaging in simple, external […]
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Are you looking for a boost in creativity? Before doing a spacial task, try focusing first on a verbal task (such as anagrams) or, conversely, try focusing on a spacial task (such as mental rotation) in order to boost verbal fluency and creativity. Our brains seem to literally shift when incubating on the opposite type […]
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