Creativity is wanted. Actually, we are told it is essential. The changes needed in the British economy need fresh thinking.
Broadly, there are two sorts of creative people.
You have the ‘Deep Creatives’: the artists, the ideas people, the inspirers. Often brilliant and counter-intuitive, these thinkers are helpful in reframing an issue or imagining a totally new product. They write, they talk.
On the other hand, the ‘Process Creatives’ are those that help individuals and groups think more widely, clearly and imaginatively, drawing on methods such as the lateral thinking tools of Edward De Bono or techniques for facilitated meetings.
Comparing the two, there is a critical insight: one’s own ideas are ‘owned ideas’. Without that ownership, you can’t overcome the subsequent challenge of putting innovation into practice, of getting from inspiration to implementation.
Advice from the outside has its place. But the aim of this should be to involve all – and not just the few – in creative thinking that routinely and regularly makes a difference to what gets done.
