Chapter 1

Creativity and its Importance

in Business

Definitions of creativity
How ideas arise
Importance of creative thinking in business
Paradigm shifts
Characteristics of creative thinking
Acquiring creative skills

Prof. Tony Proctor

DEFINITIONS OF CREATIVITY (1)

Creativity is an ability to come up with new and

different viewpoints on a subject.

It involves breaking down and restructuring our
knowledge about a subject in order to gain new
insights into its nature.
Defining creativity is complicated because the
concept has many dimensions.

Prof. Tony Proctor

DEFINITIONS OF CREATIVITY (2)

Wertheimerrestructuring our knowledge

Kelly and Rogersunderstanding how we think
Maslowprimary versus secondary
Rickardspersonal discovery process
Gilliammaking new connections
Amabilenovel and useful ideas

Prof. Tony Proctor

DEFINITIONS OF CREATIVITY (3)

Being creative is seeing the same thing as
everyone else, but thinking of something
different
Charles Cave
http://members.ozemail.com.au/~caveman

Prof. Tony Proctor

INVENTION AND CREATIVITY

Invention is an act of creativity that results in a
device, process or technique that is novel enough
to produce a significant change in the application
of technology.

Prof. Tony Proctor

HOW IDEAS ARISE

Generating ideas is not a chance process.
Ideas appear to arise when people are actually

looking for them.

It happens to people who are
Curious or inquiring.

Engaged in a search for opportunities,

possibilities, answers or inventions.

Prof. Tony Proctor

IMPORTANCE OF CREATIVE
THINKING
Logical thinking is a series of steps that extend

what we know already, rather than being truly new.

The need for creative thinking arises from the
inadequacies of logical thinking.
It is a method for producing insights that might
not be obtained through conventional or
traditional methods of logical thinking.

Prof. Tony Proctor

CREATIVE THINKING IN
BUSINESS
Increasing number of problems have few or no

precedents
Fewer tried and tested ways of approaching them
Creativity is a vital asset for leadership
Business problems are usually open-ended
Planning, organising, leading, controlling

Prof. Tony Proctor

PARADIGM SHIFTS
The need for creative thinking often becomes

paramount when a paradigm shift occurs or is

likely to occur.
A paradigm is a set of rules and regulations that
guide our actions when solving problems.
Transport train, airplane, spaceship

Prof. Tony Proctor

CHARACTERISTICS OF CREATIVE
THINKING
Intelligence measures do not explain creativity.
Creative thinkers form novel combinations.
Making juxtapositions between dissimilar

subjects.
Thinking productively rather than reproductively.

Prof. Tony Proctor

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PEOPLE WHO EXHIBIT CREATIVE

BEHAVIOUR (1)

Challenge the status quo

Confront assumptions
Exhibit curiosity
Like to investigate new possibilities
Take the initiative
Are highly imaginative
Are future oriented

Prof. Tony Proctor

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PEOPLE WHO EXHIBIT CREATIVE

BEHAVIOUR (2)

Tend to think visually

See possibilities
Are not afraid to take risks
Are prepared to make mistakes
Are adaptable to different environments
Are adaptable to changing circumstances
See relationships between seemingly
disconnected elements

Prof. Tony Proctor

12

PEOPLE WHO EXHIBIT CREATIVE

BEHAVIOUR (3)
Distil unusual ideas down to their underlying

principles
Synthesise diverse elements
Are able to spot underlying patterns in events
Are able to cope with paradoxes
Look beyond the first right idea

Prof. Tony Proctor

13

ACQUIRING CREATIVE SKILLS

Fluency - ability to produce many ideas
Flexibility - ability to produce a varied mix of ideas
Elaboration - ability to add detail, depth, mixtures

of viewpoints or perspectives
Originality - uniqueness, novelty, newness

Prof. Tony Proctor

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