Many experts have stressed the importance of a playful attitude toward creativity, that fooling around often leads to ideas. Do you agree? Why or why not?
Absolutely. Some of the things we use most often today were created by accident! I did some research and found this website that shares the top inventions that were made by mistake! There are many inventions that came about purposefully, but sometimes it takes “playing” to come up with something creative. I believe that this is because playful activity can form a less stressful environment in which being creative is more conducive—where thinking out of the box is more accepted and encouraged.
Please, however, do not confuse my stance on “playing around” with “playing around with others.” As I stated earlier, I do not think that the number of people present is a necessary factor in deciding how creative a situation is.
from http://www.ideachampions.com/weblogs/creativity1.jpg
Friday, August 26, 2011
What promotes CREATIVITY?
Is creativity helped or hindered by:
working in a group?
talking out loud?
a sense of humor?
In the article “Why Creativity Now? A Conversation with Sir Ken Robinson,” Amy M Azzam asks Sir Robinson if there is a social dimension to creativity. He says, “Most original thinking comes through collaboration and through the stimulation of other people’s ideas […] Most creative processes benefit enormously from collaboration.”
While I agree that working in a group can often stimulate ideas, it is my belief that each person has their own “best practices” of how they work most productively. For some people, this might be working in a group while talking aloud and joking with others. However, there are some people that need quiet and alone time to really think. Adding other people to a project can cause some to be easily distracted and off task. I tell my students, “You know how you work best—do what works for you!” As Sir Robinson noted, collaboration can certainly add to creative thoughts, but people prefer to work differently, so making a blanket statement about what helps or hinders creativity is futile—just as people are different, so too are their creative styles.
Personally, I believe that my “most creative states” are found while working in a group, talking out loud, and incorporating humor. To be able to think out of the box, I need to feel comfortable and relaxed, and that is a setting that provides that for me. I consider myself an “external processor” meaning I often do not know how I feel about something until I talk it out with someone. Because of this, group work with out-loud collaboration is a more creative environment for me.
working in a group?
talking out loud?
a sense of humor?
In the article “Why Creativity Now? A Conversation with Sir Ken Robinson,” Amy M Azzam asks Sir Robinson if there is a social dimension to creativity. He says, “Most original thinking comes through collaboration and through the stimulation of other people’s ideas […] Most creative processes benefit enormously from collaboration.”
While I agree that working in a group can often stimulate ideas, it is my belief that each person has their own “best practices” of how they work most productively. For some people, this might be working in a group while talking aloud and joking with others. However, there are some people that need quiet and alone time to really think. Adding other people to a project can cause some to be easily distracted and off task. I tell my students, “You know how you work best—do what works for you!” As Sir Robinson noted, collaboration can certainly add to creative thoughts, but people prefer to work differently, so making a blanket statement about what helps or hinders creativity is futile—just as people are different, so too are their creative styles.
Personally, I believe that my “most creative states” are found while working in a group, talking out loud, and incorporating humor. To be able to think out of the box, I need to feel comfortable and relaxed, and that is a setting that provides that for me. I consider myself an “external processor” meaning I often do not know how I feel about something until I talk it out with someone. Because of this, group work with out-loud collaboration is a more creative environment for me.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)