Purposeful Talent Development: Strengthen your creativity

One of my favorite quotes about creativity comes from entrepreneur Marie Forleo, who coined the tagline “Create before you consume.”

Now, upon first reading, you might think this only applies to those who are in the creative professions or are entrepreneurs. However, I believe this idea applies just as easily in organizations where leaders and teams must create new ways to serve members, solve complex problems or update processes to fit the evolving digital workplace landscape.

In fact, creativity before consumption has been taking place almost daily in the last year as we’ve worked to keep pace with the demands of the world—demands that forced us to think differently and adjust our work routines and ways of doing business. We were forced to get creative in ways we never thought possible.

Forleo’s quote is noteworthy because it challenges a belief that most of us have, which is that we aren’t creative. Those who believe this tend to lean on outward resources and experts for ideas before starting their own creative thinking process. And while there’s nothing inherently wrong with seeking out knowledge or ideas from others, doing so at the expense of doing your own thinking and brainstorming could lead to difficulty finding one’s own unique, innovative ideas.

 

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