Your Two Creative Strategies

March 25th, 2008 · No Comments

When faced with any sort of challenge (i.e. a problem, issue or opportunity) I have found that you have two key creative strategies.

1. Try and redefine the challenge and/or

2. Look at the challenge in a new way.

Otherwise you are doomed to repeat a cycle which can only deliver you incremental ideas. For example, let’s imagine that you were trying to improve your customer service (or what i call P1). Another way of defining this challenge might be to; what can we do so that our customers love dealing with us (or what I call P2)? Now which problem excites and engages you? Which problem definition is more likely to open up new possibilities? Can you see that by simply using a different way to define the problem you can become unstuck?

Your second creative strategy is to look at the challenge with new eyes. In the previous example, you can use a financial lens (or L1) which might lead you to reduce your service to your unprofitable customers or if you used a different lens (e.g. as a restaurant owner–P2) it might lead you to think about how to make every customer feel special.

You can use either or both of these powerful creative strategies at will.

Does anyone have an example from their life?

Yours in ideas,

Ken