Ahead Of The Game - Creative Problem Solving

Creativity and the Art of Problem Solving

"Problems cannot be solved by the same level of thinking that created them."

- Albert Einstein

No one is immune to problems. No matter how successful you are or how well prepared you may be, sooner or later you will be faced with a problem. The problem may be minor (an inner-office dispute that needs a brief intervention) or major (the stock market crashes and you loose what was going to be your retirement plan). No matter what the situation is, it is in your best interest to find a solution. Creativity is absolutely essential to effective problem solving and thereby essential to success.

I have often observed a tendency within myself and in others to get caught up in making the "right" decision. Most school systems and learning programs are built around the idea that there is a "right" and "wrong" way to do things, answers that are either "correct" or "incorrect" and actions that are either "good" or bad". While it is of course important to learn the concept of right and wrong, thinking in such stark terms of black and white limit our ability to make decisions and come up with solutions to more complex problems.

This is where creativity comes in. By allowing the mind to think more freely and perhaps unconventionally, you alleviate yourself of restrictions that may have you locked in a bind. When it comes to successful business, the more creative the company, the better equipped they are to overcome any obstacles they may encounter. Some companies are able to rely upon money and an abundance of resources to stay afloat, however, in the event of a serious financial loss, they would be left with nothing. It is always the creative companies that are able to survive. If you were to level the playing field by taking away all the financial resources, what would be left would be the creative energy and intellectual stamina of the business as a whole.

Creativity means being able to depart from the status quo and take a step away from the standard means of operation. Failing to do so will only create more problems. As Einstein notes, it is impossible to solve a problem without shifting to some higher (or at the very least, alternative) level of thinking. Creative thinking is a means of progress. However, it also involves a willingness to take risks. New ideas always present the possibility of failure. Fear of failing is often what prevents companies from taking a more creative approach to the way they operate. Sticking to "tried and true" business methods feels safe. However, what happens when a major change occurs and the old methods no longer suffice? Companies must either choose to evolve or expire.

Take for example, the music recording industry. Record labels are infamous for taking a huge percentage of the artist's album profits and placing them under contractual restrictions that ensure the label has control of the finished product. Tired of having to cater to their producers and label management, a few bands started to take matters into their own hands. In 2007, Radiohead released their album, In Rainbows, on the Internet. The band offered the album for free. Anyone who wanted to download it could pay whatever they wished to do so. Many paid nothing. A few gave extravagant amounts. Most gave somewhere in the range of what they would have paid for any other album. The difference was that all the money went straight to the artists. As a result, the band made far more money than they would have had they renewed their contract with EMI and they were able to have full artistic control of their music. The band took a risk in leaving the security offered by a big name label but came out the better for it.

Taking creative risks always presents the option of failure. The alternative, however, is a sure fade into the background, if not a full collapse with little hope of recovery. Take a creative risk and chances are that you will be successful.

by: kas ksundheim

POST COMMENT

Life As The Gamers See It Find out Flash - An Overview Of The Subselection Device The Consequences Of Online Games On Boys And Girls Collecting Games For Wii 9 out of 10 Hardcore Gamers Like PS3 and Xbox NHL 10 the Best Some thing about game About the game wow Gameznet A Bipolar Life How To Download Games For Wii Arsenal 0-0 Premier League encounter last 3 games big crazy ball into the opponents 14, is expected to victory Develop Your Mind by Playing On-line Mind Games Do You Want To Improve Your Golf Game Tomorrow Progressive Jackpot Games At Online Scratch Cards Sites Make The Fun Never End!