5 Steps To Unlock Your Creative Thinking
James Clear reveals this process for producing creative ideas.
Creative thinking is one of the most valuable skills we can possess to produce high-quality work.
But contrary to popular belief, creativity is less about discovering something new from scratch and more about making new connections between old ideas.
“The creative process is the act of making new connections between old ideas. Thus, we can say creative thinking is the task of recognizing relationships between concepts.” — James Clear
In his blog, James Clear (author of Atomic Habits) explains this creative process in 5 steps:
- Learn deep & wide
- Digest & organize your learning
- Take your mind off the problem
- Let the idea come to you
- Shape & refine your idea
Here’s how to tackle each step to unlock more creative thinking.
Step 1) Learn deep & wide
Collect as much information as possible on the subject at hand, as well as unrelated but exciting concepts.
Learn specific material directly related to your problem to go deep.
Learn general concepts from different subjects you’re fascinated with to go wide.
Step 2) Digest & organize your learning
Sort through the information.
Examine what you’ve learned from different angles, and look for patterns and connections in the information.
Step 3) Take your mind off the problem
Step away from the problem and do something unrelated that energizes you.
Let your subconscious mind process your learning and thinking.
Many call this step “incubation.”
Step 4) Let the idea come to you
At some point, your idea will come to you suddenly and out of nowhere.
It can happen before sleep, in the shower, while listening to music, or while walking.
Giving our brain permission to stop working will reveal the solution when we least expect it.
Step 5) Shape & adapt quickly
Write down the idea immediately as soon as you have your “eureka” moment (we’re terrible at retaining information).
Refine your idea, share your work often for feedback, and adapt as needed.
Every critical problem we face can benefit from creative ideas and innovative solutions.
Creativity is less about coming up with the first idea of its kind and more about connecting existing ideas to generate unique insights.
When we apply these steps in our professional and personal work, we pave the path to foster innovative thinking and creative solutions.
You can read James Clear’s blog article here.
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