The creative thinking It is a form of reasoning that approaches problems through free association and searching outside of what is expected, in order to find an original and novel path towards the solution. It is the thought that allows us to create something new, be it for utilitarian, aesthetic or social purposes.
It is a way of thinking that resorts to creativity and imagination to respond to the needs that one has, instead of resorting to logic and linear thinking.
The capacity for creative thinking is a highly valued trait in people and an outstanding characteristic of our species. In fact, creativity and inventiveness have played a fundamental role throughout human history, from the first stone tools to modern engineering techniques, passing through the many well-known artistic schools and trends.
Characteristics of creative thinking
Broadly speaking, the following is expected from creative thinking:
- Find new ways to solve a problem, either by developing new tools for it or by adapting existing ones.
- That offers new ways of thinking about reality, representing it and communicating it.
- That allows to combine or reorganize in an original way the fragments of information that are already possessed regarding a topic.
Some people are more creative than others, but we can all develop creative thinking. All human beings are capable to some extent of finding original, imaginative or revolutionary solutions to our problems or of manifesting our interiority in personal and unique ways.
Examples of creative thinking
Some examples of creative thinking are the following:
- The composition of a new poem, literary story, or novel by a writer, such as the poems of Pablo Neruda, the short stories of Edgar Allan Poe, or the novels of Joyce Carol Oates.
- The invention of a new instrument to satisfy a specific need, as occurred in the Paleolithic when primitive humanity created its first stone tools or discovered how to produce fire.
- The bursts of creativity that a musician experiences while playing a musical instrument, like the famous “riffs” of the American guitarist Jimmi Hendrix.
- The design of an original logo by a graphic designer hired by a company.
- The fantasies and dreams in which a child takes refuge.
- A witty pun improvised by a clown as part of his routine at a children’s party.
- The construction of a work of plastic art from the remains of metal furniture rescued from the garbage.
- A remix of traditional songs made by a disc jockey to liven up a party.
- The adaptation of certain instruments or tools to new purposes or new situations, like someone who designs a screwdriver with the proper curvature to remove the internal screws of a device.
- The imagination of an own universe by authors such as JRR Tolkien (The Lord of the rings) or JK Rowling (Harry Potter), which give rise to books, films, comics and the collaboration of other artists and creatives.
- Solving Zen enigmas or “lateral thinking” exercises in which creativity is applied to solving a riddle.
- The redesign of a home or an entire building during your architectural restoration work.
- The composition of a symphony in which the different instruments of an orchestra intervene and which forms an artistic work in itself.
- The invention of a new “meme” or a graphic humor cartoon based on the intervention of already existing material on the Internet.
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