Creativity: An Undervalued Asset?

Hi All,

What is creativity, how does it benefit businesses, and why are shower thoughts a thing?

Let’s start!

Creativity – An Undervalued Asset?

What comes to your mind when you hear the word “creativity”? – Do you (maybe) think of artists, paint brushes, and creative writing? Or do you think of growth, progress, and innovation?

For a long time, creativity has been associated with artistry rather than business. However, leadership experts argue that creativity is the main engine of innovation and a major driver of an organisation’s resilience. Organisations that can ‘think outside the box’ are more likely to overcome complex challenges arising from highly dynamic and ever-changing business environments.

Research shows that 80% of people see unlocking creative potential as the key to economic growth. However, only 25% feel that they are living up to their own creative potential. In addition, McKinsey’s sates that an overwhelming majority of executives (94%) are unhappy with the innovative performance of their company.

Before we dive into how organisations can become more creative, let’s clarify:

What is creativity and ‘how does it work’?

Oxford Languages defines creativity as ‘the use of imagination or original ideas to create something; inventiveness’. Synonyms are suggested to be cleverness, genius, imagination, resourcefulness, and talent.

If we can trust the sources of the internet, Albert Einstein already said: ‘Creativity is intelligence having fun’, underlying the point of creativity and intelligence being closely connected.

Anna Abraham who wrote the book ‘The Neuroscience of Creativity’ argues that two elements are central to creativity:

  1. It reflects our capacity to generate ideas that are original, unusual or novel
  2. These ideas need to be satisfying, appropriate or suited to the context in question

From a behavioural research perspective, creativity is relatively difficult to study as it cannot be prompted and is harder to measure compared to other dimensions (e.g., one can test memory by determining if a person remembers a particular event, we can measure knowledge by questioning someone, or we can measure a stimulus by asking if someone e.g., heard a sound). Creativity falls outside these categories. However, what scientists can do is map the brain (using an fMRI scan) during tests of ‘divergent thinking (*)’ and study which brain areas are activated in the process.

A study done by Harvard University in 2017 was able to identify a ‘High Creative Network’, which demonstrates the brain regions involved in creative thinking:

  • The Default Mode Network: activated when people are engaged in spontaneous thinking, such as mind-wandering, daydreaming and imagining. The mind is not focused on the outside world. The default mode network (DMN) is a key element of idea generation and brainstorming.
  • The Executive Control Network: activated when people need to focus or control their thought process.
  • The Salience Network: acts as a switching mechanism between the default and executive networks. A key element in altering between idea generation and idea evaluation.

An interesting feature of these three networks is that they typically don’t get activated at the same time. It is suggested that creative brains are wired differently and co-activate brain systems which usually work separately.

(*) Divergent thinking basically means to ‘think outside the box’. For example, in how many different ways you can use a specific object e.g., a fork?

Why are shower thoughts a thing?

A warm shower can make us feel great and relaxed (dopamine levels rise). Also, the brain is free to disengage from critical thinking, and for many it is a moment where nothing needs to be ‘crossed off the list’ and accomplished. The mind is free to wander.

(Side note: I initially planned to look at creativity in the context of brain waves, however, the topic of brain waves in itself is so extensive and interesting that I decided it deserves its own article further down the line. For today, we will only have a brief look at Alpha waves.)

Alpha waves (8 to 12Hz) are the third slowest brain waves and are present when our brain is in an idling default state typically created when daydreaming, meditating, or engaging in activities where we run on autopilot, like showering, brushing teeth, or commuting to work.

Shower thoughts are a thing because we are not only running on autopilot and have increased dopamine levels, but are also (mostly) secluded from the outside world, which allows the mind to turn inward. A great recipe for creative thought.

Also, if we think of creatives as ‘dreamers’, we are not entirely wrong – alpha waves are just a few Hz away from Theta waves (3 to 8Hz), which occur during sleep and the deepest state of Zen meditation.

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Now, how can we boost team creativity?

Spoiler alert: the answer isn’t “installing more showers in office spaces”.

Below is a summary of ideas from Rebecca Shambaugh, internationally recognised leadership expert and author of the book ‘The Progress Principal’, and from professor Angus Fletcher, who works with teams across Silicon Valley start-ups, U.S. Special Operations, and Fortune 50 companies to identify ways in which organisations can become more creative.

Think counterfactually

Counterfactual thoughts are mental representations of alternatives to past events, actions, or states. For example, instead of gathering a team around a whiteboard and brainstorming possible responses to current challenges, think of a new competitor in your market — an existing start-up, maybe, or an established company that might enter your lane, or some kind of organisation that you anticipate might emerge in the future. Identify one highly anomalous feature of the competitor — and now imagine that you are that competitor. What does your anomalous feature enable you to do in the market? Stretch your horizon as long-term as you can.

Treat everyone as creative

Businesses benefit from treating everyone as creative instead of assuming that creativity is a special gift. If certain employees are viewed as more creative, this can put creative work into silos and renders it vulnerable to groupthink. That’s why organisations that value lone visionaries are so often out-innovated by cultures that treat everyone as creative, reaping the full potential of their existing workforce.

Avoid getting hemmed in the process

Innovation is driven neither by processes nor systems: it is generated by human talent. Shambaugh argues that if a team is creatively blocked, the first step for leadership is to examine whether the processes that surround people are holding them hostage in their thinking. An over-reliance on systematically following rules can shut down collaborative brainstorming, as some may feel they have no flexibility to express outside options that run counter to the standard process and the way things have always been done. If this is the case, Shambaugh suggests trying to remove the limitations of particular procedural structures during creative sessions, so that everyone can feel freer to contribute without bureaucratic constraint.

Create a culture that appreciates anomalies

“Here’s the paradox: Culture is not just creativity’s most potent source but also its biggest killer,” Fletcher argues. In his opinion, a culture that promotes conformity does not value anomalies and therefore kills creativity.
To nurture a culture that fosters originality, he suggests following team exercise: Have everyone anonymously write down something they like but are afraid to admit to the group. Then share the answers, maintaining anonymity. When each answer is shared, ask everyone to take two minutes to imagine that they like the same thing and silently plan a way to incorporate it into the workspace.
The exercise stimulates teams to actively appreciate nonconformity. Also, it primes the brain to value anomalies, which is an important biological source of creative inspiration.

My opinion

I see creativity as a state of ‘letting go’. To me, it feels like freedom and play – a space away from rules and expectations. One might even argue that creativity is an act of surrender? In a work context, I find psychological safety important, meaning that individuals can freely share their ideas without having to be afraid to be shut down or laughed at.

A last thought:

Can AI match human creativity?

AI is suggested to be better than humans when it comes to brainstorming (using logic and randomness). However, creativity by definition requires imagination – a quality AI is not said to have. For example, most artwork is created based on human emotion and consciousness, and while AI can make new creations from it, these are based on original human input. It is suggested that AI will influence how humans produce new creations and is therefore seen as a form of co-creator (for now). What AI will develop into in the future – I guess we are about to find out.

In case you wonder what ChatGPT has to say on that:

  • Prompt: Can AI match human creativity?
  • Answer: (…) While AI can produce outputs that are indistinguishable from those created by humans in some cases, it’s important to recognise that AI creativity differs significantly from human creativity. AI creativity is primarily based on pattern recognition, statistical analysis, and the ability to generate novel combinations of existing data. It lacks the depth of emotional intelligence, intuition, and personal experiences that often drive human creativity. Human creativity is also deeply connected to emotions, imagination, cultural context, and personal experiences, which are challenging for AI to replicate fully. That said, AI can be a valuable tool for augmenting human creativity by offering inspiration, generating ideas, assisting in the creative process, and even pushing the boundaries of what is considered creative. However, for now, AI’s creativity remains different in nature from human creativity, and there are aspects of human creativity that AI has not yet been able to match.

What do you think?

As always, you can reach me on instagram @neuroscience.musings or via the contact form on the website.

Have a great day!!

Best regards,

Sarah

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