The ability to see things in a different light, from a different angle is crucial to developing creative intelligence.
"Imagination is more important than knowledge..." Albert Einstein
Creative Intelligence is always inquisitive
I had a friend once that was quite a brilliant fellow. His job was trouble shooting for the Northern Canada Power Commission in the Northwest Territories where I lived. When they had a black out, they called him.
Now this fellow was certainly knowledgeable, but it wasn't the knowledge that they called him for as much as his creativity. Not only could he find the problem, but he could rig up some way to get them operating again, even if what he really needed wasn't on hand. He was ace at seeing endless angles. Now that is creativity at its finest.
Everyone has moments of creative genius
I know that at home alone, faced with some broken down something or other, I have come up with a stroke of genius and managed to fix the problem. I found a new angle that enabled me to get by, until a proper repair person could look after the problem for me.
Now someone who knew about such things might have come by and not be impressed at all by my stroke of genius. They may even tell me that that solution has been used many times and is nothing new. But for me it was genius, because I didn't know about it -- I came up with the idea all on my own, a new angle.
I challenge you to remember, and find your own creative genius at work! -- when you saw a new angle. There is your creative intelligence!
Sometimes we're just lazy and use our genius only when necessary
Now in the case of my brilliant find above, if a handy friend of mine had been around, I probably would have just asked him and never have used my own brilliance. How often do we do that?
The truth is the more you use, the sharper it gets.
Take it apart
Back to my earlier friend, he told me about himself when he was a child. He said that he was always getting into trouble for taking things apart. And I mean everything and anything. He was so curious to find out how it worked, how it went together, that left on his own for any period time, he was taking "it" apart.
I remember once, being in the Mayo L.I.D., this small tiny community in the Northwest Territories where I was training a woman to take over my job. The two of us took apart the photocopier. We cleaned it and put it back together. And it worked! We had no experience whatsoever and had no idea what we were doing. We laid every little piece and every little screw carefully in order as we took it apart.
After wards, the two of us were giggling with delight. Couldn't believe we did it or even that we had the nerve to try. But there was no repair available. So we tried it. It is absolutely amazing what each of us is really capable of, when the desire is strong enough.
To develop your creative intelligence you need to use it
If you really want to develop your creative intelligence, you've got to use it. The next time you are faced with a problem, try to solve it yourself. If it's not your area of expertise, see if you can't solve it instead of running to someone else.
If you find yourself wondering how something is put together, take it apart and understand how it works. Maybe come up with a new version. Just for fun.
Exercises you can try to stimulate - "new angle" thinking
- how many uses - take any object or tool, and list how many uses you can dream up other than its original intended use.
- rearrange a room - create a better arrangement that enhances traffic flow, or better utilizes the space
- reorganize your kitchen cupboards - find a more efficient way to organize
- problem solving - don't stop at the first solution, find endless solutions
Put your imagination to work. Don't just accept one solution, or the first one. Look at all the angles. You will find that it becomes a natural habit and you will begin waking up your creative intelligence.
In order to see new angles you must think new angles
Practice finding a new slant on everything and anything you can. You'll discover that we let our brains run on idle a lot of the time. And truly, when they're running on idle, they're generally up to no good. And what I mean by that is -- generally thinking worrisome thoughts about the possible future or rehashing old unfortunate incidences from the past. Such a waste of your creative mind!
Get your mind active, look for new angles at every opportunity and you will be surprised to find the capabilities of your own mind. Think and be creative and begin developing your own creative intelligence.
Gail Karen (G.K.) Eckert is a vocalist, musician, songwriter, author and teacher. She founded Musikhaus Studio of Creativity in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada in 1987.
Get a free copy of her new e book "Be Creative" - a step-by-step guide to a More Creative Way of Life.
Creativity is her specialty. She has written many articles on creativity and journaling. For more tips visit her site. http://www.gkeckert.com
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