Instant Creativity: Simple Techniques to Ignite Innovation and Problem Solving [Paperback]

"Provides an easy-to-use 'action kit' complete with exercises that will help readers to make the most of their creativity and that of others." Charity Times "Sets out various techniques to make the routine nine-to-fiver start thinking more creatively ... a good resource to dip into". Professional Manager "Recommended, even if you simply want to increase the creative thinking that goes into your business." Bracknell News "Instant Creativity sets out various techniques to make the routine nine-to-fiver start thinking more creatively. ... a good resource to dip into." Professional Manager "Simple, proven techniques free up natural creativity and find fresh ideas and solutions. Dig into as a resource to help at any stage of the problem-solving process. A useful book for students and managers alike." Business Executive "Provides an easy-to-use 'action kit' complete with exercises that will help readers to make the most of their creativity and that of others." Charity Times "Sets out various techniques to make the routine nine-to-fiver start thinking more creatively ... a good resource to dip into". Professional Manager "Recommended, even if you simply want to increase the creative thinking that goes into your business." Bracknell News "I found this book cleverly constructed and full of wonderfully straightforward, practical tips for breathing some innovation back into a business... in fact, it is innovative in its simplicity!" Journal of Administrative Management "Easy to use. Recommended, even if you simply want to increase the creative thinking that goes into your business." Reading Chronicle

sets out various techniques to make the routine nine-to-fiver start thinking more creatively ... a good resource to dip into.

"Simple, proven techniques free up natural creativity and find fresh ideas and solutions."

This book is an easy-to-use action kit bursting with exercises that will help everyone to find fresh ideas and solutions, and to make the most of their creativity.

"Cleverly constructed and full of wonderfully straightforward, practical tips for breathing some innovation back into a business..."

Instant Creativity is a collection of tried and tested techniques to encourage individuals and groups make the most of their creativity. It offers over seventy quick and simple exercises to help find fresh ideas and solutions to problems. It is designed for combating a lack of inspiration, for brainstorming ideas for new projects, creating a better understanding of an ongoing problem or for seeking a general direction. The range of ideas will help tap into the creative energies of any individual or an uninspired team. They are particularly useful for marketers, advertising professionals and product designers.

Brian Clegg is Director of Creativity Unleashed Ltd training in business creativity, customer service and personal/team development. He is a Fellow of Royal Society of Arts and has Masters degrees from Cambridge and Lancaster Universities. He has contributed to a wide range of magazines (eg. Professional Manager, Good Housekeeping, Computer Weekly, BBC History) and has written over 20 books, translated into 10 languages. They have previously co-authored Business Creativity, Imagination Engineering, DisOrganization, Instant Teamwork and Crash Course in Creativity.

Paul Birch is Director of VisionJuice, a creativity and organisational change consultancy. During an 18 year career at BA he took a billion pounds out of the cost base as Head of Business Planning; and as the company's first Corporate Jester, he challenged the set thinking that permeates most modern organisations. He is a visiting lecturer at Henley Management College and Oxford University and has written nine books on creative thinking, organisational change, teamwork and leadership.

1 Why Creativity? 1

Creativity or bust 1; Can you catch it from a book? 2; What's the hurry? 2

2 Creativity primer 5

What is it? 5; What stops it? 6; Why techniques? 7; Association to ideas 8; The longer view 10

3 The techniques 11

Questions and answers 11; Individuals and groups 12; Choosing a technique 12; The Instant Creativity structure 13

4 Techniques 1 - What's the question? 15

4.1 Compass 16; 4.2 Obstacle map 18; The level chain 20; 4.4 Aerial survey 22; 4.5 Destination 24; 4.6 Do nothing 26; 4.7 Shorts 28; 4.8 Adventure 30; 4.9 Outside in 32; 4.10 Up and down 34; 4.11 Time slices 36; 4.12 Thesaurus 38; 4.13 Crystal ball 40; 4.14 Web wandering 42; 4.15 Excellence 44; 4.16 Army of a thousand 46; 4.17 Solve a different problem 48; 4.18 Restatement 50; 4.19 Mud slinging 52; 4.20 Questions race 54; Whiteboard 56

5 Techniques 2 - What's the answer? 59

5.1 Challenging assumptions 60; 5.2 Distortion 62; 5.3 Reversal 64; 5.4 Fantasy 66; 5.5 Someone else's view 68; 5.6 Metaphor 70; 5.7 Random word 72; 5.8 Random picture 74; 5.9 Found objects 76; 5.10 Nonsense sentence 78; 5.11 On this day 80; 5.12 Cool site 82; 5.13 Headlines 84; 5.14 Quotations 86; 5.15 Squirrel box 88; 5.16 Set it to music 90; 5.17 Da Vinci scribbles 92; 5.18 Inside view 94; 5.19 Shades 96; 5.20 Problem perfect 98; 5.21 Frontiers 100; 5.22 Attributes 102; 5.23 Kid's play 104; 5.24 Components 106; 5.25 Substitute 108; 5.26 It's a steal 110; 5.27 Behind it 112; 5.28 Draw it 114; 5.29 Touch me, feel me 116; 5.30 Evil genius 118; 5.31 The game 120; 5.32 It's silly 122; 5.33 Been there before 124; 5.34 Abattoir of sacred cows 126; 5.35 Size matters 128; 5.36 Lose the baggage 130; 5.37 Auntie gravity 132; 5.38 Long division 134; 5.39 It's only natural 136; 5.40 Location 138; 5.41 TV listings 140; 5.42 Cacophony 142; 5.43 Morphology 144; 5.44 Talking pictures 146; 5.45 Two words 148; 5.46 Psychiatrist's couch 150; 5.47 Mix and match 152; 5.48 Lost in translation 154; 5.49 They're winning 156; 5.50 The £100 bid 158; 5.51 SWOT 160; 5.52 Option evaluation 162; 5.53 Signposts 164; 5.54 Hazard markers 166

6 Other sources 169

There's more 169; Reading up 169; E-creativity 171

Appendix 1 - The selector 175

The Random Selector 175; Techniques in timing order 176; Techniques in expertise order 177; Techniques in direction setting order 178; Techniques in idea generation order 179; Techniques in problem solving order 180; Techniques in fun order 181

Appendix 2 - Lists for techniques 183

5.5 Someone else's view 183; 5.7 Random word and 5.45 Two words 184; 5.10 Nonsense sentence 185; 5.19 Shades 186