Introduction to The Creative Nudge.

   You can’t teach people how to be creative. That’s because we are all born creative, with the ability to think laterally. To problem-solve creatively in everyday life. Capable of original ideas and thoughts. So, the good news is that it’s already in there. It hasn’t gone for good or shrunk, no matter how long it has been since you last saw it. Your creative self is sitting there patiently, waiting for you. 

Creativity isn’t a job title. It’s not about being an artist. Creativity isn’t even about being able to draw (despite what your art teacher may have told you). Some of the least creative people we know can draw brilliantly. Creativity is a way of looking at the world in whatever field you are in. Even a big muddy field.  There’s creativity in every industry, every walk of life. Breakthroughs in science or technology don’t come by accepting what people have already told us. The future is in the hands of creative thinkers. 

Creativity demands that you force your brain out of autopilot. Engage it. Train it to accept new things. Creativity is being brave enough to do new things in new ways – exhilarated by the challenge and the fear. It’s about taking risks. Being open to new ideas. Following your own path. Turning your back on the familiar and the ordinary. It’s about being extraordinary. Creativity unlocks the door to a more colourful and vibrant world of possibilities. Yes, of course it’s a bit scary. But where would the fun be if it wasn’t? 

Imagine being able to look and think beyond the constraints and pressures life imposes on you. Imagine being able to sprinkle magic onto the mundane. It only takes a few simple nudges. It doesn’t matter who you are, how old you are or what you do for a living, you were born with the ability to think creatively. It’s time to unleash it.  

You can only teach people how not to be creative. Creativity is something that we unlearn. Evolution, society, education, the workplace, life, all do a great job in helping us to unlearn it. They tell us how to think, how to behave, how to fit in. Don’t rock the boat, stick to what you know, failure’s not an option. These insidious little thought worms are holding you back. It’s very unlikely that there was a point in your life when you decided that you were no longer going to be in any way creative. Instead, creativity has been stolen from you bit by tiny bit without you even noticing. As creatures we are desperate 

to fit in – to be accepted by the herd. It’s how we have learned to survive. We’re hard-wired to emulate the behaviours of others. This is the reason why the fashion industry, for one, is so successful; we signal our desire to identify with others. Why else would rational beings all wear ripped jeans, then flares, then skinny fit, then stone wash, then hipsters? To reverse the process, we’re going to help you overcome this biological and sociological double whammy and let all that wonderful, brave, original creative thinking come flooding back into your life. 

So, all you need to do is unlearn everything. Don’t worry. It’s easier than it sounds. Well, we say it’s easy more to encourage you than because we really believe it. Nothing worth doing is ever easy. But it is possible.