Used brushes on an artist's palette of colourful oil paint for drawing and painting.
Image: © kolyadzinskaya /Stock.adobe.com

You can boost your creativity by following these steps

30 Nov 2018

Soft skills such as creativity are only becoming more valuable in the working world as time wears on. Here are ways you can boost your own.

Creativity has always been prized by employers. These days, however, as AI becomes more widespread in the working world, inherently ‘human’ soft skills are more valuable than ever because these skills are the ones that robots cannot replicate. At least, they can’t right now.

It also may interest you to know that 60pc of CEOs agree that creativity is the most important skill to have in a leadership role. You can see why, as creativity allows people to see solutions to problems that may not be readily apparent. Creative people can overcome obstacles in unconventional ways by inventively using the resources already available. Creativity and innovation – another word bandied about frequently when hiring managers discuss the ideal candidate – go hand in hand.

Yet creativity, like many soft skills, can seem like the type of thing that cannot be taught. The path to learning hard skills is much more clearly delineated. With something as broad as creativity, things are more opaque.

Luckily, this infographic by Davitt Corporate Partners provides clarity and details ways to inspire creativity, some more unexpected than others.

For example, did you know that, according to a study conducted by cognitive scientist Barry Kaufman, 72pc of people get creative ideas in the shower? It explains the origins of the r/Showerthoughts Reddit thread.

Going for a long walk, as well as having myriad health benefits, could also be a great way to stimulate creativity, according to Stanford researchers. Take your lunch break as an opportunity to stretch your legs, get some fresh air and mull over difficult problems.

Perhaps the real solution is to take a more hands-off approach. Whether you’re conscious of it or not, your mind is always ruminating, as questions and issues crop up. Allowing your mind to wander by focusing on other things, or perhaps a controlled bout of allowing yourself to not focus at all, could be exactly what you need to get the gears turning in your head.

For more tips on improving your creativity, check out the infographic below.

Want stories like this and more direct to your inbox? Sign up for Tech Trends, Silicon Republic’s weekly digest of need-to-know tech news.

Eva Short
By Eva Short

Eva Short was a journalist at Silicon Republic, specialising in the areas of tech, data privacy, business, cybersecurity, AI, automation and future of work, among others.

Loading now, one moment please! Loading