Essential

Make creative
ideas emerge

Creativity cannot be produced to order. It requires a state of mind, an openness

that is favorable to the emergence of new ideas. This means first of all accepting
the discomfort of the creative challenge and venturing into uncharted terrain.
Next, it means setting a reasonable framework that is neither too strict nor
too vague, one that represents the right level of motivational constraint.
Lastly, it means adopting new approaches, tools and means of expression so
that new possibilities may arise.

Accepting the discomfort

Accepting the challenge less consciously—in a sense allowing ourselves to

Coming up with new ideas or providing creative
solutions involves thinking outside the box and
self-analysis. This does not necessarily happen by
itself, especially in a business environment where
immediate performance relies as much as possible on
proven processes with predictable results.
The risky nature of a creative role may generate
a feeling of anxiety; this should be accepted and
overcome. It means accepting the challenge of being
creative, and the uncertainty that goes with it: "I think
outside the box and I won't be boxed in!"
Living with the question
A creative role will take the form of a question to
which an answer must be given.
Example: What new approach should we take
towards the customer?
be inhabited by it. Rather than rushing to try to find
immediate answers, it is better to allow time for the
question to develop so that creative ideas can form.
They can arise when least expected, such as when
Archimedes had his famous "eureka" moment, finding
the answer to the question the king had put to him
about the metal in his crown.
Accepting the initial confusion
The new question that arises may cause a feeling
of losing one’s bearings. This is normal! We must
accept the confusion that comes with the search
for a creative idea.
Accept not knowing which way to go, be happy to
receive apparently contradictory information without
trying to make sense of it, consider that divergent
paths are an integral part of the process. When we
venture into new territory, no existing map can tell
us which way to go. We must explore!

Having to learn to live with the question means that

we must keep it in mind and think about it more or

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Make creative
ideas emerge
Setting a framework
Setting motivating constraints
Creativity thrives on constraints that are appropriate
and then immediately adopted and integrated.
It means setting deadlines and objectives that
encourage commitment. Once the destination has
been fixed, you can concentrate on how to get there,
on what people say, on what new ideas emerge.
The difficulty lies in finding the right level
of challenge for these objectives and deadlines.
If too pressing, they stifle creativity and discourage
people. If too loose, they cause procrastination and
disinterest.
An analogy can help with understanding this idea of
"appropriate constraints.” A man decides to go and
see a friend while walking across the park. If he says
he will do it one day, the odds are that he will never
do it.
If he arranges to meet his friend in 10 minutes, he
will run through the park without paying attention
Letting the ideas emerge
"Wasting time" every day
This means avoiding being obsessive about
productivity.
The person who is stuck at their desk, staring at a
blank sheet of paper or an empty computer screen,
painfully aware of the time that is passing, has little
chance of having an innovative idea. This obsession
with productivity naturally leads to existing solutions
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Essential
to anything other than the minutes that are passing.
If he arranges to meet his friend in 2 hours, he has
the time to stroll in the park and come up with
something new. He can then have a more creative
discussion with his friend by sharing with him what
he has discovered.
Doing your homework
Clearly, preparation encourages creativity. This means
acquiring information and immersing yourself in it
in relation to the question posed, without letting
yourself be discouraged at the start by disparate data
and apparent paradoxes.
Enriching your knowledge about the question
enables you to create the breeding ground where
new ideas can emerge. Associations and new ideas
will be nourished by all the research undertaken
during this preparatory phase.
that have little that is new about them. When it
comes to creativity, you must know how to waste
time in order to save it later on.
Example: Innovative companies such as 3M or Google
allow employees to devote 20% of their work time to
side projects, which in the end generate many ideas
for their main occupation.
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 Essential
Make creative
ideas emerge

Lightening up Trying out new tools

Taking a break can often help you make progress
in your search for a solution. Many innovative ideas
spring up around the coffee machine with colleagues.
More broadly, it means opening up to other worlds
outside of work: other functions within the company,
other jobs, other professional environments, other
creative fields, etc. A new idea can often emerge
out of a need or practice observed in a different field.
Example 1: The Post-it® was invented by a member
of staff at 3M. He sang in to a choir and needed
a bookmark that would not damage the score.
There is no better way of expressing your new ideas
than to use all the different means at your disposal:
drawings, models, cutouts and collages (e.g. the
mood boards used by designers or graphic designers
to show the direction they want a project to take),
origami, etc.; there are so many opportunities for
you to break with your working habits, avoid taking
too analytical an approach, plunge into a more
playful world and let your imagination soar.

Example 2: Taking pharmaceutical packaging

(tablets contained in a blister pack) as inspiration
enabled an aerospace supplier to come up with
a solution to confirm the correct number of
special screws used for high-tech assemblies.

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