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Creative thinking: exercises that will help develop creativity. How to develop creativity in children and adults

Jan 29 2016

Out-of-the-box thinking is largely in demand in the field of information. The development of creative thinking in adults is useful in professions such as:

  • professions in the field of advertising and management;
  • professions of a psychologist (conducting psychoanalysis);
  • professions of a designer, artist;
  • writing profession;
  • in other creative professions.

People sometimes think that those who excel in creative professions come from another world. Where do their great ideas come from? There is nothing unusual about this, they see the same reality as everyone else, but at the same time they see it in a completely different way.

They do not adjust to reality, but try to adjust reality itself to fit their ideas. It is difficult for an adult to see something unusual in an ordinary thing, when a small child in the shadow of a branch can see the silhouette of a bird. This is because in childhood everyone sees the world without restrictions, he is given all the creative potential to know the world. But as he grows older, he loses this ability. At school we are taught the principles of general logic.

So how can we develop our creative thinking, which has been lost over the years?

First of all, we recall that creative thinking is associated with the right hemisphere of the brain. Where our emotions originate is intuition. In childhood, the child's right hemisphere is first more developed, while in most adults it is the left, logically abstract. How to develop creative thinking in adults?

The first thing that is required to develop brilliant ideas is a psychological attitude.

The usual gray environment dulls the perception and causes a dull mood. To make it always good, start seeing the world as if you are seeing everything for the first time. Think about the fact that you are an alien and have never been in this city, on this planet before. Hang a colorful picture in the area where you are working on ideas. It will help you focus and stimulate your perception and think more positively.

Organize the process of training the development of creative thinking on Wikium according to an individual program

A wise man once said: "The happy beggar sleeps on the doorstep of the poor rich man." At the same time, many are trying to understand what is the meaning of life? We can say that any creative activity that gives you a sense of self-satisfaction can become your meaning. Physiologically, the feeling of happiness is associated with the chemical reaction of the brain and the release of endorphins. This neurohormone is involved in the formation of positive perception and reinforcement of success. Any activity, even house cleaning, for example, can bring pleasure, if at the same time you experience positive emotions.

An adult is inclined to set himself various mental restrictions. The thought that you will not be able to solve a difficult task that you have taken on for the first time leads to a negative attitude and obviously dooms you to failure.

It must be remembered that everything is possible in the world and it is unlimited, and only your perception can be limited. To some extent, a brilliant idea will require you to renounce everything known, from intellectual prohibitions. If, nevertheless, the task could not be solved, one should not use a bad experience as a generalization of the thought “I can never do this”.

Try to work on your ideas in the same place. There is a connection of sensations, emotions with a certain situation, which sets you up for productive mental work. In the future, this environment and even a certain time of day will stimulate your creative process without any effort.

In order for the mind to start working creatively, it must be trained to work in different directions. The following exercises will help you develop creative thinking.

Exercise "Find another use for the subject." Take, for example, a common stool item and try to think of something else to do with it. You can turn it upside down and use it as a Christmas tree stand. You can use its smooth surface as a table. This method can also be applied to words. Take any word and come up with a non-standard phrase or metaphor with it. Present the meaning figuratively, then collapse and replace with a symbol. Try to find this symbol in the outlines of some object.

Exercise "Story with a limited number of words" . The more you limit the real space for yourself, the more it stimulates the development of all kinds of thoughts, how these words can be applied (as in a critical situation, when subconscious resources are connected). Do not be afraid to express thoughts with fantastic ideas, you should not limit yourself to only real meanings.

These are exercises that will help you develop creativity.

Exercise "Combining the incongruous" . Try to associate words with the opposite meaning in phrases. For example, hot ice, hard cotton, dark day. Such a game of association contributes to the restructuring of the mind in a different way.

Exercise "Words in reverse" . On the way to work or school, when you see the names of shops and cafes, try to read these and other names backwards. For example, a pharmacy is “aketpa”. Then try, in this way, to read not only the names, but also phrases and phrases.

Exercise "First denouement" . Another wonderful exercise contributes to the restructuring in a non-standard way. Try to start reading the book not from the beginning, but from the middle or end. Thus, the denouement will be the first in meaning, and the preface will be the last.

Studying of foreign language . The best gymnastics for the mind is learning a foreign language. If you already know a foreign language, then take a second one. Try to ensure that languages ​​do not have a similar structure (eg German, Chinese). As you study a foreign language, you will gradually begin to see the structures of your native language. This will allow you to perceive events and objects in a more multifaceted way, from the position of perception of another language. Such erudition in relation to “definitions and their relationships” contributes quite strongly to the development of non-standard thinking.

Exercise "Rephrase it" . When thinking about a particular task or idea, try to express thoughts about it indirectly, using free associations. Try to rephrase your thoughts, retell in other words.

Get yourself a notebook in which you will write down all the unexpected ideas that come to mind. Try to save every idea, even if at first glance it seems quite stupid.

Expand your horizons. If you learned some unfamiliar word in a conversation or from a book, do not be lazy to look up the meaning of the word in the dictionary. If this word is taken from a historical context, find out what it meant in those days, and what time period it is associated with, what events contributed to its occurrence. Study, for example, such words and phrases as "primus", "red October".

Creativity is an important factor contributing to success in many areas of life. Therefore, it seems logical and natural to want to learn as much as possible about the development of creativity.

The development of creativity is directly related to life experience, the level of knowledge, the way of life of a person, with his interpersonal relationships. By expanding your horizons - becoming more reading, traveling, communicating with interesting people - you are taking a big step towards developing the creativity of your thinking. After all, a creative solution is, in fact, the result of the interweaving of various knowledge.

If you have a small stock of knowledge or they are very superficial, or even worse - if all your knowledge is concentrated in only one area, then the chances of giving birth to creative thoughts and making creative decisions, due to a small amount of source material, are very small. So collect knowledge, emotions and impressions.

Creativity is not a single ability - it is a combination of personality traits and features of her intellect. Therefore, if you want to develop creative thinking, you need to:

Perceive yourself as a creative and diversified person;

Be an independent person and be able to resist external requirements;

To be able to challenge other people's assumptions, as well as to have the willingness and desire to act through the “What if ?!”;

Be curious, receptive, open-minded, ready for something new;

Be an energetic person, easy-going;

Have insight and observation;

To be able to combine incompatible;

To be able to present their ideas and thoughts, to convince a person;

Have a sense of humor and playfulness...

From this list, the first “must” should be highlighted. There is an interesting opinion - The only thing that distinguishes a "creative" person from a "non-creative" one is that the "creative" person is convinced that he is such. Therefore, everything he does, he does with this thought. Think!

A few words about independence. It is easier for an independent person to develop creativity and become creative, because his opinions and decisions are rarely amenable to other people's influence and destructive criticism. Therefore, there are fewer restrictions and more space and freedom for action.

Methods for developing creativity

Psychology understands creativity as special creative abilities, and creativity in all its manifestations is based on imagination. Therefore, an important part of the development of creative abilities is the development of imagination.

Psychologists who analyzed the components of creativity came to the conclusion that intuition (intuitive understanding) is also an important component for the development of creative thinking. Read - "How to develop intuition."

Communicate with creative and creative people who have achieved some success, try to spend as much time with them as possible, if possible, be sure to watch how they work. These do not have to be people of art, because a creative person can be found in any profession.

Don't be afraid to experiment. Our strict self-imposed rules (how to behave and think) lead us to reject good ideas that could contribute to the development of creativity. Fearful of becoming the target of ridicule, we control our behavior for correctness and acceptability. Experiment and don't be afraid to be funny!

An important point that will move the development of creative thinking off the ground is a call to action. Do not wait for the right moment to try to create something original, interesting and amazing, do not think that you are not ready. Start creating and already in the process of work you will realize that you have been missing so much for many years.

Developing creativity, for the sake of training, set yourself tasks, the solution of which does not give you anything.

The process of developing creativity can be started by borrowing someone else's idea from people working in your field. Don't take this as a call for plagiarism. We are talking about development, about learning something new, new trends and trends, and passing them through the prism of our own perception.

How creativity is born

Creative thought sometimes comes suddenly through insight, but basically it is born by the method of orienting consciousness to the search for ideas. That is, to begin with, we determine what ideas we need (area of ​​application), then we focus on them and begin to develop (arrange brainstorming), then, after one or more worthy ideas come to mind, their fixation and versatile study follow ( grinding). Ask and where is the advice on developing creative thinking? A significant increase in creativity just gives the ability to develop, capture and fix suddenly flashed thoughts and ideas.

In order to develop creativity and make this process easier and more understandable, you need to follow the rules:

When taking on a task or starting to develop an idea, be extremely focused (at the initial stages of creativity development, this is especially necessary), without being distracted by anything else, concentrate your attention on one idea or subject.

If you need to create a new original product or a creative approach is needed to solve a problem, your mind must be plastic and flexible. Learn to think outside the box, switch from one train of thought to another. Build unexpected combinations, play all sorts of options, mix ideas, consider the situation from all sides. To explore more and more new possibilities, make the most unthinkable assumptions.

5 creative thinking exercises

So, 5 exercises:

2 random words

Take any book or explanatory dictionary. Choose 2 words at random: open any page and poke your finger without looking. And now try to find something in common between these two words, compare them, compare, analyze, look for relationships. You can come up with an incredible, even crazy story that would link these two concepts. Exercise and train your brain.

Follies of an architect

How do you feel about taking on the role of an architect and designing a house? Do you not know how to draw or did you remember with horror school drawing lessons and strength of materials at the university? It's okay, the ability to draw and draw is the tenth thing here. The main thing is the process. Well, do you agree? Great, then let's go.

First, write down 10 nouns on a sheet, any. Tangerine, glass, meadow, water, tomato - whatever comes to mind. These 10 words are 10 must-haves for the customer you are designing a house for. For example, “mandarin” - make the walls of the house orange, “water” - let there be a fountain or a pond in front of the house, “tomato” - put red fish into the pond or hang red curtains in the house, etc. Let your imagination run wild. Draw and imagine what it would look like in real life.

Associations (5+5)

Take a look at the room you are in right now. What subject caught your eye? Mine is for a chocolate bar that lies on the table. Now take a piece of paper with a pen and write down 5 adjectives that best fit the subject you have chosen. For example, dark chocolate, delicious chocolate, Belgian chocolate, natural chocolate, loose chocolate (imported, domestic, favorite, white, milk, hot, bar chocolate and many other options come to mind).

Have you written? And now the most interesting thing - write 5 more adjectives that absolutely do not fit. It is noticeably more difficult to make: glass chocolate, plush chocolate, summer chocolate, mystery chocolate, roasted chocolate. o_O That's what came to my mind. Dig into your feelings and perceptions and find the right definitions. Put in a little more effort, and everything will turn out, the main thing is not to leave the task unfulfilled. Sit and meditate.

Hour of Silence

Do not be afraid, take water in your mouth and you will not have to be silent. As you understand from the title of the exercise, this task will take you one hour, but at the same time you should not break away from your business and your usual daily routine. At this hour, answer people only general questions, using "yes" and "no". Be as natural as possible so that no one suspects anything strange. Others should not get the impression that you are out of your mind, sick or getting up in the morning on the wrong foot. Try it and believe me, you will fall in love.

Creativity Test

The main thing here is to believe in yourself, and cast all doubts away. We take a sheet of paper and draw crosses: 6 in height and 9 in length:

Now tune in to the creative wave, take a deep breath and slowly exhale. We take a pen and start turning the crosses into pictures and small sketches

Finished? And now look at what happened and choose the most successful ones, there will certainly be such ones.

When we hear the word "creative", such areas of human activity as marketing and advertising immediately come to mind. This is explained by the fact that the work of specialists from these areas is directly related to the generation of new ideas. However, if you think about what creativity is, then most likely it is a process, so it is very

Important for any field of activity.

To date

At the moment, creativity has become an important quality that a candidate who has taken part in the struggle for a highly paid position should possess. Someone says that it is akin to genius, and it is impossible to develop it. Someone, on the contrary, offers to develop this quality and guarantees success for any person. Now everywhere you can stumble upon hundreds of trainings aimed at development, but are they really necessary? Therefore, before signing up for the next course, it’s worth figuring out what creative is all the same.

Meaning of the word

If we imagine creativity at the everyday level, then it can be called ingenuity, that is, the ability to achieve goals and find a way out of the current difficult situation, while using objects and furnishings in a non-standard way. From the outside, this may seem like something ingenious, but at the same time simple. The thought arises: "Why didn't I think of this before?" Such a non-trivial approach to solving problems is creativity.

Translated from English, this word sounds more like "create" or "create", but this applies not only to material things. As you can see, this is an extremely useful thing. But where does it come from? According to Abraham

Maslow, an American psychologist, this ability of an individual is innately characteristic of absolutely everyone, but in the course of upbringing and external influence it can be lost. To assess the level of creativity, various tests, personality questionnaires are used, and various situations are simulated.

The creative problem

Now you know what creativity is. Let's take a closer look at the process of creating ideas. It may seem that brilliant ideas come from nowhere and just appear in your head, but that's not at all the case. English psychologist Graham Wallace identifies 4 phases of creative problem solving.

The first one is preparation. At this stage, the task or problem is formulated, and the first attempts are made to solve it. Next comes the incubation phase. Here a person, as a rule, is distracted by another object or action and does not return to the task until the moment of enlightenment (the third phase), until intuitive penetration into the very essence of the problem. And the final stage is verification, that is, the implementation of the solution.

In fact, in order for the creativity of thinking to manifest itself, it is necessary to turn off the consciousness and completely trust the subconscious. That is why the second phase is so important. Most often, we interfere with ourselves, trying to consciously find a solution in situations we already know, but this will not help to come up with something new. The problem of creativity can also be our complexes or the fear of looking stupid. All this makes it difficult to think creatively.

Criteria for creative thinking

Many tests are aimed precisely at assessing the criteria for creativity in a person. The most famous test at the moment was created by psychologist Paul Torrens. It allows you to determine the level of this very beginning. Here are some of the criteria:

  • fluency;
  • originality;
  • flexibility (allows you to determine false originality);
  • metaphor, that is, the ability to see the complex in the simple and vice versa;
  • susceptibility;
  • development;
  • satisfaction.

Creativity Methods

Creativity techniques are methods and techniques designed to facilitate the process of generating new original ideas and solutions.

tasks. They are designed to help clearly and clearly formulate problems, speed up the process of finding solutions, increase the number of ideas, and also expand the scope of the problem. However, it is worth noting that this is not an algorithm, following which you will certainly get a solution. Methods only increase the likelihood of good and correct ideas, they organize the search process itself, making it more efficient.

What is creativity? It is primarily a tool for getting something new and original. Stimulation techniques are used in all spheres of life, for example, engineers and inventors successfully use such methods as TRIZ (the theory of inventive problem solving). The technique is widely used in the field of advertising and marketing, and the SCAMPER technique is used to create completely new products. There are also universal ones. These include brainstorming and the Walt Disney method. They have found application in almost every industry. Sometimes graphic images are also used, for example, the technique of building a mind map, these are also aimed at additional development of creativity.

Popular methods and techniques

The most famous at the moment are the following:


Development of creativity

Having learned what a creative is, you will certainly want to try to find a non-standard solution. Perhaps you are one of those people who have not lost this ability, then you will not have problems. However, practice shows that without training aimed at development, it is not so easy to achieve creativity. How to develop your creativity?

First of all, you need to get rid of stereotypes in thinking and

acquire the ability to think outside the box. This can be facilitated by exercises that should become a habit for you.

Exercises for every day

Take, for example, your way home or to work. Usually it passes along the same road. Try changing your route to a stop or walking the part of the distance that you travel on the bus. Every day try to change the road and find new options.

Everything new and untried is useful: places, menus, actions, clothes, and even thoughts. Creativity, the meaning of which is directly related to creativity, will help develop art or needlework. Exercises such as reading backwards (from bottom to top or from right to left) are also very useful and uplifting.

Try to come up with 10 exotic names like Diosthene, Hematina, or Eiergestior. Draw an animal that doesn't exist, give it a name, figure out where it lives and what it eats. Take any word and imagine that it is an abbreviation, decipher it. All these exercises are simple and fun, but they will help you develop creativity.

Creativity is a set of creative qualities that allows a person to create innovative ideas in almost any field. It is believed that creativity is inherent from birth. However, in order for them to be fully manifested, it is necessary to ensure the development of creativity in younger students. At this age, children are most relaxed and not subject to standard thinking, therefore they are able to create freely, without recognizing authorities.

What is needed to develop creativity

Unfortunately, improper upbringing and the imposition of generally accepted standards can completely drown out the creative "vein". Nevertheless, the success of a person in adult life often depends on the ability to maximize creative abilities. In order to keep up and achieve career growth, to become an interesting person, it is necessary to develop creative thinking.

This quality is directly related to several factors. First of all, they should include the level of knowledge, accumulated life experience and lifestyle. The lack of knowledge in the professional field leads to limitations. However, it is much worse if all the skills of a person are concentrated in only one area. In this case, it is quite difficult for him to go beyond and think freely. Therefore, harmonious development in several directions is necessary.

It is believed that the development of creativity is associated with several qualities:

  • faith in one's own strengths;
  • defending their independence;
  • opposition to imposed standards;
  • willingness to take risks;
  • curiosity;
  • observation;
  • the ability to convince the opponent;
  • sense of humor.

In most cases, the only quality that distinguishes a creative person is the ability to believe in their creativity. All other factors are an addition necessary to promote your own ideas.

Since creativity is based on the presence of imagination, it is necessary to develop it. It's great if a person has high intuition. In this case, already at a subconscious level, he is able to catch an interesting idea and in the future devote time to its development.

Your own creative thoughts may not be enough to be successful. Therefore, it is worth looking for like-minded people, people with experience in innovation. Not necessarily these are representatives of art, creativity is necessary in any profession. You should be more resolute and not be afraid of experiments, looking ridiculous in the eyes of society.

You should not delay the start of the experiment for a more suitable time, wait until the idea matures. It is important to start implementing it. If you don’t have your own ideas, you can try to promote someone else’s, understanding what remains unfinished in it.


As a rule, the process of the birth of a new idea does not begin with an "insight", but with a methodical search for the scope of one's skills. Next, follows " Brainstorming" - active reflection on the task. And only after the birth of a specific idea, it is carefully polished, carefully working through.

To achieve a positive result, it is necessary to focus on the selected area as much as possible.

Also, learn to think outside the box. To do this, you will have to become somewhat like children who find an original approach to solving any problem, without relying on the opinion of authorities that they do not yet have.

However, techniques for developing creativity have long been created that allow a person to change his thinking as much as possible.

Creativity Techniques to Consider

Do not think that the technology for developing creativity is available only to an incredibly gifted person.

In fact, anyone can enhance creativity by resorting to simple techniques:




Psychologists say that most often, solving the most difficult problems becomes much easier if a person experiences a positive attitude.

The development of creative abilities can be greatly helped by exercises aimed at the formation of non-standard thinking.

For example, a person has a box of matches, a box of push pins, and a candle.

How can you attach a candle to the surface of a wooden door to maximize the illumination? Solving the problem should not take more than a quarter of an hour.

How to develop creativity, break the rules correctly, where to go beyond and where to set them, and why you need to be afraid to start creating.

Photo equipment is becoming more and more “smart”, more and more perfect and more and more affordable. How did this proverb sound from students of the Faculty of Journalism of Moscow State University in the 70s? “Give me a Nikon and I will move the world?” And here he is, Nikon - but will the world be turned upside down? Compared to the 70s, yes, but it's not about Nikon.

In a word, professional, masterful equipment is far from always equal to professional, masterful photographs. What does it take to move forward and develop as a photographer? To keep creating while facing creative block? To make your photos stand out from the billions taken a year? In order, in the end, to find your niche and attract customers? That's right, creative.

For those who need to shake things up, regain inspiration and look at their creativity from a new angle - 15 tips on how to develop creativity.

1. Forget the rules

Forget about what constitutes a genre, composition rules, color theory and the like. Imagine that there are no “buts”, “impossible”, “how about”. Imagine that everything is possible. And there are no such ideas or topics that are not considered or discussed. Dare to go beyond, beyond the boundaries, at least mentally.

2. Set frames and boundaries

This may seem to contradict the first point. But in fact, the more boundaries, the more opportunities for creativity. Constraints force us to look at the situation in a new way and invent new ways to achieve the desired result.

Create your own limits. For example, for a whole month, use only one lens and only a fix. Or shoot only black and white photos. Or work only with vertical orientation.

This method is especially useful if it immediately causes internal protest and resistance. Resist this feeling and be persistent: creativity will follow.

3. Less equipment, more creativity

It would seem that the more opportunities, the richer the choice, the more diverse the result. But really, if you have a single "perfect" lens for every scene and five different "perfect" cameras for every occasion, there's not much room for improvement. As well as there is no room for creativity.

This does not mean that you have to throw out most of the equipment or use only the old “soap dish”. This means - see point 2. By artificially limiting the available options, at least for a while, you will free up space for creativity.

4. Trust yourself

If an inner voice says that you need to take a picture - take it. This advice is often heard from street photographers, where “decisive moment” is the cornerstone. But the same applies to any genre and any form of photography. If you feel like you need to shoot, shoot. Even if you have to pull the camera from the bottom of the bag. Even if it seems that it is impossible to shoot. Even if you tell yourself that you can take this photo later.

"Later" usually doesn't come. Photographs are frozen moments; moments that will never be repeated. It won't be the same scene, the same light, the same mood. Shoot.

5. Don't Forget About Physical Activity

Playing sports, or even light physical activity, will help develop creativity, especially if you have a sedentary job. Walk, run, ride a bike - whatever your heart desires.

Firstly, it will give the brain a rest, and then you will start the task with fresh energy. Secondly, photo walks will allow you to see new places, new characters to shoot.

Third, researchers from Stanford University have shown that the physical process of walking itself increases creativity by an average of 60%, and this effect continues for some time after you stop.

6. Visit new places

One of the secrets of creativity is variety. Walking, go new routes and to new places. Travel to new cities and countries. Novelty gives impetus to creativity.

7. Surround yourself with creative people

Creativity is contagious. In addition, communication will give a new look at things, allow you to voice, discuss and develop emerging ideas. And if you can work with an experienced photographer, all the better.

8. Tell stories

Everyone has their own stories. Tell me. It trains imaginative and creative thinking. Try to make sure that both you and your interlocutor mentally see what you are talking about. Visualization is an important aspect for the development of the imagination. And we are talking not only about the image, but also about sounds, smells, tastes, sensations. Try to convey all this in your story and in your pictures.

9. Be curious

Learning something new ignites the creative spark and enhances the imagination. Why do children have such a rich imagination? Because they are curious and open to everything new.

Ask questions, explore and try something unfamiliar, expand the scope of your interests, look for something that your soul will reach for. Because the fuel for creativity is passion.

10. Change and change

Try yourself in a new genre. Are you a studio photographer? Take up street photography over the weekend (check out the tips from the gurus on). Do you shoot architecture? Go for a day on sports photography.

11. Set yourself non-standard tasks

Challenge yourself and try unusual exercises. For example:

  • Take 10 different photos of the same scene.
  • Choose a location and take 24 completely different shots. Without moving.
  • Imagine you are shooting on film and you only have 36 (24, 12) frames. And only one film per day.

Such challenges, constraints, and conditions can lead to surprisingly creative solutions.

12. Not a day without a photo

Not a day without a line. In our case, no photos. Even if you don't want to. Even if there is no inspiration. Even if there is no time. Because, firstly, it will give a start, start the process of creativity. Secondly, skill is honed only by practice.

13. Get inspired by others

There is nothing wrong with learning something and drawing inspiration from the masters. Remember the expression: “Good artists copy, great artists steal?” Do you know how Benjamin Franklin honed his writing style? Copying texts from the Spectator magazine, which published some of the best texts of his time.

14. Start a personal project

A personal project is not just for documentary photographers or photojournalists. And not only for beginners who are just trying their hand. The process of working on it will benefit everyone, regardless of genre or work experience. This is a great opportunity to do something that ignites passion in the soul and learn something new - about the world and about yourself. And both of these points, as we found out earlier, are indispensable conditions for the disclosure of creative potential.

15. Don't be afraid of your fears

Fear of criticism, fear of failure and even fear of success - all this not only prevents a creative person from showing their work to the world, but also limits our creative self. In fact, fear is good; this is an indicator that your case is really important to you. Shall we worry about what does not touch us? So, that's exactly what you should be doing. You don't want to spend your life doing something you don't care about, do you?

P.S. It is possible and necessary to develop creativity!

As a bonus - a short video from the director and video blogger Simon Cade, the author of the YouTube channel DSLRguide. Don't forget to turn on Russian subtitles!

Still not feeling the urge to create? Get up and go create anyway. Appetite comes with eating.