As a creative, or innovator, navigating the creative process can be challenging—but it doesn’t have to be. Understanding the steps, strategies and mindset shifts that help to maximise your creative process can transform the way you innovate. In this guide, we’ll give you five key strategies to increase your creative potential.
Let's start with the basics:
What is the creative process?
The creative process is the period of time between bringing a creative concept from a state of ideation to completion. It involves developing new ideas and tackling challenges. During the creative process, several skills are utilised—such as creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving.
The four steps according to Graham Wallas:
According to Graham Wallas in The Art of Thought (1926), the creative process can be broken down into four pivotal steps:
Preparation The stage where your theme is chosen and you gather inspiration.
Incubation This is when your ideas are left to develop in the subconscious mind. The incubation period is often where sudden insights or solutions arise after a break from focused thinking.
Illumination (Aka your breakthrough). This is the moment when your creative idea or solution suddenly emerges into conscious thought.
Verification The final stage. This is where your idea is critically evaluated, refined, and tested for viability.
Understanding where you're at in the creative process can help you navigate and maximise each step with intention.
Here's our latest youtube video on, 'Seven mindset hacks for creatives and innovators'. We encourage you to watch the video for the full list, but you can skip to the list below for five hacks you can benefit from, starting today:
Five key mindset shifts for creatives and innovators:
Whether you’re painting a new collection, creating organic beauty products or running an events company, one thing you’re guaranteed to face along the way is the creative process. How you think about it will likely determine how you approach it. And the goal is to maximise it. Tap the drop-downs to learn how:
1. Forget about the final product (momentarily)
This may sound counter-intuitive, but forgetting about the final product, momentarily, can free up your capacity to create. Fixating on the final product is natural, but it can limit your ability to innovate. Its a habit that can prevent you from embracing the journey—which is where your ideas flourish and evolve! Giving yourself the room to explore can help you to harness your creativity, and see your project in new ways.
2. Don’t skip steps!
3. Embrace iterations
4. Realise this: the process makes you a better steward of the promise
5. Choose active patience over idle waiting
Whatever you’re creating, we wish you success in your endeavours.
Want to be inspired in rooms full of artistic inspiration? Join the waitlist for our creative events
Comments