Have you noticed how often people seem to separate their ‘work’ and ‘non-work’ life? I have! For example, I often ask workshop participants whether they think they’re creative. More often than not, they say they aren’t! However, when I ask what they do at home in their spare time, they say, “I play guitar…or… I love to do home decorating…” When I point out how creative those things are they say, “Oh, I’m creative at home, but not at work.” Problem with this is that we need our creativity as much at work as we do at home. Customer needs are constantly changing, problems need to be solved and new ways to deliver the products and services our customers want need to be created. And these things can only be accomplished if each of us ‘brings our whole self’, our unique perspective and creative ability, to work each and every day. So, next time you’re at work and thinking to yourself “I don’t know how to deal with this” or “I can’t solve this problem”, STOP! And ask yourself, “Am I bringing my whole creative self to ‘work’ on this?” Because if not and we leave our creativity at home, we’re doing our customers, our companies and ourselves a disservice!
