How to use your creativity in business

Tania de Jong runs events management and production company, Music Theatre Australia and recently started Creativity Australia, which encourages employees in companies to be more creative.

She reveals how to incorporate creativity into your workplace.

“I think the word innovation is bandied around by every man and his dog. We all aspire to be innovative, but actually what many people don’t recognise is that innovation can only occur when a creative process is in place. So many organisations who claim to be innovative don’t actually have creative processes in place.”

“For some reason we haven’t called research “creativity” in Australia. We see creativity as ballet dancing, singing, writing, sculpture, whatever. But actually creativity is something that we all have access to, no matter what our job, whether it’s a GP, a CEO, a head of a board or an accountant.”

“There is a 15 country study that showed that three to five year olds exhibit 98% creative behaviour and then by the time we get to 25 we’ve been educated out of our creative behaviour and it’s measured at 2%. But it’s still sitting there, we’re just not really nurturing that.”

“If you’re only focussed on results and the left side of the brain, you’re going to miss out on a huge amount of potential that your people can bring to you.”

“Furthermore, people who are not feeling like their creative side is being nurtured, that their voice is not being heard, that all their talents are not being brought to the table, don’t contribute as much and they don’t feel good.”

“So by having creative processes and creativity in the workplace, you engage better with your employees, they feel better, they are more likely to be innovative and your business is going to be a lot more productive.”

“You can’t have innovation without creativity. You have to adopt some creative processes, and I don’t mean that all employees have to sing and dance, but people need to be encouraged to think creatively and perhaps there needs to be catalysts and ambassadors so that creative ideas are brought forward and come from the bottom up to the top.”

“And also from the top down because I think there are plenty of people in boardrooms that are actually very creative but feel stifled by the strict governance processes that take place in a boardroom.”