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Practical creativity is the only way forward

As the Creative Director of Fludium, I am very practical and solutions-driven, as well as being creative.

In my 20 years of experience in the branding world, I have bounced back-and-forth between the design studio and the client management team. In the traditional agency model, I had to choose a ‘side’. I truly believe combining the two is the way of the future.

In the current environment, creative work needs to be practical and purposeful.

Clients demand smart creative that differentiates their brands, and due to lower budgets, they need their creative to work even harder and deliver “more bang for their buck”.

Creative work can’t just be a big bold idea anymore, it must be highly relevant and deliver value for the business. Of course, creative solutions need to be conceptual, but I believe that they also need to be strategic. They need to ignite growth, be a catalyst for change and be aligned with the business and marketing strategies.

Dictionary.com defines practical as adapted or designed for actual use, useful, mindful of the results, advantages or disadvantages of action or procedure.

It defines creativity as originality, progressiveness, or imagination; the ability to create meaningful new ideas, methods or interpretations.

Practical creativity is the ability to create solutions that solve a business problem.

Are you a left-brain or right-brain thinker?

You’ve probably heard the theory of left-brain vs right-brain thinking. Each side of the brain controls different types of thinking:

  1. Left-brain thinkers are the practical people – they are strong in maths and language, and are assumed to be more logical, analytical and objective
  2. Right-brain thinkers are the creative people – their talents lie more on the innovative side of things, and are said to be more intuitive, thoughtful and subjective

But can you be both?

I have always thought that I am and labelled myself early on as a practical creative. It is now known that the two sides of the brain do collaborate, and that solutions are strongest when both halves of the brain work together. To understand the truth about the myth of left-brain and right-brain dominance, read this article on very well.

Practical ways to increase your creativity

  • Note it down. I am known for my love of sticky notes, and a rather amusing-looking desk! But there is method behind my madness. Good ideas don’t come when you are searching for them. I have a set of sticky notes by my bed, on my desk (obviously) and in the kitchen. Solutions always arrive when I am “not thinking” about the problem.
  • Take a break. Go make a coffee, take a walk to buy a sandwich, look out the window… once the preparation work has been done and your mind is full of information, this freedom of relaxing your mind allows the connections to be made, and voila! (This is not a digital break – your mind needs to have space, so filling it with a quick check on social media won’t spark any solutions
  •  Sketch. Put pen to paper (yes, the old way!) The visual cues in a rough drawing help you see the missing links.
  • Watch others. Take inspiration from what others do well. Explore how things can be done differently.
  • Brainstorm. The Kipling Method is a purposeful brainstorming technique that lets you explore your problem by challenging you with a set of questions to spark practical and creative thought:

To end off, here is a practical piece of creative writing by Rudyard Kipling to inspire your own practical creativity:

I have six honest serving men

They taught me all I knew

I call them What and Where and When

And How and Why and Who

 

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