Removing the Barriers to Creativity

NYSDOH AIDS InstituteHIVQUAL WorkshopFebruary 18th, 2011

CREATIVITY DRIVES THE GENERATION OF IDEAS. WE NEED NEW IDEAS TO CONTINUOUSLY IMPROVE.

What can block our creativity?

• Key areas:PerceptualCultural and EnvironmentalEmotional

Perceptual Barriers

• Difficulty in isolating the problem• A tendency to define the problem too

narrowly• Inability to see the problem from different

viewpoints• Seeing what you expect to see• Failure to use all sensory inputs

Solution

Cultural and Environmental Barriers

• Problem solving is serious business• Tradition is preferable to change• Any problem can be solved by scientific

thinking • Most problems can’t be solved without a lot

of money• Endless distractions• Lack of support

Solution

Emotional Barriers

• Fear of making a mistake, to fail, to take a risk• Preference for judging ideas rather than

generating them• Inability to distinguish reality

Solution