Critical and Reflective Learning of Creativity E-Portfolio - Essay Example

Creativity E-portfolio critical and reflective learning Name Institution Course Lecturer Date Abstract Creativity is the application of skills and knowledge in a manner that is new so as to attain values outcomes. It also involves deeply thought ideas, imaginations and critical thinking in order to come up with an original result that is of value. Creativity enhances originality and creation of new ideas as well as innovation. This journal summarises the path that lead to my creativity acquisition. It mainly describes the creative problem solving process that is applied by businesses in solving their problems. This close look into the business environment in solving their daily problem through the employment of various creative problem solving methods such as brainstorming, mind set as well as the CPS process inspires me in this journey. By the end of the five days I had acquired a lot as far as becoming creative is concerned. For instance I was able to acquire the main features of becoming creative such as being participative and having an open mind. In addition I learnt some of the blocks to the process of becoming creative. Table of Contents Abstract ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….2 Table of Contents 4 Creativity E-portfolio critical and reflective learning 5 Need for creative problem solving techniques in the contemporary business environment. 5 The major creative problem solving methods 7 Application of creative problem solving methods in practice 8 The kinds of situations in which different methods of creative problem solving are most appropriate 11 Important issues in overcoming resistance to change and implementing new ideas in organisations 12 Conclusion 14 References 15 Creativity E-portfolio critical and reflective learning Day 1 Need for creative problem solving techniques in the contemporary business environment. My peregrination to become creative began by paying attention to what takes place in the business world. I was keen in observing what makes the difference between successful businesses and the unsuccessful ones. The major element of business growth was the level of creativity of its employees. Following the business’ daily performances it was clear to me that creativity was a necessity. I also noted thatcreativity is the key element in the contemporary world either in the business, in school or in social set up. It entails skills and knowledge application in a manner that is new so as to attain values outcomes. It also involves deeply thought ideas, imaginations and critical thinking in order to come up with an original resultthat is of value. Creativity enhances originality and creation of new ideas as well as innovation. In the business set up, creativity in problem solving is highly appreciated. Moreover creativity enables firms to compete on their ability to exploit scientific technical and creative knowledge bases and global interconnectedness. (ELLIS, 2007) In bid to acquire the creativity necessary for the formation of new ideas and ways of doing things, businesses employ various techniques so as to keep this phenomenon advancing. They keenly participate in their line of operation so as to identify any unfilled gap. They alsolink their business experiences to what is happening in the outside world in order to know whether they are still in the track of advancing forward. An open mind and concept restatement helps the firms to acquire knowledge on various upcoming ways of doing things. In addition businesses invest in asking themselves questions and making quest into their economic knowledge in bid to identify opportunities and weaknesses so as to attend to the in advance. I related business development through the application of critical thinking and creativity with the way or the manner in which I can become creative. The same process that a business followed in using their creativity to solve development and technological problems were the same I would employ in my personal life so as to become creative. For instance I found that there is need to faithfully participate in my classes, link the class experiences to the outside world, seek clarifications of various areas of my study and question them, looking at problems in different ways as well as lay my mind open to the acquisition of new ideas and new ways of solving problems. Problem solving techniques which involves various steps enables the firms to have a defined way in which they can deal with the existing, upcoming or potential problems in the firm. Problem solving is a process that involvesidentifying a gap or a problem and seeking the solution for it in the business. Most businesses are faced by technical or technological and developmental problems that require both intensive and extensive knowledge base to solve. The steps involved in the problem solving techniques helps the business management to have a theoretical framework on how to come up with a well-integrated support system that enhances proper development of ideas.(Tucker, Nembhard & Edmondson, 2007) Day 2 The major creative problem solving methods In bid to acquire creativity skills I noted that there are several methods that enhances creative problem solving (CPS) to be effective among them is brainstorming, having a clear mind-set as well as the six CPS stages. These methods create a theoretical framework upon which the creative problem solving can be formulated.Along this journey of becoming creative brainstorming has been a good tool for the development of this skill. In brainstorming I trigger my mind to come up with new ideas that are worthy to generate a suitable solution to the identified problem. Similarly in business brainstorming is a good tool that enhances innovation and development of the business (Fernandez & Rainey, 2006). Thisis done by involving the management team in the problem solving process. The team holds a meeting and engages themselves into a detail idea search. They do so by allowing each member to put on the table whatever they have in their mind regarding a particular identified gap in the company. Once each has made personal contribution, the ideas are laid down before a selected committee that conducts an informed screening on the ideas and then crosses them out carefully. The ideas that remain after the crossing out process they are then read out to the larger team and then the team is requested to give out more ideas. This process is repeated until there are no more ideas among the teammembers. Throughoutmy journey of becoming creative I have come to appreciate the application of the various stages of creative problem solving as well as embracing the various qualities of creativity. The creative problem solving method entailsteps such as finding the objectives,that is, finding out what is the problem or what is the gap that needs a solution. Once the problem is identified the committee working to solve the problem embarks on fact finding where they seek to gather therelevant information to solve the problem at hand. The acquired information is then used to clearly define the problem, thus making it possible for the committee to come up with any possible solution to the problem. Thesolutions are put down and then an evaluation is carried and the most effective and feasiblesolution is selected and implemented. (Diefenbach, 2007) Day 3 Application of creative problem solving methods in practice As Imoved along this journey of becoming creative I learnt that the best way of becoming creative is by putting into practice everything that I acquire theoretically. According to researchers creativity is the process while innovation is the result. This means that for creativity to thrive one has to practice on the applicability of it in the real word. I have come to learn that most of the very successful companies make it in business because they do not stop at the thinking and imagination level; however, they move further to subject the well-thought ideas to a SWOT analysis. By doing so the company is able to come up with a viable and an applicable idea. These ideas areapplied in the company as soon as possible thus leading to the growth and advancement of the company.(Higgins, 2005) Moreover, I also noted that creativity is really a process that requires one to carefully follow chronologically in order to acquire every bit. This process requires concentration and focus so as to pursue ones purpose and obtain the best. To enhance concentration I learnt that, I had to remove any distractor on my way, be self-disciplined and hold myself accountable as well as engage in quest for becoming creative. On this particular day I learnt that business organizations also follow a particular process as outlined above in the execution of their creative problem solving process. This theoretical framework helps the organization topursue its purpose effectively. In the business environment various methods are employed in creative problem solving. For instance the brainstorming method helps in allowing the participation of various members of the company in developing the company through their contributions in terms of ideas. This helps to create a large pool of ideas from which the firm can fetch a solution to its problem. Through this method I have learnt that it encourages open and random thinking as well as communications and allows also personal creativity development. The divergent thinking allows one to open up his mind to new ideas as well as acquisition of a variety of solutions. In the convergence process on the other hand a specific solution and the best one is obtained from the divergent thoughts. Day 4 The kinds of situations in which different methods of creative problem solving are most appropriate My peregrination of becoming creative helped me learn that some methods of creative problem solving are more suitable in some areas than others. For instance the six stage method is more suitable ina business that has not been in existence over a long period of time. This isbecause the six stages help the organisation to come up with a theoretical framework that guides the management in developing an effective solution. However,in some occasions the process will not be applicable since the organisation could be having a recurring problem that requires the same solution all through. In such a case the organisation develops the solution which it will be applying whenever the problem occurs. In some other situations brainstorming becomes the suitable method for the creative problem solving.For example in a well-developed organisation, brainstorming and a proper mindset enhances the creative problem solving. This is because brainstorming enhances participation of various members and aims at exhausting the entire knowledge or idea base for the development of the organisation. (RUSS & WALLACE, 2013) Day 5 Important issues in overcoming resistance to change and implementing new ideas in organisations I thought in the journey of becoming creative it would just be a quick and simple theoretical study that is continuously undertaken in smooth running organisations. However, this has not been the case due to a number of factors that inhibit the development of new ideas in organisations. I have observedthat theseblocks to the creativity also affect organisations making them unable to implement the new ideas they come up with.Perceptual blocks for example restrict the organisations from having a wide range of ideas due to a narrow interpretation of the problem. This also limits the collection of information relating to the problem since there already exist a perception that the problem is not fatal and hence does not require a lot of resources to attend to it. To overcome the perceptual block the management should encourage an open mindeddiscussion that will help open up the employees’mind and the idea base. This will help in giving room for more ideas in which a solution can be obtained. Another major problem is the strategic block, where the organisation over relies on the past experiences and solutions thus making it impossible for flexibility in thinking and coming up with new ways of dealing with the problem. According to me the strategic block is mainly caused by the rigidity of the employees. Some employees do not like changes and therefore any new idea put across in the organisation they will work out ways so as to oppose it. Thispractice by the employees causes the organisation to remain rigid and keeps on repeating the same method to solve a particular problem. This will restrict implementation of new ideas as well as innovation and creativity.According to me this problem can be overcome by communicating with the employees about the implementation of a new idea prior to its implementation. If the employees are notified about every progress regarding the new initiatives in the organisation it is likely for them not to be rigid in accepting the implementation of the new ideas. In addition some problems are over analysed thusleading to a solution that is exaggerated and which is difficult to attain. I think this happens because the management fails to involve experts in analysing the feasibility of the new ideas. To overcome such blocks the organisation should ensure that before the idea is implemented a group of experts and experienced persons are involved in the evaluation and the analysis of the ideas. Another way in which an organization can overcome resistance to the implementation of a new idea is by setting up key deliverables in each department and selecting employees who are not in management positions to spearhead the attainment of the group goals. Awards should be given to the groups or persons who attain their goals. According to me involving non-management persons in the process of implementing new ideas in the organisation, gives the employees a sense of belonging to the idea. Moreover this enhances quick adaptation and acquaintance to the new strategy that is being implemented.( Salancik, 1978) Conclusion This journal describes the creative problem solving process that is applied by businesses in solving their problems. This close look into the business environment in solving their daily problem through the employment of various creative methods such as brainstorming, mind set as well as the CPS process inspires me in this journey. Creativity is seeing the same things as others but thinking something different. Having this in mind I have been able to derive learning lines that could enable me become creative. For instance triggering my mind and concentrating on my line of operation while setting my mind in an open world enhances my creativity. These and other methods as I have discussed in this journal using organisations as the main point of references have helped me in the journey of becoming creative. References Diefenbach, T. (2007).The managerialistic ideology of organisational change management.Journal of Organizational Change Management, 20(1), 126-144. ELLIS, J. (2007). Creative Problem Solving.The Praeger Handbook of Education and Psychology, 1, 295. Fernandez, S., & Rainey, H. G. (2006).Managing successful organizational change in the public sector.Public administration review, 66(2), 168-176. Higgins, J. M. (2005). 101 Creative Problem Solving Techniques: The Handbook Of New Ideas For Business Author: James M. Higgins, Publisher: New. RUSS, S. W., & WALLACE, C. E. (2013).Creative Problem Solving.The Therapeutic Powers of Play: 20 Core Agents of Change, 213. Salancik, G.R., J. Pfeffer (1978). Social information: Processing approach to job attitudes and task design. Adm. Sci. Q. 23(2) 224-253. Tucker, A. L., Nembhard, I. M., & Edmondson, A. C. (2007).Implementing new practices: An empirical study of organizational learning in hospital intensive care units.Management Science, 53(6), 894-907. Read More