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If you are like me, your mind must be
searching for answers. Who could be the best among them all?
It's a tough competition. Edward de
Bono? Michael Michalko? May be Tony Buzan?
You might have someone else in your
mind. Like one of your teachers or a workshop leader. As they say, there are no right or
wrong answers.
But in my view, It's not one of those
highly Googled gurus with a high page rank. It's not one of those celebrated consultants and
workshop leaders.
The best person to learn creative
thinking from, is...
Let me whisper it in your
ears...
Your little daughter, a nephew, or grand
children!
Ask any of the gurus and they will tell-
"Think like a child!"
So why not learn to think like a child
from a child herself?
Kids don't know theories. Their brains
are not conditioned. They haven't learned the shoulds and have-to's of the adult
world.
They don't know what's possible and
what's not.
To give you an
example:
One day my little daughter was crying,
crawling on the ground, trying very hard to catch something on the floor.
I reached to help her, what could it be
she wants? To my amazement: it was a patch of sunlight on the floor!
It's not a labeled world for the little
ones. Every stimulus is new.
They don't take things for granted and
make fresh connections.
Once my son asked me "furniture came
from where ?"
I explained, trees give us wood and we
use that to make furniture.
After a few days when we visited a
furniture shop, he saw a wrought iron chair and asked innocently:
"Papa! Where iron
trees?"
Only if we can think like that. Once
again! That's the kind of fluidity and freshness we need to be creative.
To learn from the kids, give all those
creativity books and idea generator softwares a rest for a day.
Have an appointment with your little one
or take your nephew to the garden.
Ask your neighbor's permission and take
her kids to the adventure park.
Why not create a movie show at your
home? Show an animation movie on your home theatre and invite all the kids.
Make it a point to play with kids more
often, ask them questions and listen to their answers carefully.
There are many great lessons for
us.
And please inform me if you see a
plastic tree, a glass tree, a cement tree!
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