Ever caught yourself stuck looking along an empty page, scrambling for ideas, only to grasp that the pressure stifles your inspiration? You’re definitely not the first to feel this way. Bodies of research disclose that those who use creative thinking are more likely to find solutions faster and more efficiently than those resorting only to analytical thinking skills. But pressure and stress can be the death of your creativity oftentimes. Fortunately, according to an empirical study from the American Psychological Association tackling the connections between imagination, art, and problem-solving, creativity shouldn’t be considered an inborn trait. With exposure and involvement, it can be cultivated – just as your problem-solving capacity can be, this way.
Interested in learning how you can improve your creative thinking and problem-solving proficiency? The following tips might be of unprecedented help, so let’s delve into them, shall we?
Go on art watching junkets
Assuming you’re looking for effective ways to enhance your problem-solving abilities, the best starting point would be to approach trips to establishments that display fine art, like galleries, museums, exhibitions, and so forth. Keep an eye out for the exciting events where art is featured by subscribing to social media pages, managing such events, connecting and networking with high-powered people in the industry, and taking every opportunity that you can to enter this world. You may keep your thoughts lively by attending theatre plays or operas – anything that can promote new thinking patterns. The sought-after results emerge when you closely watch paintings, sculptures, art, and so on, as you’ll be able to conduct deeper introspections. You’ll discover things that the untrained eye doesn’t usually see and make connections that help expedite the process of finding solutions.
According to art historian and lawyer Amy Herman, art watching can reshape people’s creative thinking and freshen up their well-rooted perspectives. The guru has trained countless professionals worldwide in industries and organizations ranging from intelligence to finance to medicine, achievements that helped her solidify the foundation needed to shed light on the importance of art for thinking. As per her studies, the way one looks at visual art can equip them with tools that improve how they deal with work issues, to say the least.
All the magic requires you to step outside your comfort zone, break the matrix, and start to think about new things in new ways. According to the professional, observing artworks isn’t everyone’s daily habit. If you struggle to make this practice part of your daily routine, maybe surrounding yourself with art at home could be the solution you seek. This leads us to the following paragraph.
Surround yourself with art
Possibly easier said than done for many, the simple act of breathing around artwork that moves you is a great stepping stone to building those creative problem-solving skills you desire. Fortunately, you don’t have to move mountains to set foot in art-centric establishments – you can engage with art from the comfort of your home. As art historian Herman suggests, looking at art online can unexpectedly enhance your problem-solving.
Delving deeper, it’s the moment you feel yourself resonating with a specific subject, composition, creation technique, and so on that builds a new world of connections within you. You have art on online places ranging from Pinterest to Artfinder and from dedicated magazines to galleries featuring fine paintings for sale. Dedicate at least two minutes to study eye-catching images and see exactly what you love or dislike about what you see. This practice can help you better understand your inner self, encouraging you to zoom in on problems and seek solutions with the conviction that things are always more elastic than the first thought might suggest.
Art can push you out of your comfort zone. Even more, the way you observe art serves as a guide for discerning problem-solving.
Understand the process
The fact that critical thinking entails rationality and logicality may make it more challenging to believe and see how art – the norm breaking arena – can improve it. After all, making art means abiding by no rule, correctly? Or nay?
Speaking realistically, critical thinking pushes your mind out of ordinary norm-based boxes. Instead of recalling mainstream approaches and blindly swallowing them, critical thinkers question value, truths, and so on. This authenticity entails leaving behind popular opinions and thoughts. As such, when considering the decision-making process, you’ll see that creativity becomes a pillar of critical thinking, its hypothetical absence impeding you from assessing and enhancing upon your ideas. The bulk of art out there is intricate, multifaceted, and full of layers of meanings, and making sense of it trains your thinking as you’ll need to discover, assess, and dissect those connotations.
Master the art of noticing
Rationally enough, managing to fuse creativity and critical thinking is an art that stands to be mastered. When faced with an intricate composition full of senses, do you have the tendency to step back, or start dissecting the artwork? For this is a great opportunity to foster a critical mindset. Take a breath, become part of the story, and let your understanding wander. Note down details mentally, draw the artist’s reasoning, spot elements, count things, and try to determine what’s going on there.
Three people might look at a seaside postcard and see different things, driven by their life experiences. But when some visual creations evoke obvious feelings, the discrepancies between the three observers’ thinking ways decrease.
A great technique for dissecting art is to first observe the subject and then dip your toes into the mind’s developed understanding. Make a point of watching art in a structural way. This can freshen up your critical curiosity, a trait that, once fostered, will help you confront issues in real life.
Assuming an artwork’s power can be used to encourage an observer who lacks a solid background in the field to access new approaches distinctly and more expansively, what would keep them from leveraging this practice?
