Creativity can be many things. For some, it takes the form of art or music. For others, it takes the form of coming up with interesting ways to solve Mathematical problems.
Both types of creativity have one thing in common, it is focused on something. In music it is focused on the notes being played, in art it is focused on the canvas or paper and in Mathematics it is focused on the problem being solved.
Tim Brown, in his TED talk on creativity and play, said that children have a much greater capacity of being creative because they look at something that might seem insignificant to adults and think of something cool to do with it (i.e. they come up with neat things to make with card board boxes). He said that our focus or desire to make something unique in itself hinders our ability to be creative. When children play with playdoh, they don't care if they're making something that someone else has made already they just make it because it is fun.
I think one of the ways adults can foster creative thinking is by focusing on something specific. I know it's the opposite of what one might expect. But, if we just have a general idea of "I want to make a website", it is not going to get anywhere. Having a specific idea or topic is essential. Tim Brown talks about a creativity test in his TED talk. He asks his audience to take a piece of paper with 30 circles on it and make something out of each of the circles within a minute. It tests your ability to make something out of something specific like a circle.
Don't focus too much on being unique. It will come automatically. Children do not think about making something unique; they just make! Be creative just for creativity's sake.
As a person with a passion for technology, I'd like to think my classmates are majoring in Computer Science because they love making cool stuff using technology. It always saddens me when I meet people who are in the field just for the money. It is true that there is a lot of money in the field of Computer Science; it is also true that most people are in the field for the money. But, I am in it because I love creating things.
Two weeks ago, I had the privilege of attending a hackathon at University of Michigan. It was a huge breath of fresh air to get to hang out with 700 something students majoring in fields from art to medicine to computer science. They were all there because they were excited about creating things using technology. Technology was the focus there. Everyone focused on using technology to make something cool that solved a problem they cared deeply about. They gained no money from it, just knowledge and a lot of fun.
One of the teams had a person with autism in it. They made a Google Glass app that told autistic people what the facial expressions of the people talking to them were. The team focused on solving a problem that affected one of their own team members. When you focus on something specific during your creative thought process, you might think of creative ideas to solve problems that affect you personally. You end up having fun and in the end make something that you might use for yourself.
