Let me ask you this: what is eight divided by two? Think about it. It seems like a simple question. I mean for goodness sakes we learned basic division skills in third grade. I could just about answer this question in my sleep. In actuality, there are two answers to this question. The first, and most basic answer, is four. The second, and more complex answer, is zero. You might be thinking, how is this possible? We clearly learned that eight divided by two is four! Change your mode of thinking. Take the physical number eight and cut it in half - you get two zeroes, or the number zero. It's fascinating how with just a basic change in your mindset, from analytical to creative, such a simple concept can be drastically different.
Today, so many people are taught to think in such a methodical manner. There is so little room for creativity in the primary school system. Even when students are challenged to think “outside of the box” and be creative, they struggle due to the little exposure to pure creativity.There is still a chance to mend this, right now you are in college, and it is not too late to tap into your creative side.
I currently am an entrepreneurship major. I aspire to be creative for a living. Although I am still young and I have yet to complete my formal education in the field, I have learned a few lessons over the years. By just watching what others do, you can learn so much.
I remember when I was maybe 10 or 11, I got an electric scooter for my birthday. I was really excited to finally to zoom around my neighborhood at top speed of maybe 12 miles per hour, I ripped the entire box open to get to my scooter. Little did I know, the scooter required extensive set-up and had multiple small pieces. I thought it would be easy enough to set it up, I mean, how hard could it have been? It is just a scooter. Well this scooter was a special scooter. It seemingly was a scooter that could only have been set up by a professional with a degree in electric scooter assembly. I was a young kid; I never could have known this. Opening all the packages to set it up, the pieces flew everywhere and, of course, I lost just about half of the small ones to the slots in the air conditioning vent. I was devastated. My brand new present that I got three minutes ago seemingly was ruined. My dad came over and sat down next to me. He told me not to worry and took the scooter and the other half of pieces that I didn’t lose to the garage. With some bungee cords, probably a whole roll of duct tape, and a little creativity, my dad turned my “ruined” present into a speed machine. Sure, it wasn’t as pretty or as secure as it should have been, but it worked! All it took was a little bit of variation in the way he thought, and he created something amazing: my electric scooter that I used all throughout elementary school and middle school.
This was the moment when I first started being fascinated by creativity and different ways of thinking. Ever since then, I have aspired to one day use the same concept of thinking as my dad and create something amazing.
While in classes, what you learn is so black and white. You read a textbook, write a few papers, take some exams, and that’s the end of it. Everybody learns the same things in pretty much the same way. I challenge you to stop doing this and learn differently. I never understood why everybody wants to learn the same exact thing. Rather than seeing things merely as black and white, look through a lens with multiple colors. Take what you learned and transform it into knowledge that nobody else has thought about. Take the lesson from my dad: even the simplest concepts in class can be turned into something far more spectacular with some creativity.
It is a complementary relationship. The more creative you are, the more successful you will likely be. The people who will create the futuristic society that we have yet to see will be the people that from now on will answer eight divided by two as zero. They will be the people who take their knowledge from college lectures and analyze it through a colorful lens. They will be the people who can fix a complex electric scooter with supplies not intended to do such a task.
Look around you. There are so many things you can change with just a simple switch in thinking styles. I hope that one day, you too, will be able to fulfill your kids wildest dreams, even if it only requires some bungee cords, duct tape, and, most importantly, creative thinking.
