The 5 stages of the creative process
The 5 Stages of the Creative Process -->by James clear
In 1940, an advertising executive named James Webb Young
published a short guide titled, A Technique for Producing Ideas .
In this guide, he made a simple, but profound statement about
generating creative ideas.
According to Young, innovative ideas happen when you develop
new combinations of old elements. In other words, creative
thinking is not about generating something new from a blank
slate, but rather about taking what is already present and
combining those bits and pieces in a way that has not been done
previously.
Most important, the ability to generate new combinations hinges
upon your ability to see the relationships between concepts. If
you can form a new link between two old ideas, you have done
something creative.
Young believed this process of creative connection always
occurred in five steps.
1. Gather new material. At first, you learn. During this stage
you focus on 1) learning specific material directly related to
your task and 2) learning general material by becoming
fascinated with a wide range of concepts.
2. Thoroughly work over the materials in your mind. During
this stage, you examine what you have learned by looking
at the facts from different angles and experimenting with
fitting various ideas together.
3. Step away from the problem. Next, you put the problem
completely out of your mind and go do something else that
excites you and energizes you.
4. Let your idea return to you. At some point, but only after
you have stopped thinking about it, your idea will come
back to you with a flash of insight and renewed energy.
5. Shape and develop your idea based on feedback. For any idea
to succeed, you must release it out into the world, submit it
to criticism, and adapt it as needed.
The Idea in Practice
The creative process used by Frederic Eugene Ives offers a
perfect example of these five steps in action.
First, Ives gathered new material. He spent two years working
as a printer's apprentice and then four years running the
photographic laboratory at Cornell University. These experiences
gave him a lot of material to draw upon and make associations
between photography and printing.
Second, Ives began to mentally work over everything he learned.
By 1878, Ives was spending nearly all of his time experimenting
with new techniques. He was constantly tinkering and
experimenting with different ways of putting ideas together.
Third, Ives stepped away from the problem. In this case, he went
to sleep for a few hours before his flash of insight. Letting
creative challenges sit for longer periods of time can work as
well. Regardless of how long you step away, you need to do
something that interests you and takes your mind off of the
problem.
Fourth, his idea returned to him. Ives awoke with the solution to
his problem laid out before him. (On a personal note, I often
find creative ideas hit me just as I am lying down for sleep. Once
I give my brain permission to stop working for the day, the
solution appears easily.)
Finally, Ives continued to revise his idea for years. In fact, he
improved so many aspects of the process he filed a second
patent. This is a critical point and is often overlooked. It can be
easy to fall in love with the initial version of your idea, but great
ideas always evolve.
The Creative Process in Short
“An idea is a feat of association, and the height of it is a
good metaphor.”
—Robert Frost
The creative process is the act of making new connections
between old ideas. Thus, we can say creative thinking is the task
of recognizing relationships between concepts.
One way to approach creative challenges is by following the
five-step process of 1) gathering material, 2) intensely working
over the material in your mind, 3) stepping away from the
problem, 4) allowing the idea to come back to you naturally, and
5) testing your idea in the real world and adjusting it based on
feedback.
Being creative isn't about being the first (or only) person to think
of an idea. More often, creativity is about connecting ideas.
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