"Creative thinking may simply mean the realization that there's no particular virtue in doing things the way we have always done them." - Rudolph Flesch

We hear it often from motivation speakers and "creative thinkers" that have found success and happiness in their lives to "think outside the box" and "go beyond your comfort zone." The "box" and "zone" in which they're referring, is that familiar little place we like to live that consists of what we already know and what we can anticipate. The interesting thing about that little place that is often referred to as a "comfort zone," is that often times it's not really comfortable at all! However, if it's familiar to us and we hesitate to push for change, then ultimately we stay in that box until something else forces us out. Once we realize that we don't always have to do things the way we learned, the creative thinking process has begun.

In the workplace, unless you have supervisors, managers or partners that don't like to be pushed out of their own box, creative thinking can be hugely rewarding and bring many positive outcomes that otherwise would never be realized. The biggest challenge here is that when you start a new position you are taught how things are currently done. Wanting to do a great job at your new position, you may try and precisely follow what you've been taught. Fast forward a bit and see that once you've been around for a while, you may naturally start to become complacent as you've received positive attention for your precise work. It's in between the time you start a job and before you may become complacent that the creative thinking window is wide open. Once you know you're performing well with the responsibilities at hand, start to consider ways that you can improve upon what you're doing, or even ways the business can improve in general. There will be some cases where your "creative thinking" will not be welcomed, but don't let that discourage you from continuing to pursue ways to be better.

The same concept holds true in our personal lives, although the way it comes about tends to be much different. It's not often that a parent or guardian will sit you down and train you on how to do this or that in life. And even if they did, we're not getting paid to do it so why should we listen? It's more likely that we learn behaviors from the environment in which we were raised. Some of us learn to keep living life the way we've witnessed, ultimately living in an inherited "box," while others choose to create their own environment. Either way, it's important not to stay with what we're doing because it's what we know, but rather think creatively to continue pursuing a better way. It has become more obvious to me now being the parent of two beautiful young daughters that life tends to dictate itself as we try and just make it through each day, waiting for this phase or that phase to pass; but now's the time to get more creative and forge the path that we want to set for the future.

Here's the Point:
Creative thinking starts with realizing there may be better ways to accomplish what you're after. Take a hard look at anything in your life you're not ecstatic about and start thinking creatively to get there.