Unlock the Creative Capacity of Your Staff

If you want your company to grow, you need to encourage creativity in your employees but that can be easier said than done.  Creativity is not something that is encouraged in many businesses so when people have had their creativity locked up for many years it can be hard for them to find it.  It can be even harder for businesses to bring it out again.

Encouraging the creative capacity of your employees is essential for innovation and change though. What worked in the past will only give you the same results that you have had in the past so companies need to think in new ways.  Change is the new norm in companies and a company that does not encourage change will be surpassed by other businesses.  Remember that you can often get more out of people than they think they can give but they need to have reason to do so.  If creativeness is not encourage people will just keep doing the same things they have always done so they need to have incentives to change the way that they think.

One of the main things that companies need to do to unlock creative capacity is to listen to their employees.  Employees are often filled with ideas but once they share their ideas once or twice and are shot down they stop sharing them.  They keep them to themselves.  On the other hand, when employees feel that their voices are heard, that their thoughts are appreciated, and that they will be recognized, they are more likely to allow ideas to develop and then share them.

When employees do think creatively they need to be recognized.  If there are positive results and they are not credited for them they will see no benefit in creating new ideas or ways of doing things.  Even if employees do not have the intended results they should be recognized for their efforts.  If they are encouraged even for the ideas that didn’t turn out as expected they will continue to allow themselves to think creatively and come up with new solutions to problems.

Finally, employers must ask for suggestions if they want staff to share their ideas.  If employees do not know that managers and leaders of the company are willing to listen to them, they will not take the incentive to share with them.  Leaders of the company should take the incentive to talk to employees, ask them if they think there are better ways of doing things, or ask them what they would do in a situation.  Staff members that feel that their opinions are wanted will share their thoughts and ideas.

Ultimately though, creativity means nothing unless there is a plan to implement ideas.  If ideas are created and someone listens and there is no action to follow it, eventually people will stop thinking outside the box.  They will return to the normal way of doing things and creativity will be snuffed out.  Have a plan to implement the creative ideas that employees come up with and businesses will find themselves rising to the top.