Wednesday, 25 January 2012

What's Creative thinking???


We think a lot….don’t we ? But most of the times we think on the usual stereotyped lines leaving no scope for creativity. If we are allotted some work (project, assignment and everything else a poor engineering student is burdened with) we go about doing it in the same run-of-the-mill manner in which we have seen others do it or in the way it has been taught to us.

We as in words of Cyril Kortleven (New shoes today, Belgium) are cursed by knowledge. We have been taught a lot of things from childhood right from the way how to read, write ,speak to how to think. This has affected our ability to think and perceive things in a different way immensely . We never try to find alternate or simpler ways of doing the mundane task and those who do come up with path breakers like Facebook, Google etc. So that’s how important creative or out-of-the-box thinking is.

This so called knowledge which we receive from “world-class” institutions narrows down our thoughts by defining how tasks need to be done and classifying things as possible or impossible. This leaves no scope for improvement because anyways we are being told what should be done, how it should be done and what we should not think of because its impossible. Pathetic scenario according to me. These institutions curtail the creative freedom of a person which if given an opportunity may fail sometimes but come up with masterpieces most of the time. 

People with fancy degrees are nothing but bots fed with all necessary information of how to react in different situations again undermining the immense power of decision making ability of this wonderful brain by defining sequence in which task needs to be performed. Instead a person should be creative and should actually struggle to find his own path ,his own solutions which ultimately gives him an opportunity to use his brain and develop it. Trying to find own solutions or as I say alternate solution is the only way to bring disruption in the way things happen GENERALLY. It broadens the horizons and helps perceive things in a much better way.

Its not that I am against studying or degrees, its just that they should promote innovation by means of creative thinking rather than teaching the same old things and hoping for a miracle to change the way people think.  So its up to you now how you would like to be a cog in the machine or the one who dares to risk everything and the one who dreams to change the entire structure of this machine by his thoughts. Give it a thought. :)

Sunday, 22 January 2012

After all an idea is all that matters



Just thought about expanding my last Facebook status into something which could actually trigger something into someone’s life. As in words of Alok Kejriwal (Founder and CEO of 2win company) "the ultimate entrepreneurship is making, helping and triggering more and more entrepreneurs" . Entrepreneur is not only one who has an up and running business it’s a state of mind… it’s the attitude towards things, towards problems and ultimately towards being independent that makes you an entrepreneur. 

How can idea help??? 
Now coming back to the original topic “IDEA”, though a four letter world the entire universe revolves around it. Everything  right from discovering a method to sustain fire to the desire of finding an extra terrestrial is outcome of a thought, of an idea . Maybe even creating MAN was an idea GOD got and here we are talking dancing and doing all crappy things on this otherwise boring planet. Got the flow? That’s how an idea can change things.

How to find idea??
Now how to find or utilize that one gem of an IDEA.. the billion dollar one? First of all realize this very important fact 'none of the ideas are waste'. Idea is not something that has to be practical, in fact I do say and strongly feel an impractical thought is an idea, an actual idea. Because it gives you the scope for thinking, for using the powers of your mind and power of attraction to achieve it, to show your creative side and test your mental strength.  

Finally how to utilize it??
So how to utilize that crappy thought which everyone trashed or you never felt confident enough to share it with anyone? Take a pad and make a note of it, make a note of every idea however small or unimportant or weird or impractical that you get and try thinking of ways to convert it into reality. Maybe with the existing set of information you have, the technology present it’s not possible to achieve it but still keep trying. And in the long run with the improvement in technology it is very much possible that you will be able to achieve it And even if you are not, the one thing that I am sure of is once you start noting down and sparing a thought on this practice you will start thinking of more viable and practical ideas which can be immediately put to use.

Now I will rant about creative thinking in my next article until then keep thinking. :)