Creativity

In my opinion, creativity is a growing, changing, living thing that can thrive if nurtured and fade if caged, even within a single individual.  It varies in natural intensity but can be cultivated in anyone with the right stimuli.  Furthermore, from person to person I have noticed that the sensitivity of creativity and the mediums it comes through best vary intensely.

As former military, I spent my time in very rigid, structured, creativity crushing organizations…or so it seems at first glance.  The Marine Corps culture is one of cookie cutter precision making sure that all parts are identical and operate in a similar fashion to reduce unpredictability in performance.  This is on the outside though.  Internally, the Corps has constant issues of too many problems, not enough solutions, and even less resources to address those problems with. Thus enters most of the creativity.  Just as necessity is the mother of invention, scarcity and urgency foster immense creativity within the ranks.

A common idea among Marines is the empowering “get it done” idea.  It could cleaning an armory, storming a hill, fixing a truck, or getting a hold of much needed equipment, but once assigned a task, Marines tend to attach their pride and reputations to the outcome.  Just as well, at lower leadership levels and above, management tends to have more individuals or teams to manage than seems plausible so they will constantly provide a task a say “I don’t care, get it done!”  Without fail, this type of leadership usually yields two things. First, the Marines look around like “did that really just happen?”  Second, without fail, creative results emerge.  As compared to the micro-management style of leadership most would expect from the military, I find that this style tends to lead to more creative results because first, it is open ended with little guidance providing only an end point and no path.  Second, the natural leadership style among Marines communicates a sense of urgency with results tied to the doer’s reputation.  This could cause a problem, but a good “jarhead” should remain calm under stress so the “no pressure” mantra should ring true. Third, Marines tend to come from all walks of life and also tend to have less formal education than their counterpart service members, as well as most in the civilian world.  I believe this lack of education enhances creativity because the projects are usually performed by teams of very different socio-economic backgrounds. Additionally, the mental frameworks applied to problem solving tend to be widely varied and acquired through practical application which, in my opinion, breeds less streamlined and conformist problem solving approaches.

So, I assume the reader is asking, “So, how do these weird creatures tend to be creative?”  Aside from creatively finding new ways to get into trouble, creativity most often comes through due to a lack of resources.  I witnessed individuals fixing Hummers with duct tape, fabricating makeshift air conditioning systems to try and block out some of the Sahara style heat, creating makeshift living quarters to remind themselves more of home, and making “improvised upgrades” to weapons to ensure reliability in unreliable conditions, and somehow creatively managing to find food even in the oddest of circumstances. 

Now that the factors should that encourage creativity in such an organization have been detailed,I think it would be worthwhile to point out the traits I have observed that stifle creativity.  First, obviously, would be micro-management and detailing a specific path to a solution.  People will never improve on a process if they are forced down a specific road, a specific way, time after time.  Eventually, the creative mindset and observational powers that spark creativity wear away as they settle into the routine of following the path in front of them.  Secondly, if the person is sensitive to pressure or high stress situations.  If the individual tends to “vapor lock”, or locks up and loses the ability to function when with the overwhelming feeling of stress, the leader involved must remove the idea of stress.  This could also be a removing a perceived threat of repercussions to encourage a fully free, open thought process resulting in creativity.

From my experience inside and outside of the military, I’ve come to view creativity as a muscle.  At times it is stronger for me, and other times it is weaker, but this all depends on how often I’ve attempted to push my creative limits.  For my initial period in the Marines I felt stifled and robotic, but this was likely intended.  As I reached what we called the “Fleet Marine Force” preparing to deploy to the Middle East, our problem sets expanded far beyond the institutional knowledge of our sub-organizations at the lower levels, our experience levels, and our resources.  Additionally knowing that we would be operating in an unknown environment under ambiguous conditions forced to adapt a creative, problem solving mindset on an institutional level, though this was more of a necessity induced initiative from the bottom up.\

The times that I felt most creative are the times that I have been able to mentally transcend my surroundings and reach a high level of emotional and mental detachment.  This has allowed me to freely explore ideas without regard to constraints.  Granted this state will not always prove fruitful, I have achieved my insights in it.  On the other hand, the times I felt most stifled have been when I remained within the situation, mentally speaking, or remained emotionally attached when there was a possibility of negative emotions due to pressure, stress, or any sentiment hindering a positive mood.

One thing I believe expands creative abilities and creative thinking are frameworks.  Frameworks of applying knowledge or thought to analyze or perceive a situation differently.  In a simple form, this has come from telling a person a situation I’m analyzing, the data I know to be fact, my sentiments, and then ask their perspective.  By understanding how they view the situation and how they specifically analyze the situation I absorb a new possible perspective, a new angle to view a situation from, and a new way to framework for creative analysis.  On another level are the tools we have learned in class. My favorite thus far, in terms of business, has been the canvas, though I believe the principles can be applied to other projects.  The canvas allows us to take the knowledge we have on an entity and the facts surrounding it, put all of the information on a level plane, and assess it as objectively as possible with equal weight.  The end result is that connections that were previously overshadowed by the bold points of the situation en up receiving our full attention, sparking new ideas, and ultimately creativity occurs.  This framework enables a different perspective and has convinced me that creativity, or at least developing a creative perspective, can be taught.  Creativity is a skill.  Like any other skill, it is a talent for some and a point of weakness for others, but it can be developed in all.