Getting Creative

They’re hard to explain, those flashes of brilliance that seem to come from nowhere.  J.K. Rowling had that moment sitting in a coffee shop, writing on napkins and formulating what has become the world’s greatest heptalogy. Whoever made this clearly knows what we’re talking about, too. But how do we foster these flashes of brilliance? Where do these surges of inspiration come from, and how, for the love of god, can we make them happen more often? Everyone has those days where it seems that the more you think, or the harder you try, the more empty your brain gets and the more, um, lame, your ideas become.

As an interactive media studio that prizes itself on creativity and innovation, we depend on these moments, which is why we love Jonah Lehrer’s new book, Imagine: How Creativity Works. Lehrer discusses the origins of creativity and how to best nurture a creative environment in the workplace. We all have routines outside of work – going to the gym, taking a long shower – that help us think clearly and originally, but how to replicate that at work? Check out the story on NPR and see what you think!