London Business Forum. Sir Ken Robinson (excellent speaker – I recommend you see him if you get the chance) spoke about the need for the right environment in order for creativity to be released. He used the analogy of Death Valley in the mid 90’s. Death Valley typically gets 2 inches of rain per year, however, one particular year saw 6 inches of rain fall in just a few weeks. Other parts of the West Coast of the US also received three times their normal rainfall. The results were drastically different. Whilst most of the West Coast experienced heavy flooding, Death Valley blossomed. The reason? The seeds beneath the soil had been there for years, they just didn’t have the right environment to grow. Once they had the right amount of water they could finally flourish and cover the floor of one of most barren places in the world. When we talk about environment, we’re not just talking about the physical surroundings. Here are three ways to start developing a Creative Environment: Before you start make sure there is buy- in from the very top – that senior management have a clear understanding of what creativity and innovation is and how it ties in to their strategic objectives Build Creativity and Innovation in to your organisation’s core values and communicate how it will be supported on a daily, monthly and yearly basis Teach ‘em how to do it! Creativity is a skill that can be learnt and any cultural change should be supported with the tools to make that change possible. Creativity should be fun and innovation should be practical. It’s not a complex process, it just take practice. But once an organisation creates the right environment for the seeds to flourish, who knows where it can go…]]>