LinkedIn Learning: Creativity Boot Camp

48m * Beginner * Course

What is creativity? I firmly believe that everyone is creative, and simply that people don’t understand what it means to be creative. I think many confuse the word creative with artistic.

Mumaw reinforced my belief by disclosing that creativity is not a talent but instead a skill and therefore not something you're born with but instead an area you can improve in. The point of this boot camp is building creativity through a variety of creative exercises.

Creative Exercises:

1. Wild Westios

The purpose of this exercise was to list as many cereal box toys that can be imagined if boxes of breakfast cereal were around during the era of the American Wild Wild West. The time limit was 30 seconds, my answers are listed below.

Cowboy/Indian wooden action man

A Cowboys wooden spurs

An Indian’s feather

Toy gun

Toy slingshot

Horse teddy

Sheriff’s badge

Ideation was made easier thanks to motivation generated by a timer and the playful nature of this exercise. These are both concepts Stefan Mumaw has explained previously in the rest of his courses on this ‘Improve your Creativity Skills’ Learning Path.

2. Ultimate Desk

This exercise was pretty self explanatory, you’ve been sitting behind the same desk for your whole professional life. It’s time for a change, time to retire the old desk for the coolest desk devised by humankind. There are no limits on realism or money but you only have five minutes. You can communicate with your desk in the fashion you prefer, a list of its attributes, a sketch it's up to you.