December 19, 2006

Dear BNET reader,

Most people dread meetings, even more so when the topic is brainstorming.

If you need better ways to think creatively, check out these BNET resources. These articles and PowerPoint presentations highlight the best techniques for thinking about your work and your company in a new way.

Six Steps For Encouraging Creativity
Though the stereotypic image of creativity is the lone inventor or artist, most creative thinking is done in groups, where each individual can tap into both his or her own imagination as well as that of others. But, as surely as the group dynamic can exponentially increase creative energy and output, it also has the power to quash it. This article outlines six ways managers can actively support and encourage creative thinking and innovation.

Creativity and Innovation: The Keys To Sustained Corporate Growth
Creativity and innovation are critical factors in achieving sustained corporate growth. This PowerPoint presentation explores how to nurture and sustain the creativity that drives innovation. It includes nine techniques that can help business leaders unleash the creative talents of his or her staff.

The Weird Rules Of Creativity
What fosters creativity doesn't look at all like rational management to most experienced executives. The practices go beyond counterintuitive; they seem downright weird. After studying creative companies and teams for more than a decade, the author has found them to be remarkably inefficient and often terribly annoying places to work, where "managing by getting out of the way" is often the best approach of all.

The Culture of Innovation
In strategy meetings throughout the world, brainstorming sessions are taking place to develop the next big hit. How do you latch on to a new idea? And how do you make your organization receptive to the changes required to bring new ideas to market? This article examines how changing trends have shaped innovation in several successful companies.

Creative Brainstorming Techniques
Brainstorming is a great technique for generating creative ideas. It's a fun way to get lots of fresh ideas on the table and get everyone thinking and working together. This article provides six strategies to get creative thinking started and keep it going.

Developing Your Creativity
"I'm not very creative" is a common lament, even from people who manage their careers well and are extremely successful in bringing value to the businesses where they work. In fact, developing a more efficient approach to your own workload or introducing a time-saving project management system requires considerable creativity. This article will help you understand your own creativity and how to use it.

Unlocking The Creativity Within
Most of us think that creativity is a talent that other people - artists, inventors, writers - were born with. In fact, nearly all of us are more creative than we think we are, which is good because most of us need to be creative in our jobs - whether we recognize that or not. The more creativity we bring and apply to our work, the better job we are likely to do, the more valuable we will be to our employers, and the more personal satisfaction we will derive from our work.

Sincerely,

Veronica Combs
BNET

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