With creativity, we have solved a lot of problems in the past! And let’s be honest, we still have another million issues and problems to solve on this planet.
How do you deal with problems that you observe either at work, in your community, or at home with your loved ones? Do you think…

A) Well, there we have a problem but I’m not going to get rid of it because I don’t have the time and I don’t really know how to solve that issue? I wait because I’m sure there’s someone else figuring it out but in the meantime, I can keep complaining about it.

B) Wow, I haven’t been aware of that problem! But thank you life for bringing it to my attention. Let me find a way to solve it and I’ll involve others to help me. I know there are hundreds of other problems I’m aware of right now but this one is really important to me. I want to find a solution and I might fail but that’s okay because I’ll learn valuable lessons from it.

Person A) seems to have more of a fixed mindset whereas person B) has a growth mindset. If you have never heard of it, the overview describes the 2 mindsets. (source)

In order to use your creativity, cultivate a mindset that allows you to experiment, explore and play in life, one that doesn’t demotivate you in case you fail. If you find yourself having more of a fixed mindset, it’s time to pick one or two characteristics described as being typical for a fixed mindset and find out why you behave like this. Do you know someone who does it differently? Can you talk to this person? If you don’t find anyone, you can set up a call with me. (Click here) When I was younger, I couldn’t imagine even small changes like the position of my desk or bed. Small steps over the years have taught me to embrace and gain from change so that even an HR manager once told me “you’re the master of change”.

Now, let’s talk about other things that I believe will help you become a creative leader. Last summer, I met someone who told me that he wanted to create his own YouTube channel to inspire young kids to get more active and do more sports. 6 months later, he still didn’t do anything to set this channel up. In the meantime, my housemate reactivated his YouTube channel, drafted a strategy on what he wants to post, clearly defined his audience, and doubled his followership in a few weeks. He didn’t talk much about his plans, he just did it. There will always be people around us who talk more than they do. And no, they are not just the politicians of our countries, they are part of our everyday life. I’ve observed quite a few of them. I tend to ask them questions that hopefully motivate them to finally act on their words. What’s holding them back? It’s usually fear of failure, not knowing where to start, lack of confidence, or even laziness. If you have great ideas and you never try them out, those ideas will get lost. I truly believe in the 50/50 here: think (50%), then do (50%).

What do you need to become a balanced doer and thinker? You will need to know yourself better. What motivates you and what matters to you most? During what time of the day are you the most productive, and at what time of the day or week do you need to reflect and think, even brainstorm? I am most productive from the morning to the afternoon. I love taking my time to think through things on long walks in the evening or during the weekend. I connect a lot of knowledge, input, stimulation during my walks, and as a result, I always have a few ideas that I note down in my digital notebook. Later on, I review and check which of these ideas could work to achieve one of the goals I have. Exactly, a doer is driven by achieving something which contributes to feeling content, gives a sense of accomplishment and control. And those feelings are extremely helpful, especially whilst living through a disruptive pandemic period. Do you know what is it that you like to achieve? Do you want to add a new skill that helps you find a job? Do you want to be better with your finances and save more money? Do you want to start a podcast? Do you want to improve something at work? Go and do it. Start somewhere and don’t hesitate if you think you don’t have a plan. You’ll create one whilst doing it. It’s very important that you start.

One of the best compliments I have received was “I feel inspired” or “You are so inspiring”. I’ve learned that we can inspire people through a few simple things. One of them is listening closely to what they tell me and show real interest in them, also linking my own experience to their stories and sharing it with them is important. And last but not least, simply being myself with them which means I tell them what I love doing, creating and thinking about can inspire them. People who do too little and mainly consume they do bore me at some point. To me, they seem to be less interesting = less inspiring.

One of my friends just had a dream where his home country has been attacked with nuclear weapons. I had dreams where the world seemed to end and we are all running for our lives with no phones and cities in flames. These dreams tell a lot about our fears but are not the visions I like us to focus on. It’s important to have positive visions of your future and the courage to share them with your network, co-workers, friends, etc. That’s how you demonstrate your ability to think creatively and connect ideas with experiences and issues in order to find new solutions. One of my visions for example is to make advertising space available for artists for free. Let’s say I am taking the tube/train and am waiting at the station, the huge ad spaces that in the future will be purely digital screens let me actually upload my latest artwork in a second and leave a comment. That way I can “exhibit” it to the audience in the room/station immediately and very directly engage with them. Same for the space in trains and tubes. An artist can show his/her art to an audience he/she would otherwise not be able to reach and talk to them directly. This can result in new followers, new clients, and new collaborations.
What visions do you have? Do you share them with others?

“That’s not the way we are doing things around here.” This statement! We all have heard it before. How much do you embrace change? Does change make you feel uncomfortable? I hope not because as a future creative leader you really need to be a change agent yourself. Unfortunately, everything around us changes at a crazy speed and it can make you feel dizzy. But if you want your team, your organisation, your community, or your life to be successful in the future, you need to be able to drive transformation. As a change agent, you make change happening by inspiring and influencing others. Therefore, you will need to be enthusiastic and passionate, lead by example (always!), be a great listener, patient but persistent, and good at communicating your ideas and visions. Would you make a great creative leader already? With what would you need some support? Let me know in the comments.

To summarise, these are the 5 most important things to become a creative leader.
1. Have a growth mindset
2. Be a doer, not only a thinker
3. Inspire others
4. Have positive visions
5. Be a change agent