Cultivating Creative Confidence
EPISODE 7 — 21 JANUARY 2022
“I also find that looking at the design process of other artists and designers is really interesting because it it offers advice on how you might be able to challenge your own process and change the way that you approach certain problems.”
ABOUT THE EP
We think people are born creative, but creativity is a muscle we can all work on. In this episode, we discuss how we gained creative confidence, myths about creativity, the creative process, and overcoming creative doubt. We also share tips for improving creativity, and idea generation exercises. Everyone has creative potential, go out there and find it!
THE DETAILS
Can creativity be learnt or is it inherited?
Creativity as a process, not an event ("eureka moment")
Commercialising creativity in advertising
Creative problem solving in service design
Wendy's creative process as a designer
Tracy's experience with AWARD School
Overcoming creative block
Exercises for strengthening your creative muscle
REFERENCES & RESOURCES
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Tracy
Hi, everybody. Welcome back to the podcast. Today we are going to be talking about something that is very relevant to both Wendy and I's careers and a big factor of why we started this podcast in the first place. We're talking about creativity. So in this episode, we are going to touch on three specific topic areas.
Wendy
So, the first is misconceptions about creativity. What does creativity actually mean? The role of creativity in our professional and personal lives. And lastly, dealing with creative anxiety and creative blocks. And hopefully, by the end of this, we will be sharing some exercises that you can do to practice your creative skills and also hone some of them.
Tracy
Yeah, and I think the biggest message we want to put through is that everyone is creative. Everyone has creative potential. And it's just something that we need to work on. And you'll see in episode how we developed our own creativity. So, let's start with framing creativity. What is it? And what does it mean to feel or be creative? So, the textbook definition is, it's the ability to develop new and original ideas that are useful in solving problems. It's also about taking existing ideas and combining them in new ways. So, it's not just about creating, like, completely brand new ideas that nobody's ever thought about because I think that's pretty impossible these days. Yeah, it's just like new ways of thinking about things and solving problems.
Wendy
I feel like there's a lot of misconceptions about creativity, right? Like, can you actually learn to be creative? Or is it taught? Or is it just something that you're kind of inherently born with?
Tracy
Yeah. So what do you think, Wendy? Like, what was your impression before? Like, do you think it can be taught or learned?
Wendy
It's kind of strange, because when I was reflecting on this question, I realised that I never thought of myself as not creative. It was always something that I felt like was kind of within me. And so I never really questioned whether or not I was creative or not.
Tracy
Yeah, that's interesting. Because I have the flip experience. I never thought I was creative. It's something that I'm coming to coming to terms with in terms of like, what does creativity look for me? I think maybe like in high school and uni, I was kind of like, Oh, I'm not creative and I think creative people are like another group of people that I don't belong to, like, I think it's more inherent. And it's like, oh, you're born with it, or you're not. That was my misconception that I had about creativity. And I never really believed it when people are like, Oh, you're so creative. I was like, Am I? I don't feel it. So that's something I actually really like, battled with. I was always like, Oh, am I creative? How can I be more creative? It was just a struggle that I had.
Wendy
Do you think because you are in the creative industry now and you had these I guess doubts about yourself about being creative, do you think then it became something that you tried to focus on honing and building?
Tracy
I think it was more so like, I always knew my interests were in the creative fields but then when I looked at my own skills, I'm like, I don't think creativity is a skill that I have. So I think that's the struggle that I went through, I want to be creative, but I don't feel creative. And then until I kind of worked out my own journey of developing that creativity, that's when like, now I can say, oh, yeah, I am creative.
Wendy
So what did you do to kind of get to that level of, yes, I am creative?
Tracy
I think it was a lot of experimentation. So, the light bulb moment for me was when I started finding outlets and tools that I could use to find my creativity. I was kind of comparing myself to these geniuses that you see. And they come up with, like ideas that are like life changing, you know, so innovative, things like that. I think it was a very high standard to be comparing to, but it was only when I was start experimenting with passions or hobbies that I liked, like sewing, drawing, painting, things like that. And then I finally found my outlet, which started off as sewing. And then I realised I could pour all my creative juices into this passion project. And that's when I found like, Oh, now I have an outlet to actually express and work on this creativity.
Wendy
Yeah, I feel like it's kind of like a muscle, right? That you just need to constantly exercise and massage to grow. And then you need kind of an outlet to actually produce something that you can say, oh, that's the product of my creativity. Yeah.
Tracy
Yes, yeah, I think experimentation was really important, just trying a lot of different things. Because creativity is not just exclusive to like the fields of design or the field of art, that you can be creative. Even like when you're doing I don't know, everyday tasks, you can be creative in, like how you solve problems and things like that. It's much broader than what people traditionally might think of creativity is.
Wendy
Yeah, I have to agree with that. Because I think I used to think that I was part of that small portion of people that was creative. Like growing up throughout primary school and high school, I always engaged in, like visual arts, textiles, and all those types of subjects where I thought, naturally only creative people were interested in. And so I defined creativity as like people who were able to draw, or people who were able to produce something that looked visually beautiful, right? So that's how I define creativity growing up. And because I was so interested in doing those things, I was always told I was creative. And so that kind of was like, ingrained in my brain growing up, because I always knew that I eventually wanted to go into the design industry. Yeah, which I naturally attached to just a small portion of people would want to do, they're the creative people. But in the job that I have, now, a lot of people actually come from, like economics backgrounds, commerce backgrounds, design backgrounds as well, like a whole different array of professions. And I think that was when I realised that it doesn't mean like, you don't need to have a design degree in order to be defined as a creative.
Tracy
Yeah, a lot of the people I know who I would describe as really creative types, they're not in those industries.
Wendy
Yeah. So insane, that I actually think that the way that I've defined creativity now, is that it's like a mindset that is fostered before you pick up, like technical skills that showcase creativity. So, I think it's kind of like, the way that you approach problems, if you can see it, and approach it in a kind of different way. And not the kind of typical way that people would expect you to approach that problem. Then you're inherently kind of creative.
Tracy
Yeah, I think so. And that's something you can work on. Like, you can think about your problems and go, Okay, this is the way that I've always done it but how can I do it a little bit different to change it up? And even that, that's people exercising their creative muscle. Yeah, it's not about art. It's not about design only. It's about just the way you approach problems. And the way that you see the world.
Wendy
Yeah, I like having that curiosity and trying to do things differently every single time. Yeah, like, that's my job in a nutshell. We might do the fundamentals the same every time but we always try and kind of experiment with the way that we approach problems.
Tracy
And I think another misconception of creativity is that it's such a big thing. It's like to be creative, you have to like, invent something new. But you can be creative in your everyday life, as well. And it actually takes a lot of work. Like the creative process is, like, extensive, like, there's so much work that goes behind an idea that people don't see. And if you're not really in the process, then you might think that like, you know, people have eureka moments. Yeah, that's a big, big misconception, where they're like, oh, you know, this person just came up with an idea out of nowhere. But what you don't see is the work they put behind it that's like quite methodical as well, like the research, talking to people, brainstorming, and then you have to do all that work before you're able to get to this light bulb moment or this eureka moment. People just see that light bulb moment, they think that creativity is inherent. They think you're born with it, because they're like, Oh, it came so easily. Like, oh, Wendy just came up with idea on the spot. Like, it's so easy for her. But what they don't see is you're doing work behind that to lead you to that. You're looking at inspiration, and you're thinking about it, and then you come up with this idea.
Wendy
Yeah, the creative process is such an interesting space, because it's not like you suddenly wake up one day, and you have this amazing idea. It actually takes so much time. And I think back to uni, because in first year, I used to work towards that moment where I was like, oh, when I'm when am I going to have that kind of golden a-ha moment where I'm really happy with the idea. But what I've learned over time, is that if you continue to expect that one single moment, you're never going to be satisfied with what you produce. And instead, if you hone your skills, or you kind of take the time to focus on your design process instead, and how you approach things, and challenge yourself to try and do things different every time, I think that's how you build your creativity more and more each time.
Tracy
Yeah, it's an iterative process. And that's why I think that contributed to me thinking I wasn't creative because I was like, oh, it's impossible for me to have those eureka moments like Oh, I'm gonna be put into a spot, given a prompt and go yes, this is the idea. But what we don't see is like, oh, yeah, she had to put work into it. And once you put the work in, and practice, that's when you can start having more of those moments where you come up with good ideas.
Wendy
Yeah. When I explain things to like people today, like my projects and stuff, I actually tend to talk through the process from end to end. Because I feel like that tells like a nicer story. And the kind of design process or thinking is more, it's more evident of like, how I came to the idea, as opposed to just showing them the end product.
Tracy
Yeah, that's a good point. Because I think now being in the industry, for a while now, I've realised the focus is actually so much, it's like, what 80% on the process, 20% on the idea, and it's that 80% that we spend most of our time in. So, in advertising, creativity is really, really important, because that's what we're selling. It's an industry that commercialises creativity, and it's in the names like, I work in a creative agency, the work we produce is called the creative. The creative department, their job titles are creatives. Like that's the focus of everything we do is like, it's all around that, that's kind of the product. Creativity is the product, the ideas, the product and everything we do is working around delivering this as a product.
Wendy
So, when you break it down, it's kind of like you're selling this really groundbreaking idea. And it's like, never seen before type of content.
Tracy
Well, I think that's what people, like creatives, really want to aspire to do. But that's not really possible. Like, I think it's more like day to day, like, how can we create a good idea that meets the brief but also will create some sort of impact and make a difference for the business?
Wendy
It's so crazy, because you're in a completely different type of creative industry in advertising. Whereas I'm in service design. But I see a lot of correlations in between how we define creativity in the solutions that we build. So, service design is all about coming up with like, innovative solutions to the client problem that we're given. So, they're really looking to you to kind of provide solutions that will uplift their capability to a certain degree, and ultimately give them kind of like a unique value proposition compared to their competitors. So often, like the way clients kind of see things is because they're so institutionalised, they don't know how to do things differently. And so they hire consultants like myself, to really provide like a unique perspective, that kind of gives their company an edge. And I think that's how I define creativity. It's in the solutions that we build and in the deliverables that we give to clients. And so I think in my day to day, what I tend to like to do or try to do with my colleagues is, we need to have like a really broad understanding of industry trends and where the industry is going, in order to bring like new and original ideas. And I say that in quotation marks, because like you said, there's nothing that's ever new and original. I think things are done over and over again but there's just like a bit of like, spice added it. Yeah, there's like something extra sprinkled on top. It's like, these trends that have existed for years and years, but you kind of just tweak them to suit kind of industry trends, what's coming up, and industry demand as well.
Tracy
Yeah, it could even be looking at something that works in one industry and bringing it into a new one.
Wendy
Yeah, so that's actually like a rule in service design. So, you know, when you do competitor research, people tend to do research that is directly related to the industry. But what we do for clients is we actually look beyond the industry, and see if there's inspiration that we can source from other industries as well. And I think in doing that, like creativity, then comes in the form of like, being really agile and being really adaptive as well, kind of like staying ahead of the curve, making sure that you can kind of borrow ideas from other places, but shift and change them a little bit and apply it to the client problem.
Tracy
As like a designer, what is your creative process?
Wendy
Um, so there's always like, obviously, you do research in the beginning. So, you look beyond your current knowledge. So, you do like primary and secondary research, to find out kind of all the answers you need to the client problem. And really, truly understanding like, is the problem that's been defined by the client actually the problem they need to solve?
Tracy
Yeah, it's like that in our industry as well. It's like, we want to spend most of our time defining the problem. Because if you don't get the problem, right, the rest is going to be wrong.
Wendy
Yeah. Like clients always come to you and they have this hypothesis that like, Oh, this is the issue, this is the root cause. But what we say it's like, you know, we actually need to spend some time talking to your customers or talking to your employees to see if that's the actual problem. Yeah, because they might have bias, you know, they're kind of in the weeds of it. So, they might not realise that the problem is actually coming from elsewhere. Or they might come up come to you with a solution rather than a problem. And you know, that obviously carries so much bias. So, at first you do all that research, and you kind of like, diverge, and you look for as many kind of like solutions as possible. And then you converge on one idea together with the client. And I think it's more helpful to have a lot of ideas and then pick one as opposed to limiting yourself to three. Because then, you know, you've kind of like, looked at all the possibilities and then you've settled and made a kind of like, a informed decision of what works best for the client. So, that's kind of the process. It's kind of like research then building solutions in response to that research, and as many ideas as possible, and then selecting the top three. That's the process for me, anyway. What about you?
Tracy
Um, well, it's different for me, because I don't do the creative work. I manage the creative work, right. So we have copywriters and designers who are in another department of the advertising industry, they do the work. So, I don't have to go through the creative process, really, I do the management of it. Like, I'm briefing it in, I'm reviewing work, I'm checking to see that it's on brief, that it meets the client's strategic objectives and it's going to create an impact. So, I'm more on a higher level, I guess. And the creatives in the industry, they're the ones who have to go through the creative process. So, I would say I don't have to do it. But I am very aware of the process because I've been through Award School. And for those who aren't in the advertising industry, what Award School is, it's a 12-week, globally recognised course for aspiring creatives. So, I did this two years ago, maybe. And I was kind of figuring out whether I wanted to be a creative or not, whether I wanted to be a work in the creative department within advertising. And this is a pretty, very, very intense course that you have to apply to get into. So it's quite competitive as well. And I think this was the beginning of my personal creativity story or like journey. Because even up to that point, I was like, I'm not creative but I'm interested in the creative side of things so I want to learn more. And then I was like, you know what, I'm never gonna get into this highly competitive course. Like, it's very, like famous in the advertising industry, if you've done Award School, it's very well looked upon, and I was like, I'm not gonna get in, but I'm just going to do the application to practice and I'll submit it anyway, and see how it goes. I ended up getting in and that was really like, kind of confusing. I was like, hang on a minute, there's something here, you know. I think that was validation for me that I was, or maybe I do have some sort of creative potential that I can continue working on. And what the application process is like, is it's you submit ideas, and you get judged on how creative those ideas are, and how they meet the brief. It's like you find a bad ad, you make it better. And they give you two briefs, and you have to create two print ads for it. And then they judge it purely on creativity. So, what I really like about the advertising industry is they don't discriminate against education, qualifications, skills, things like that. They don't take any of your resumes. They don't look at your history. They don't look anything. All they look at is your ideas. So, I think that's something that helped me foster my creativity in a professional sense, because I really learned the process, the creative process that I would go through, or a creative would go through, if I did pursue that career.
Wendy
How did they test the level of creativity of your work?
Tracy
It's so subjective, to be honest. I think like they have a panel of creative like industry, creative leaders, and then they kind of just judge it based on like, does it meet the brief, does it evoke a reaction, an emotional reaction, like how interesting the idea is. Like you literally submit like an A4 drawing and words, and then they go, yes, no.
Wendy
It's almost like being able to say a lot with a little, right? Without having to explain. Because that's what advertising is, right? People are viewing the piece of work.
Tracy
Yeah, you literally have seconds, seconds to make an impact on somebody in advertising. So it's about simplicity, and how you can convey your message in like three words, five words, and a picture.
Wendy
Yeah, that's so crazy. Because you just have a single moment in time to make an impact on people. Whereas my type of work, it's all about the experience you build. And experience can last a second or it can last days or years, depending on what service you're providing. So, to be able to build creativity into a single moment versus an end to end experience is completely different.
Tracy
Yeah, that's true. It's very, very different. And maybe that's where the pressure comes from, like sometimes for creatives, to like, come up with a big idea.
Wendy
Yeah. I feel like if I was in your line of work as a creative, because I could be potentially work with you, with my skill set, I'd probably have more creative blocks or creative pressure to a certain degree, because it's kind of like, this is the one moment I can make an impact. I think I will probably lose sleep over trying to produce like a really groundbreaking idea.
Tracy
Yeah, I think so. I think some people are just built for it. Like that type of work, like high pressure, like timelines, deadlines, and like creating heaps of ideas and brainstorming. And in advertising, as creatives, you tend to work in pairs. So, there's a designer and a copywriter. So, they work on ideas together. And actually, doing Award School kind of made me realise that I was more interested in the strategic side of things, which is why I went into account service because you get more of that strategic side of things. And then I learned that, oh, actually, I do have creative potential, but I can hone it in other aspects of my life. But I can also be a creative in my role, like, I don't have to have the title of a creative to be creative. I can be a creative account manager.
Wendy
And you can contribute ideas. Exactly. And I think that contextual understanding is probably helpful for not only the client, but the team that you work with because I feel like you're like the middle person, right? And so, in having that contextual understanding, which you have built through Award School, it helps you be more, I guess, empathetic towards understanding the needs of both parties.
Tracy
It's like the best thing I've done. Like, one of the best things I've done, because I do feel I understand the creative process, how like people work together, and I just appreciate the process so much more. And like you said, when I'm reviewing work from creatives, I totally understand all the stuff they went through to come up with that idea. Like, I'm a lot more empathetic to it and kind of understanding.
Wendy
Yeah, I think we come from to really like interesting perspectives, or we have two really interesting perspectives, because I'm in the weeds doing the work whereas you're like an outsider looking in. And because you've kind of gone out of your way to try and have that understanding, it's actually so helpful, because I haven't thought about it in that sense, like, what does it feel like for the people around me in understanding what I do and trying to take them through the process?
Tracy
Do you feel like sometimes when you're like, trying to take people through the process and showing an idea, do people always get it like are there people who like just don't get it?
Wendy
I think it shows in the way that you tell the story. If I'm telling the story, and then halfway, I just feel like it's not making any sense, I know the idea's shit, right? So, if I'm talking through an idea, and I just had this gut instinct that I'm not making sense to anybody, then the idea doesn't make sense in my head. Yeah, I'm trying to fit like, a triangle into a circle.
Tracy
Yeah, that makes sense. Like something I learned from Award School is, you have to be able to articulate your idea in one sentence. If you can't, it's not good enough.
Wendy
Yeah. If you need to go down like a long winded path to describe your idea, then it's not impactful. Throughout uni, I kind of struggled a lot with coming up with like, new ideas. I constantly faced creative blocks, I think, because I was just in the environment where I was being compared to everyone else around me, because we all had the same brief. There was like 200 people in my cohort, we were all kind of trying to come up with our own original idea and our own, you know, creative flair or style. And so I was constantly having to churn through ideas. And there was just this added pressure of like, Is this good enough compared to what other people are doing? And also, I don't have any really specific, like, hard design skills. So, stuff like illustration, like I can't draw. And I think people relate creativity or design to being able to draw and because of that, I just felt like I needed to be stronger in other areas to make up for it. So, I would say I'm probably stronger in the conceptualising of ideas, as opposed to executing them. And I think execution was where I always faced, like creative blocks. I would have these incredible ideas like, yeah, I really want to do this, and this is why I want to do it. But then when it got to actually producing, I was like, oh, it didn't turn out the way that I imagined it would.
Tracy
Does it hinder your work right now? Do you need to be good at execution?
Wendy
I think because of the industry that I'm in, in consulting, design consulting, no, because a lot of the work that I do is actually not producing stuff. Like producing, like what you would see as classic graphic design products. So, something very visually beautiful. Whereas if I was to work in a very classic, like brand agency, the end product has so much more emphasis, like there's so much more emphasis on the end product, as opposed to service design where it's all about the experience. So, you're kind of building a solution that entails, could entail, an end product, or it could be something that's less tangible, not product facing. When I was in uni, it was like 80% focused on the end product, what you produce is what people see, and so it needs to be amazing. Sometimes you kind of just have to accept that your idea is not good. It's good enough.
Tracy
Yeah. Good enough is okay.
Wendy
It's good enough but it's not going to be that shining kind of deliverable that you thought that it was going to be.
Tracy
But I think that's okay, as well. I think accepting good enough, that's good. Because sometimes, speed is better than, like quality. You might want to get something out in the market, and good enough will still create an impact. Yeah, it's just like working out what you need to prioritise. So, Wendy, you how do you gain creative confidence or courage? Like how do you deal with creative blocks and anxiety around that?
Wendy
I think I felt creative anxiety more so through uni for the reasons that I listed earlier. But now I think the design industry, in terms of ideas, it's quite saturated, like nothing ever seems like an original idea. It's more so about how you adapt, how do you respond to trends, and then you add your own flair to it as well. So, I think I tried to do things that helped me harness like my curiosity, or like things that would push me to think outside the box. So, I think staying curious about the world is really important. So, never thinking that you know everything or the style that you have honed, or that the process that you have honed is perfect. So, always staying agile and adapting rather than being like, rigid and set in your ways with a single design process. Because I think you have to change with the times, right? You can't just think that it's a one size fits all.
Tracy
Yeah, I think what you said about exposing yourself to the world and staying curious is like, so important. And I think when I even when I started doing that, in my personal life, I was able to feel more creative, be more creative, because you just get more things to draw from or more inspiration to draw from if you're reading books, watching movies, you know, exposing yourself to the world. There's just so much more for you to draw upon when you're putting in situations when you need to be creative.
Wendy
Yeah, it's kind of like travelling right? When you put yourself in a different, completely different physical environment. I don't think people have returned from travelling and not felt inspired to do things differently with their life. And I think it's the same with creativity, because I like to try and put myself in different physical environments to stimulate my senses in a different way. So whether that's going outside and seeking inspiration from, you know, nature, and then documenting it, whether it's through photographs, or drawing or writing, I think that's going to produce different results than us just being in your room and trying to seek inspiration from your four walls.
Tracy
Yeah, it's like when people will feel like they're stuck, they always like go for a walk. Or put it down, sleep on it, come back to it.
Wendy
Because subconsciously, I think you think that there is a way to solve your creative block but when you actually physically change the environment you're in, you can be inspired in very surprising ways. Yeah, I know that like a lot of people probably seek inspiration from digital sources as well, like, I definitely do from like Instagram and Pinterest. But what I like to try and also do is before any start any brief, typically I like to try and just have a pen and paper, and then just try and sketch stuff in response to the brief. Because I think when you look at Instagram, or you look at Pinterest, you're just influenced by like other people's work, and then it becomes like a bias in the back of your mind. And so when you're sketching, you're probably subconsciously, like just copying what other people have done. And it's not necessarily the most innovative kind of outcome. But not to say that it's not useful. I also find that like looking at the design process of other artists and designers are really interesting because it it offers kind of advice on how you might be able to challenge your own process and change the way that you approach certain problems.
Tracy
Yeah, that's a good one, looking at their process rather than just focusing on their output, yeah, because then you can adopt the process and come up with your own output.
Wendy
So, as promised, we have exercises for strengthening your creative muscle.
Tracy
Yeah. So these are exercises that maybe Wendy and I do when we're stuck or things that can help anybody really. These are exercises that I've learned through my time that I find really helpful when I do need to do creative brainstorming. So, one learning for me is that the more ideas the better, more is more when you're coming up with ideas, and an exercise that's really good, if you feel like you have a brief or you want to come up with an idea for something, a business idea, I don't know, like a personal project, whatever it is, get a piece of paper, I draw out 10 boxes and then I have to fill out all 10 boxes with ideas. Like basically, the more ideas the better. Because the first couple of ideas that you come up with, just assume that other people would have come up with it already. When people come with, like an idea, the first idea, people always think, Oh, this is such a good idea. But you always have to keep questioning what other things can you do? And even if you think it's the best idea you come up with, you won't know until you've actually come up with the other 10 ideas. So, I think like filling a page with 10 ideas, and then doing it again, sleeping on it, doing it again, is a really good way to practice.
Wendy
Yeah, like you said, it's an iterative process, right? I think I can apply the same kind of logic to a different exercise that I use for work as well. We use kind of like prompting questions. So, if your company or if you are Apple, how would you change the product you're producing. So it's like, using the mentality of being kind of like a very leading and innovative company, and then applying their practice or their design process to your products. So getting people to shift their mindset, as opposed to you need to build a new product that needs to do X Y, Z. I feel like that adds more pressure.
Tracy
Yeah, I think so, like pressure on how you can do it, but if you go adopt a mindset of somebody else...
Wendy
Yeah. And there's also things like divergent thinking tests. So, looking at products that we use every day. So, an example is like a paperclip. Spending two minutes thinking about how many different ways can you use a paperclip. So, thinking about what is it's current use so, you know, for a pile of paper, clipping it together, or changing the way you think about it as like, to pick a lock or something like that.
Tracy
Yeah, it's a really fun exercise. It's two minutes, just do it right after this podcast. Give yourself two minutes and then list as many different ways you can use a paperclip as possible. Like it's just great to exercise that creative muscle.
Wendy
Yeah, you have another really good example here for adult nappies.
Tracy
Oh, yes. So, this is something that we did at Award School, actually, and it's really, really fun. So, one of the weeks our brief was actually to pick an existing product and then either find a new target market for it or change the way people use it. So, for example, if the existing product is adult nappies, the current use for it is, I guess, for people to avoid embarrassing incidences. But then we were prompted to think about, like, how can we change the use of it? What can we do that's new? And one of the examples is a new use for adult nappies could be to never leave your desk, get promoted. It's like encouraging people to kind of think of a different way of how you could use an existing product. That's pretty fun. And another thing is like, okay, maybe green tea. Green tea is for drinking, but you can reframe it and say green tea for dealing with your bad breath. It just opens new ways of thinking about a product. So, thinking beyond its immediate use. I think another one is like, okay, the MCA, what is that? It's a experience for people who are really into art. But how about if we advertise it as a date location?
Wendy
I love that. Tinder's next advertising campaign?
Tracy
Yeah. So, it's just a fun exercise to do. And you can do that so quickly, like just spent 10 minutes.
Wendy
So, a tool that we really like to use in service design, because we are designing for the customer and they're kind of like the heart of everything that we do, and we always look at the end to end experience and creating kind of like a really nice experience for them. I found this thing called Cards for Humanity. So, it's not the card game, but it's a digital kind of card website where it deals you different cards. And it's a tool that is used for inclusive design. So, you get two random cards, which is a person and a trait. And the challenge is you need to build a solution that meets their needs. So, an example could be you're designing an experience for Lucia, who's 55, and she's always upbeat, that's her personality, but then she's also blind. So, thinking about like a product that maybe can help her with her energy levels, but then also acknowledge the fact that she's also blind. So, how do you deal with building a solution that meets those needs? Yeah, that's a really cool tool, because it gets you to think about, you're not just designing a product for the average person, but designing a product that includes everybody. And then that obviously expands your customer group as well.
Tracy
That's so interesting. I feel like you could do this just for fun. And maybe you come up with your next startup idea.
Wendy
Yeah, you really could, right? Like, because it gets you to think about the products that we use day to day. And then how does that product or how's that product used by someone who might have a disability or might not be able to do all the things that we do on a day to day basis?
Tracy
Yeah, that's interesting. I also have a card tool. It's called Deck of Brilliance. And I used this quite a bit when I was in Award School, coming up with ideas, but it's a website that has these cards with idea generation tools for creative professionals. So, there's 52 tools for working with ideas in short periods of times. So, it could be dramatise a problem, or it could be finding an analogy for the problem. Another one is use a unique attribute, using the power of guilt. So just like different ways you can look at a problem. And they give you examples of how you can do that. It's really useful. And you can just go on and pick one and then apply that thinking on the problem you're working on and come up with ideas based on it.
Wendy
Yeah, I think these are all really good tools for not just like strengthening your creative muscle, but different sources of inspiration as well. I have a bad habit of just looking on Pinterest. But yeah, I think this gets you to stimulate your thinking in different ways.
Tracy
Yes and again, anyone can use it. You don't have to be, you know, professionals, in a creative setting to do it, creatively, it can be done, like every day, no matter what role, what type of person you are, even if you think you don't have any inherent creativity skills, like it's something you can work on. And just give it a try. I feel like just give these exercises a try. And you'll see that you actually have some sort of creative potential within you.
Wendy
So, to wrap up our episode on a creative note, we found this thing called My Creative Type through Adobe Create. And what we did was it's kind of like a Myers Briggs like personality test. So we did a couple of questions. I think it's like a series of like, 15 questions, very easy. And at the end, it spits out eight different types and you're one of the eight types. So Tracy, what is your creative type?
Tracy
So my creative type is the adventurer. So the tagline is, so much inspiration, so little time. And I relate to that so much. I have so many hobbies and things that I'm interested in. And the creative strength here is high levels of creative energy, spirit of curiosity and play. It gives you an untapped potential, so that's committing yourself to developing one particular skill or project. It says, you're a fast learner able to pick up new skills and juggle different projects and roles with relative ease. Adventurers are natural storytellers and performers.
Wendy
I think that's pretty accurate for you, because you do have a lot of creative hobbies. So, I think for you, it's like sewing and drawing and sketching and painting, right? I definitely feel like you've got a lot of energy about you in terms of a creative sense.
Tracy
Yeah, I even found that like in high school, even like picking subjects, I was interested in all the fields. I want to do everything but there's not enough time.
Wendy
It could be to your detriment. Yeah, the untapped potential was right, just focus on one and harnessing that, hey.
Tracy
What is yours?
Wendy
I am the visionary. So, imagining the impossible. So, my creative strength is I'm full of big ideas and ability to see potential and possibility everywhere, which I think is quite true. People do things the ordinary way, and then I'm always like, super extra.
Tracy
Yeah, she takes it to another level.
Wendy
Like, for example, we had a friend's night last night, and I made everybody do a quiz on Google Forms. And I made a massive PowerPoint deck to demonstrate the the results. My untapped potential is using your visions to fuel consistent daily action, which is good because one of my goals this year is consistency. And I know that life is limited only by the boundaries of my own beliefs. I'm introspective and intuitive, charismatic and expressive. And yeah, I need to take consistent daily action to create the future that I envision.
Tracy
There we go. Yeah, it's just a fun quiz to do. It's got really cute animations and it just shows that anyone can be creative. Like, just do the quiz, you'll get a type.
Wendy
Yeah, I think it's good for just looking at like, how can you continue to build your creativity?
Tracy
Or how can you use the skills that you have currently to foster it? Okay. So the second question is, would you rather lose your ability to read or lose your ability to speak?
Wendy
I would say lose my ability to read. Because I think, I don't know, when I see people who are very charismatic and can speak very eloquently, then I feel like I can impact people more if I'm able to do those skills. Whereas I think reading is very personal experience.
Tracy
Yeah. When I read this, I was like, Oh, but I won't be able to read books anymore. Like, what am I gonna do myself? I can't read books, but then I'm like audiobooks? Is that cheating? Maybe? So, I also think I would lose my ability to read. Just because speaking, I don't know how I will connect to other people easily if I can't speak.
Wendy
And storytelling, I think is a really big deal for both. Third question, what weird food combinations do you really enjoy?
Tracy
So, I feel like I have a couple. Chip sandwiches. If anyone knows, like white bread, butter if you can, and then put chips like Smiths or Red Rock Deli. You want the honey soy chicken. Put it in the sandwich and eat it. It's like the best snack ever. Yeah, it's like the soft bread with the crunch of the chips and the saltiness but yeah, that's one. And another one actually is like mango with rice. I don't know if anyone, any of you Teochew people out there. I don't even know if it's a Teochew thing. But like my grandparents used to do it like, yellow, sweet mango, with white rice.
Wendy
I have never done that before, must be a Teochew thing.
Tracy
And I think it's maybe also like, back in the days, people were poor and couldn't afford proper side dishes so that you get fruit and rice because that's all they could be back in the days in China or whatever like that. And it just became a snack or food.
Wendy
Yeah, my weird food combination is actually pretty weird. So, towards the end of my exchange of 2017, I went to Iceland. And for those who don't know, Iceland is super expensive. So my friends and I, we decided to buy a loaf of bread, we bought jam, pickles, and pate. Yes, we put jam, pickles and pate in a sandwich, and it was actually really, really good. I love pickles. I know that not everybody loves pickles. But I don't know, for some reason the jam and the pate went really well together.
Tracy
Like, how do you even decide to do that?
Wendy
I think because we were just thinking like, oh, like jam and sandwiches? Yes, goes together. Pate and sandwiches goes together. And then we just bought a jar of pickles because we just really wanted like gherkin.
Tracy
So, that's an example of everyday creativity.
Wendy
Yeah, exactly. Right. And yeah, it was surprisingly really, really nice. So, I think that's probably the weirdest food combination I've ever had.
Tracy
Well, that wraps up our episode today. Thank you for joining us on the poddy. Today's audience question is, what do you do to stay creative? So, join the conversation on Instagram @aseatatourtable.podcast and on Anchor FM. Thanks for tuning in.
Wendy
Thank you. Bye!