KEY POINTS:
Once upon a time, when New Zealanders lived off the sheep's back, we all had most respect for practical types - men who could build a fence that stayed up and dig a decent veggie garden, women who could bottle fruit and knit warm jerseys.
Since then, it's not only gender roles that have changed, so have the industries we work in and for which our country is becoming famous.
Wool and lamb are being joined by industries such as biotechnology and filmmaking.
Now, we get excited about companies that develop ground-breaking sports graphics for television or incredible special effects for Hollywood blockbusters.
We celebrate individuals who search for new pharmaceutical drugs in the unlikeliest of places, or who develop international businesses by tying tourists to the end of large rubber bands and throwing them off high places.
We've learned to value creativity, and that creativity is rewarding us with ever-expanding business opportunities.
But what is creativity?
A dictionary definition is "the ability or power to create or to bring into existence".
International business coach and author Linda Naiman says it's the first building block of innovation.
"The dictionary defines innovation as the introduction of something new. Innovation is the implementation of creative inspiration," says Naiman.
So it follows that businesses aiming to be innovative need first to encourage creativity.
But how? Thankfully for them, this has been the subject of much research and analysis, including by Teresa Amabile, head of Harvard Business School's entrepreneurial management unit.
Amabile and her team collected nearly 12,000 daily journal entries from 238 people working on creative projects. She didn't tell them she was studying creativity, just that she wanted to know about their work and environment as they experienced it.
From that, she uncovered six myths about creativity.
The first one of these myths is that creativity comes from creative types - her study showed it can come from anyone, under the right circumstances.
And that's something David Walden, CEO of advertising agency TBWA\Whybin couldn't agree with more.
"A lot of workplaces are quite nervous in their view that 'this is the research and development department, and this is the marketing department, and this is the finance department'. I think that's a very old-fashioned view," says Walden.
"We give permission to people to contribute and have a culture that says you are not going to step on anybody's toes, you are not going to be laughed at because it's a stupid idea."
As a result, even in a creative organisation, not all ideas come from the "creatives".
They may come from the receptionist, the office junior or even the accounts assistant.
Another of Amabile's myths is that time pressure fuels creativity.
And, again, Walden agrees.
Advertising is a very deadline-driven industry - if you have to have the pitch ready by 2pm on Monday, then you simply have to do it, no ifs, buts or maybes and no extensions.
But that doesn't mean you introduce inflexible daily deadlines that must be achieved and pressure everyone to meet them, he says.
"Our workplace is very relaxed," he says, "professional, but relaxed."
The lunch room has a PlayStation console, a pool table and there's a garden on the roof.
If inspiration isn't happening, staff are encouraged to take their mind off the problem, play a game of pool, go for a walk, rest their mind.
"You sometimes just need to move on to something else to allow ideas to flow again," says Walden.
And clock-watching is never going to create an environment in which people feel free to contribute.
"At the end of the day, you can't say that 'at 9 o'clock I'm going to start creating ideas and at 5 o'clock I'm going to stop'," says Walden.
Instead, people who are engaged with their work, and enjoy what they do will come up with ideas on the way to and from work, or even while they're doing the dishes at home.
"We can't ask them to stop that and we don't want to stop that, but it's also fair enough if they are going to be having their mind on some of those commercial activities in their own time that when they are on our time, we should be flexible with them."
And he also agrees with Amabile that it's a myth that competition beats collaboration when it comes to encouraging creativity.
Like most successful ideas out of TBWA\Whybin, Ira Goldstein - the ASB Bank's lovable New York convert - was the product of many creative minds working together.
The agency received the brief, then set several creative teams to work on developing it.
"One person said, 'You know what it's like when you pick someone up from the airport and they've not been to New Zealand before and you have to explain what the country's about'," says Walden.
That soon developed into taking a banker from New York explaining to his boss what that New Zealand bank was about and, piece by piece, Ira was born.
"But it's many creative minds, interpreting a core creative proposition, which was: tell people what makes the bank different," says Walden.
"If someone feels that they can hear someone else's idea and have permission to enhance it or add to it, you get creatives sparking off each other."
And that's where the good ideas come from.
Walden is in no doubt that creativity has to be encouraged from the top down, that a managerial attitude of open communication and encouragement is vital to make people feel they are able to contribute and aren't confined simply to simply doing the job.
Without that environment, he says, ideas will be lost.
"I think a lot more creativity is stifled than ever gets uncovered.
"But it's such a straightforward thing. Why on earth would you not create an environment that can give your business more?"
Six Myths About Creativity
1. Creativity comes from creative types.
Anyone can be creative, given the right experience, talent and ability to push through dry spells. People who are turned on by their work are more creative than those who aren't.
2. Money motivates creativity.
Creativity is more likely to come from a work environment where it is supported, valued and recognised, than from financial inducement.
3. Time pressure fuels creativity.
Creativity needs an incubation period - people need time to think about a problem and let the ideas bubble. People are their least creative when fighting the clock.
4. Fear forces breakthroughs.
Fear, anger and anxiety stifle creativity. If people are happy, chances are that, after thinking about a problem one day, they'll come up with a creative solution the next.
5. Competition beats collaboration.
When people are competing, they stop sharing information. The most creative teams are those that share information and debate.
6. Streamlined businesses are the most creative
Creativity suffers greatly during downsizing, and during any anticipation of downsizing.
Source: www.fastcompany.com
Strategies To Develop Innovation
* Communicate your vision and mission clearly.
Staff who know what the goal is are more likely to come up with creative ways of achieving it.
* Remove bureaucratic obstacles.
Welcome open-ended enquiry and experimentation.
* Create a climate of trust and collaboration.
Encourage people to talk to each other - even those from different departments.
* Embrace diversity.
More people from different backgrounds and with different outlooks equals more original ideas.
* Celebrate success.
Recognise and reward creative ideas that have worked.
* Cultivate learning
Encourage staff to keep broadening their knowledge, whether through formal courses or by extending themselves into new areas at work.
* Cultivate outside interests.
Creative solutions often happen when people are thinking about something else. Encourage your staff to pursue things they enjoy outside work.
* Provide strong leadership and support.
Adapted from www.creativityatwork.com
