Creative potential combines the ability to think in original ways with the motivation to do so.

Creative thinking grows with knowledge and experience; they are the raw material for new ideas.

The drive for creativity develops through implicit learning.

Small actions—inviting ideas, exploring multiple options, and allowing change—help build creative potential.

Creativity scholars are often asked whether everyone is creative. Not everyone is creative in the sense of having developed new products that enrich our lives or make them more convenient. However, everyone might be able to build their creative potential.

What do we mean by creative potential?

Creative potential is best described as including capacity for creative thinking and the drive for creativity. In other words, the potential means being able to think in original ways and being motivated to do so.

Creative thinking is called for when we are facing open-ended problems which cannot be addressed by following a precise step-by-step process. Scientists have devised tests that can assess how people think when multiple answers are possible.

Such tests might ask people to think of unusual uses for common objects (e.g., a tin can) or come up with ideas for what would happen in fanciful scenarios (e.g., if people could speak with animals). Responses are scored for how many ideas people generate, how original the ideas are, and how much they detail is included in the ideas.

The drive for creativity is based on intrinsic interest, our perceived value of creativity, and our confidence that we can be creative. Intrinsic interest means wanting to tackle new and complex problems, being curious, preferring to figure out things for oneself, and enjoying this process. We can be intrinsically interested in a category of activities (school or work) or something specific (art or writing). Related to........

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