Soar to Success April 2019

“Creative thinking is looking at your problems and trying to come up with new solutions, new ideas to solve this problem, instead of just doing the same thing the same way. If it didn’t work the first time, didn’t work the second time, and didn’t work the third time, it’s not going to work the fourth time either,” according to Jennifer. Many times, it’s difficult for a manager or owner of a business to accept new ideas. It is much easier to say, “Oh no, we can’t change things like that.” Jennifer reminded us, that thought will stifle creative thinking in an organization, lead to employee stagnation and miss new avenues for profit or business generation. The better question is, “How can we do it better,” which opens a whole new avenue for ideas and creative thinking. Perfectionismcanbeadeterrent to creative thinking. Wanting to get every piece of information before submitting a report or article for consideration, stalls the project and limits the person’s own ability to draw a conclusion and make a valuable recommendation from the data. Creative thinking is scary! It involves some risk for the individual to put the new idea or concept out there for scrutiny and evaluation by others. In her workshops, Jennifer encourages participants to put ideas to work that “Ignite Innovation.” These are ideas that have made it through the creative stage and are ready for implementation. Schools and teachers are very interested in her creative instruction. Educators need to consider the individual needs of each student and streamline their lesson plans to meet the needs of each student in a class. They are also preparing students to solve problems of the future, problems that do not exist yet using tools that don’t exist yet. True to her teaching, Jennifer is continually seeking new and innovative methods to teach and bring creative thinking to her clients and their businesses. Her process is constantly under scrutiny and always open to new and better ideas. When asked what she felt was a good starting point to develop creative thinking, she answered, “Journaling is a wonderful way to work on your creative thinking. First thing I do when I wake up in the morning is write down something that I’m grateful for and then write down something that I would like to achieve that day. In the evening, I write down if I achieved my goal, plus why or why not. It helps me focus, but it also starts me on a positive note. Writing has been proven to help stimulate creative thinking and make unusual connections.” Jennifer is also open to new goals and achievements in her personal life. She is an ultra-runner, competing in marathons and longer competitions. She recently completed a five-day, 80-mile, solo, backpacking hike through the Susquehannock Trail in Pennsylvania. She only saw one other person during her trek. It was a lonely endeavor and taught her that even though she’s an introvert, she needs to have other people in her life. Jennifer is involved with various organizations. She has been a member of the Association for Talent Development, the Society for Technical Communication and a member of Women for Economic and Leadership Development. She is also active with Toastmasters, which helps hone her speaking and presentation skills.