I truly believe that in this tough economy lateral thinking and creativity will ensure many small business owners not only survive but thrive - "necessity is the mother of all invention" and all that!

Personally I have always been naturally creative and enjoy everything about the creative process from the inception of an idea through to the final outcome. However I come across many people both work colleagues and customers alike who say they are simply not creative and really struggle to come up with new and original ideas.

For many years I had put this down to Left Brain / Right Brain thinking.

With left brain thinkers typically being logical, analytical, mathematical and good with languages where as right brain thinkers are creative, intuitive, arty, and think much more holistically.

However whilst I am clearly naturally comfortable as a right brain creative thinker my job demands that I spend half my life as a left brain thinker dealing with logic and delivering analytical output. In order to achieve this I have to become creative about being logical and so if this works for me then surely left brain thinkers can be logical about their creativity?

The title of this article is the "Motivation of an Idea" and I believe this is key to everyone being able to tap into creativity on demand. In my role I interact with a lot of CEO's and trainers (both work and sports based) but I very rarely come across people who truly understand Motivation.

For example does Motivation come before an act? or does Motivation come after the act? Most people believe you get motivated to do something where as in the vast majority of cases you become motivated after you have done the act. Think about going to the gym often you really do not want to go however once you have trained you come out feeling incredibly motivated.

If you are a left brain thinker then you need to stimulate and motivate yourself to become creative you need to set the scene and develop triggers whilst setting the right atmosphere. It is not enough to say I need to come up with an idea? Look at athletes who are exceptional at what they do - they don't simply step onto the field of play and turn in a World class performance. They first of all need to train and then they need to wear the right equipment, then warm up and then play and even when they do all this sometimes they don't come up with the goods.

Creativity and the Creative process is exactly the same it doesn't work every time but it can work most times for anyone as long as you prepare. With this in mind I decided to create a checklist of things to help anyone and everyone become World Class creative thinkers.

Get Motivated - Remember it is most often the act that creates motivation so do something to get motivated - I read magazines or watch videos on You Tube. If I am preparing an article or a marketing piece I buy magazines that motivate me, these do not necessarily need to be about the subject matter itself just something that will motivate you and put you in the correct frame of mind to become creative. For me travel magazines, luxury goods, sporting videos, exceptional sporting moments, boats, the sea, beautiful houses, art, sculptures are all triggers that motivate me. Find out what motivate's and triggers you and use these to prepare to be creative.

Don't Force It - Simply tell yourself what you want to achieve or even better write it down i.e. I want to create a brilliant mailer, or I want to come up with a new product or service (try and be as specific as possible) and then lose yourself in your magazines or video's or whatever triggers you have chosen to use. You will now find that the strangest picture or article stimulates your creative process in relation to what you are trying to design or invent.

Abandon Logic - Throw logic out of the window do not try and formulate a whole new product or idea in a logical format - creativity doesn't work this way simply write down (in a brainstorming fashion) all the ideas however random or silly they might seem and keep writing until you can think of nothing else - the brain is a wonderful thing it will eventually see a pattern or make sense of the random thoughts.

Remove all Limitations - This part is essential you cannot put limitations on the creative process - so for example you cannot say I want to create a brilliant new mailer or exceptional new product and then say but on a tight budget! You have to say that money is no object, time is no object, resource is no object and once you come up with your idea then work out how to do it in the cheapest and or quickest way possible.

Create while you Sleep - Some of the most brilliant ideas and inventions came at night whilst the inventor was sleeping. Many great inventors take a pen and paper to bed and then before they fall asleep write down what they want to achieve - you will be surprised how many times you wake up in the night with a brilliant idea or when you wake up in the morning because your subconscious mind loves to be creative.

Observe - Once you have decided what you want or need to create then observe - you will be surprised just what you will see and what will come to you. I remember reading a book called the Celestine Prophecy which states as one of its principles that everything you need is already available to you but you are just not open to it? A bit "hairy fairy" well maybe but what it goes on to say is that a chap travelled to work the same way for ten years, passing the same houses and same streets. He had never been a gardener but as he got older he decided he wanted to create a beautiful garden at his home where he could relax. Once he decided to create a garden he opened his self up to what was available and the next day as he traveled to work he noticed that two doors down from where he lived there were two fabulous lion sculptures in the garden, around the next corner was the most amazing tree, two streets further along they had some incredible earthenware pots in the front garden, as he rounded the next corner he noticed a garden centre he hadn't spotted before and then a farm shop that sold young plants etc. The point is that these things has been there for years he had just never noticed them because until now he wasn't interested in gardens. Commit to something new and observe and you will be amazed at what you find.

Research - The internet has made everything possible, get online and browse, surf, fumble your way around the net and see where you end up, analyse your competitors, follow affiliate marketeers, look at incredible art and design and let your imagination run wild don't worry that you are not focusing on exactly what you want to create your subconscious mind will pull together all the stuff that is relevant.

Do something different - "If you do what you have always done you will get what you have always got". Try something new, read something new or watch something different. Pick something you don't think you will like - at the very worst you will confirm your suspicions, watch a programme in a different language, listen to a radio station in language you don't understand - you will be amazed at how this stimulates your mind.

Ask - Whatever it is you are trying to create ask for other peoples opinions or thoughts - family, friends, work colleagues, children, go online into forums. Whilst it is unlikely that these people will deliver the solution you want - what they often do is to stimulate your thinking and send you off on a path you would have never taken without their input.

Be Still - Find a place you love, a view you like, a room you like, your car! and just be still, be quiet. How often in today's fast paced world do you take time to be completely still and quiet? It is incredibly rare for people today to have even five minutes complete peace and quiet - think of your own life! If you can achieve just 15 minutes per day then your ability to create will be multiplied tenfold.
I hope this has been useful and wish you every success - be creative and be remarkable.

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