What’s In Your Creativity Tool Kit?

I just read an article in The New York Times about the discovery of stone hunting tools used by Homo sapiens in Africa 71,000 – give or take – years ago. These sharp, durable tools, dubbed microliths, were used for hunting and defense.

The observation that these people had greater “cognitive capacity for abstract and creative thought and the conception of increasingly complex technologies associated with modern human behavior” was what caught my attention.

I often talk with potential author-clients who don’t have enough faith in their ideas. They don’t think anyone will be interested, or that they can write an entire book about their ideas and experiences implementing it.

To which I can now ask, What if our African ancestors had a similar attitude 70,000-odd years ago? What if they hadn’t tried to make a sharper, more durable spear tip? Not only would they not have solved a specific problem, but they would not have learned how to exercise their minds. They wouldn’t have developed “abstract and creative thought” – at least not so soon.

But they did, and here we are today. What we humans have increasingly become more adept doing is applying our creative thought processes to solving problems. And we’re great at it.

You’ve solved problems in your business. You’ve helped others solve problems. Perhaps you’ve developed a skillset or methodologies for your particular type of problem-solving that are worth sharing with others.

If so, you’re ready to write a book about it. It’s a pretty long haul from idea to published book, but I guarantee it won’t take 71,000 years. Give us a shout. We can help you get going.