Creative Thinking Prompt: w/c 1 April 2024
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Welcome to April's creative thinking theme:
CREATIVITY AND THE SENSES
“Our senses are indeed our doors and windows on this world, in a very real sense [they are] the key to the unlocking of meaning and the wellspring of creativity.”
Jean Houston
When we start to think creatively, it’s as if new parts of our brain are igniting. Little sparks discover new dark corners and illuminate what’s there! It’s literally magic when this happens. So anything that encourages these ‘sparks’ will be good for our creative thinking.
By exploring and using all our senses, whether that’s alone or in combinations, we are activating parts of our brains which may be dormant, and exploring those dark corners - creativity is then borne from these adventures!
So this month, we’ll be looking at each of the senses in turn. Taking time to think about each one individually and attempt to isolate them in our experiences, noticing what helps to spark creative thinking within us, and seeing if we can utilise our senses more.
CREATIVE THINKING AND TASTE
Well first up today, I need to say HAPPY EASTER! How many chocolate eggs do you have? Or how many of the kids’ eggs do you have your eyes on?!
In this month of exploration into OUR SENSES, it seemed appropriate that I start with TASTE. I’m sure there’ll be a fair amount of chocolate-tasting today?
How can we use TASTE to help prompt our creative thinking?
What effect does food and drink have on our ability to be creative, and on the result of that thinking?
OK, so hands up who’s hoping I’m going to encourage you to have a glass or two of wine before being creative? The ‘loosening’ up and the loss of our inhibitions may well help us push our ideas further, but it’s certainly not a prerequisite (sorry!)
Do you think your creativity is affected by the food and drink you eat? Or is it the circumstances of where/when/with whom you eat which perhaps influences you? It’s hard to separate the two variables, unless you’re doing a science experiment!
In 2018, researcher Huh (and others)* did exactly that in a study titled “Taste perception and creativity” - they found that participants who drank a sweet drink had more ideas (probably the hit from the sugar), but that sour drinks gave more creative ideas - so better on creative performance. But they didn’t actually discover why!
But we’re not here to read an essay, we’re here to try this out and see how we can activate our creative thinking through taste!
So here’s my prompts for you to try this week:
Creative Thinking Prompt (w/c 1 April 2024)
Try to savour your food. I’m sure you’ve heard people say this before, but take your time and really think about the experience of eating that chocolate (or whatever it is) this week. Taking time to appreciate the texture and experience means you’re noticing new things all the time, which is great for creative thinking.
Try something new. Consider how you feel before you eat it - are you convinced you won’t like it, and does this impact whether you actually do or not (I say this to my kids a lot!)? How can you relate that to your usual process of coming up with new ideas - do you have preconceptions?! Could you push through them and change them, do you think?
Swap your knife and fork over, or eat with your non-dominant hand. This forces your brain to work more consciously, activating new areas!
Is there any food or drink which holds strong memories for you? Think about that for a moment. If it’s a good feeling, can you find that thing and eat/drink it this week? How does that make you feel? The memories it sparks will undoubtedly influence and creative thinking you do afterwards.
“When applying creativity principles to the dining table, it is worth remembering that the process of eating goes beyond the food itself. … our emotional response to the food being eaten can also impact cognition.”
Huh et al (2018)*
So finally, be aware this week of how your emotional response to food affects your creative thinking. Do you work better if you’re snacking on crisps or maltesers? Or sharing a slice of cake with a friend before brain-storming? Or does a bowl of fresh fruit every morning give you a sweet and healthy start to the day, kick-starting your brain into innovative action?
I think it's so interesting to see how our sense of taste could make a difference to the quality of ideas we produce.
Do you have any thoughts?