Critical and creative thinking activities certainly improve your productivity. But they also make you stand out in front of managers in your workplace.
As a worker, it’s important to think critically and solve problems efficiently. One way to improve these skills is by doing critical thinking activities. When you get better at critical thinking, you become more valuable to your employer and can perform better at your job. To get started, try learning about some common critical thinking exercises.
In this blog post, I’ll share with you eleven critical and creative thinking activities that will make you more valuable.
11 Critical & Creative thinking activities
1. Join training programs
These programs can offer you valuable tools and techniques to help you think more creatively, come up with innovative ideas, and solve problems in unique ways. By participating in training programs, you can learn from experts in the field, network with other professionals, and gain practical experience in applying creative thinking to real-world situations.
In today’s fast-paced and competitive workplace, having strong creative thinking skills is highly desirable for employers.
By investing in your professional development through training programs, you can enhance your value as an employee and increase your chances of achieving your career goals.
2. Build on your own
When you’re hired by an employer, it’s important to remember that you were selected for your skills and abilities. You’re expected to work independently and take initiative to bring results.
Building on your own means taking ownership of your work, being proactive, and coming up with your own ideas to improve your job performance and contribute to your company’s success.
If you notice an issue or inefficiency in your work process, you have the opportunity to make improvements on your own. This demonstrates your willingness to take responsibility and make things better, which can lead to increased trust from your employer and more opportunities for advancement.
3. Look for issue
If you want to enhance your creative thinking skills in the workplace, actively look for issues or inefficiencies in your work process and also in your. By identifying these challenges, you can begin to brainstorm creative solutions that can streamline your work and improve your productivity.
4. Read more
Reading is a great way to enhance your critical thinking skills at work. It gives your brain a workout and exposes you to new ideas and perspectives.
It doesn’t matter what you read, as long as you’re engaging with different materials. However, it’s also good to challenge yourself by reading more complex books from time to time to keep your mind sharp.
By incorporating reading into your daily routine, you can improve your cognitive abilities and be a more valuable asset to your workplace.
Start with: ‘Atomic Habits’, all time best book.
5. Discuss more
It’s important to discuss ideas and challenges with others. This can include colleagues, mentors, or other professionals in your field.
But why? Simply because you will get an idea or newer perspectives to solve problems, reach conclusions etc.
Discuss about what? Maybe a problem you found doing a task or a side project you are working on and need guidance.
6. Worst Case Scenario
To improve critical thinking, teamwork, communication, and problem-solving skills in the workplace, you can divide your colleagues into teams and present them with challenging scenarios.
Each team will have limited resources and time to come up with a viable solution to the scenario presented to them. Scenarios can range from being stranded on an island to being stuck in a forest.
This exercise will encourage your colleagues to think creatively (Big Magic Book for creative thinking) and come up with innovative solutions to solve the challenges presented to them. This was from an employer’s perspective, creative worst case for employees and helping them push their limits.
7. Celebrate colleague’s birthdays
By planning unique and personalized celebrations, colleagues can come together to build strong relationships and foster a positive work environment.
Such celebrations can boost morale and promote teamwork, creating a more collaborative and supportive workplace culture. Recognizing and celebrating each other’s special moments can also demonstrate appreciation and contribute to a more positive work atmosphere.
Such celebrations, not only birthdays but just celebrations, make you more creative and active. So it’s great.
8. Use mind mapping
By drawing a simple diagram, you can map out the outcomes of different scenarios or arguments.
For instance, if you need to choose between different options to achieve a goal, write down all of the potential courses of action and map out their likely results one by one. This way, you can analyze your options and consider the effects you might not have thought of before.
Using visual aids can help you and your team to better understand complex problems and make better decisions. It’s a simple yet powerful technique that can save you time and help you reach your goals more effectively.
Related Post: 7 Creative Thinking Techniques Everyone Should Know
9. Listen & ask questions
When you listen to your colleagues’ ideas and perspectives, you gain a deeper understanding of the challenges they face and the solutions they propose.
By asking questions, you can probe deeper into their thinking, challenge assumptions, and identify gaps in reasoning. Through this process, you can uncover new insights and approaches, develop more effective strategies, and make more informed decisions.
10. Come up with “let’s try ideas”
These are ideas that may seem unconventional or risky at first, but have the potential to yield innovative solutions. By encouraging your team to generate these types of ideas, you create a culture of experimentation and exploration.
And if you are an employee you create the personality of a creative person & people like to stay around creatives.
You can test out different approaches and learn from both successes and failures, which can lead to breakthroughs and new ways of thinking. By embracing the attitude of “let’s try,” you can push past the status quo and unleash the full potential of your team’s creativity and critical thinking skills.
11. Avoid Workplace politics
And last, you should avoid being part of workplace politics. It is a critical creativity sucker.
Gossiping, negative comments, and other forms of office politics can create a toxic environment that stifles creativity and hinders effective decision-making.
If you want to be creative and critical please avoid these activities and focus on constructive discussions and actions, so that everyone can feel more comfortable sharing their ideas and take calculated risks, which will lead to more innovative and successful outcomes.
Conclusion
This is it, when you practice these critical and creative thinking activities in the workplace as an employee or as a manager, you’ll be able to build great relationships and work efficiently, staying productive.
Recap
- Join training programs
- Build on your own
- Look for issue
- Read more
- Discuss more
- Worst Case Scenario
- Celebrate colleague’s birthdays
- Use mind mapping
- Listen & ask questions
- Come up with “let’s try ideas”
- Avoid Workplace politics
Hope it helped you, take care, have a great day.🙌👋