Cracking Creativity

Change your skillset, change the world.

Pernilla Hamrén

KEYWORDS

Project

The project Cracking Creativity was born from the discovery that professionals across industries (including creative professionals) do not think that they are creative. It all began with one simple question – would you describe yourself as creative? As a design student, I had always presumed that there was only one feasible answer to this question since I consider it an inherent part of our thinking process. However, I quickly realized that most people respond with a no. By 2030, 1/5th of all jobs will be replaced by AI, except those that rely on core human traits such as creativity and imagination. Creativity is the most demanded skill in the world yet 59% of the population feel like they lack it. This didn’t add up to me, so I spent a year researching what creativity is and how we can make it accessible to everyone.

challenge

The reason that people don’t think that they are creative is due to a strong prevailing stigma that people are either born creative or not. Most people associate creativity with artistic skills but creativity is not some stroke of genius; we’re all born creative. It’s a cognitive function and just like a muscle, we can train it and become better at finding new solutions. My research revealed three main pain points: people don’t have time to be creative, they don’t want to spend the time that they have on abstract “nonsense” that don’t directly apply to them and they feel like they are not good at it. However, creativity is not as abstract, nor complex as people are led to believe. There are scientifical ways to measure creativity. So how might we make creativity more tangible, whilst addressing the apparent gap between supply and demand?

Outcome

Introducing Ahaa! A creativity training platform designed for professional applicability; moving beyond the artistic associations that impedes people from realizing their creative potential by offering fast and tailored training to solve real life problems. Crack individual training to improve your own skillset and build a portfolio based on your idea generation and unique problem solving. Try exercises across the board and in all fields and begin building a personal library of creative ideas where you get immediate scores individually, and in comparison to how others have responded. Match with recruiters or connect with collaborators based on criteria, skillset or interest. Test, create and realize your ideas by entering open challenges and contests, hosted by companies and investors who are trying to tap into innovation, allowing you to pitch and showcase your abilities directly to the market. Finally, one of your ideas could make a change in the world.