In today’s trying economic climate, retailers feel the constant pressure to reinvent themselves, to raise the level of innovation in the way they go to market, engage their customers and deliver experiences. There’s no doubt these challenges are real – tight margins, slashed budgets and the like – but I recently read a fascinating study about tapping creativity that adds some perspective, and maybe even a silver lining, to the situation.
We’ve all heard the phrase, “Necessity is the mother of invention.” A recent article in Fast Company magazine, titled “How Constraints Force Your Brain to Be More Creative,” examines this phenomenon and finds truth in the familiar idiom. A number of studies cited in the piece explain how when subjects ranging from lab mice to undergraduate students were handicapped in some way, with regard to either resources or abilities, they consistently found new and creative ways of problem-solving.
The article, adapted from the book, “Unlock the Power of Less – and Achieve More Than You Ever Imagined,” by Scott Sonenshein, reinforces the notion that because constraints force us to act more resourcefully – specifically in the ways in which we solve problems – the outcome is typically better, more viable solutions.
In design, we have a tendency to want to remove all constraints to conduct blue-sky experiments in hopes of maximizing creativity and innovation. While I believe that these exercises are warranted and indeed valuable, this piece reminds us of the philosopher Plato’s words about invention. When reality is such that we rarely have the luxury of unlimited budgets or resources, perhaps some ideation within those constraints may deliver a different type of solution. Something to ponder while staring at that blank page or screen.