Creating space for creative and critical thinking, both for ourselves and others, is essential to good leadership, especially when making decisions and solving problems. Critical thinking helps us understand and assess situations deeply and in detail, while creativity allows us to find innovative solutions.
Being a creative leader means finding imaginative ideas and solutions, being open to divergent thinking, exploring how things could work better instead of how things have always worked, and taking risks on new ideas.
Critical thinking is about asking the right questions, going to the source of issues, and having both the global vision and the in-depth analytical understanding of the situation. It helps us understand what is at stake and assess the roles and power of stakeholders. It also enables us to objectively evaluate our impact and adjust for the future.
We practise this mindset to:
• Understand where people are coming from, challenge their assumptions, and consider the data they are using.
• Explore complex situations and make decisions.
• Actively analyse, understand and learn from data and evidence.
• Think for ourselves and not give in to group thought.
• Explore the internal logic in our thinking.
• Learn to prioritise what is important and what can be dealt with later.
• Be open to ‘divergent thinking’, learning from different perspectives, and changing our mind.
• Encourage ourselves to innovate and take informed risks.
• Hold ourselves and others accountable, and evaluate the outcomes of our leadership actions.