Considering the training programs in corporate life, one of the most popular topics is entitled “Creative Thinking”. In today’s environment our life styles and socioeconomic conditions are changing rapidly. Additionally expectations of customers are continuously increasing. In order to meet these expectations; every firm, every department and every employee need to think and act in more creative ways. This situation has led to an increase in demand for “Creative Thinking” courses.

Well, here is a question we need to face: Could creative thinking skill be improved via training programs? I have to say that it is not possible to answer this question with a “Yes” considering the courses I have attended so far. Main purpose of the courses on this topic should be to direct the attendees to look at the things with a different perspective and to inspire them by giving some examples of creative thinking.

The First Course: Examples of Creative Thinking in Business

Two different courses I have attended on “Creative Thinking” was beneficial for me. One of these courses focused on the examples of creative thinking in different sectors and fields. These examples made me think “How can I behave and think more differently than ever? What differences can I make when I get back to work?” Stemming from the examples delivered during this course, I would like to share some creative business ideas. The first example is Airbnb web site. The site targets the users who want to rent their houses completely or partially for a limited period of time. It is possible to rent not only the houses with standard features, but also luxury houses, castles, tree houses and boat houses can be rent via the web site. Users of Airbnb communicate by using their social identities on the web and this generates a sense of trust amongst them. Until now over 9 million guests have used the web site in 192 different countries.

Another example is Taskrabbit, which is a web site based on personal service promotion. You can ask the “rabbits”, who are approved and hired by the website, to run some errands for you. You can hire the “rabbits” for shopping or housework. The most popular service asked by the users of the web site is assembly of IKEA furniture. For now the web site provides service only in the USA but the coverage area is extending.

Like these two examples Kickstarter, Etsy, and Zopa are some other examples of creative thinking in business.

The Second Course: Lives of Creative People

The second course I found useful focused on the lives and experiences of some creative people in history. It is possible to make different lists of creative people in history. The trainer based her list on a “Top 10 List” which was made by an international creativity foundation depending on a survey they conducted. The trainer highlighted three names on this list: Einstein, Shakespeare and Da Vinci. She provided detailed information on their experiences, perspectives and well-known works. By the end of the course, I came to realize how little information I had on these names and had an interest on the biographies of scientists, philosophers and novelists.

I would like to share and recommend some of the books I have read after the course:

Einstein: Decoding the Universe

The Consolations of Philosophy

Obsessive Genius: The Inner World of Marie Curie (Great Discoveries)