Solving tough problems takes creativity- the filing cabinet solution

We have been in New York for a little over a week now.  We are really starting to feel settled in, but it still strange to think that we actually live here now.  It is certainly a change from Austin!  I love how easy it is to go out.  I love that I never have to worry about parking, and I love all that there is to discover and explore.  In short, I am very happy that we moved here even if it has taken some readjusting.

I was thinking this morning about creativity and thinking outside the box.  Creativity is a vitally important skill (yes, I think it’s a skill because it can be improved with practice).  It is also one that Americans have traditionally been pretty good at.  Many of the most innovative products invented come from America, and it is because creativity is (or had been) nurtured more here.  Our system of education, for all its faults, inspires more creativity because it doesn’t place as much emphasis on rote learning and memorization as other places (though that is changing now with all of the standardized tests that are mandated).

I try to be a creative person, but sometimes I am aware of how much of a struggle it can be to really think outside of the box when approaching problems.  For instance, our new apartment is significantly smaller than our old house.  We got rid of a lot of things, but still have a lot of stuff for this space.  Specifically, there is a large legal-sized wide filing cabinet that was supposed to go in the office.  There is also a large desk (with a return) in there.  It was cramped…very cramped.  My solution was basically to live with it.  To arrange things as best we could and just accept that there wasn’t much room.  Will, on the other hand, went beyond that.  He came up with the idea of putting wheels on the bottom of the filing cabinet and rolling it out into the hallway whenever we didn’t have guests.  That way it left more room in the office, but could be stashed there when needed.  It was a perfect solution, and 4 wheels and 16 drilled holes later it works perfectly.

I can’t even describe how much I wouldn’t have come up with that solution.  Not only does it involve altering the file cabinet (by installing wheels), but also involves moving the cabinet from a fixed position.  Since I had only thought of the filing cabinet as it was, not as how it would ideally be, I couldn’t come up with such a clever solution.  Will, on the other hand, has a knack for coming up with off the wall ideas, which often turn out to be perfect solutions.

Are you creative?  Are you good at inventing creative solutions?  What techniques do you use to think in a different way?