Get Creative Week 8: Breakthrough, Expand the Boundaries - Alex Osborn

​Breakthrough, Expand the Boundaries
Alex Osborn
This week, as I reflected on my first days in the program, I recall taking the challenge that although I didn’t find myself to be a very creative person, I was going to learn enough about it to get a better understanding of how it worked in “Creative People.”  I didn’t think for a moment that I could possibly be a creative person.  My focus was on my practice in Organizational Change Management.  I wanted to find more creative ways to bring my clients the solutions they need and want. 
Alex Osborn’s perspective on creativity was music to my ears!  He went against status quo which was of the belief that only people who had this innate talent could be creative.  Instead, Osborn believed that anyone could be creative even if it meant teaching or guiding them through a creative process.  He further introduced brainstorming, which was an intricate part of stimulating the creative thought process.  In 1945, brainstorming and creative problem solving gained popularity in Osborn’s book Applied Imagination: Principles and Procedures of Creative Problem Solving.  Osborn is noteworthy for:
(1)    Founding the Creative Education Foundation (CEF) in 1954
(2)    Co-Founding the Creative Problem Solving Institute (CPSI) in 1954
(3)    Co-created with Sidney Parnes, the Osborn-Parnes Creative Problem Solving Process (CPS)
(4)    CEF sponsored a Leadership Convocation of the pioneers of the Creative Thinking Movement (1960)
I have truly benefited from Osborn’s work in the field of Creativity.  His research provided additional skills for me in my Change Management toolbelt.  Knowledge of Creative Problem Solving (CPS) allows me to better serve clients by helping them to find the best solutions.
 
Works CitedOsborn, A. (1948). Your Creative Power: How to Use Imagination. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.
Osborn, A. (1952). Wake Up Your Mind: 101 Ways To Develop Creativeness. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.
Osborn, A. (1963). Applied Imagination: Principles and Procedures of Creative Problem-Solving. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.