How to Bring Creativity to the Workplace | Progressions

http://progressions.prssa.org/index.php/2014/07/16/how-to-bring-creativity-to-the-workplace/[12/27/2014 11:43:51 PM]

RECENT POSTS

Ten Items on Our Public Relations Holiday Wish

List

Let’s Party! Five Steps to Planning a Successful

Holiday Event

December Twitter Chat Recap: The Internship

Search — Secure Your Future

Completing the Public Relations Bucket List

Attempted CNBC Bribe Reveals Honesty’s

Importance in Public Relations

CATEGORIES

Advocacy

Annual Report

Blogging/Publications

Chapter Development

College Life

Current News

Day in the Life

Diversity

Ethics

Event Planning

FORUM

Fundraising

Guest Post

Courtesy of Ethan Parry

How to Bring Creativity to the WorkplaceJULY 16, 2014 in INTERNSHIPS & JOB ADVICE

When I was little, the sky was the limit. I was one ofthose kids who liked to color outside the lines andhad a great sense of imagination. I also believedthat I would someday be able to fly just likeSuperman.

Now that I am a little older and a little wiser, I havea better understanding of what it is and what isn’tpossible. However, despite the fact that I havematured, I would still consider myself a creativeperson.

Last year, The Holmes Report, along with Ketchum and Now Go Create, conducted the first in-depth study ofcreativity within the public relations industry. “More than half of all respondents described the quality of creativitywith the PR industry as [either] ‘ordinary’ or worse,” the report said. When asked if the public relations industry hasbeen criticized for lacking ‘big ideas’, 61 percent of all respondents argued that this was a fair observation.

Now is the time, as aspiring public relations professionals, to bring more creative ideas to the table and show theworld what our industry is capable of. In order for this to happen, we need to:

1. Become masters of time2. Increase our knowledge of creative tools3. Be willing to take more risks

Become masters of time

Regardless of whether we end up working in corporate or in an agency, time is a precious commodity that wecannot take for granted. In order to allow more time for creativity in our day to day routine, we need to establishpriorities. Personal priorities, department priorities and organizational priorities all need to be considered.

In order to have more time for creativity, we need to not work faster, but smarter. For more information on this,check out a recent Progressions post that shared a few productivity apps that are “must-haves” for every publicrelations student.

Increase our knowledge of creative tools

There are so many tools and platforms that exist today to help us fuel our creative appetites. Adobe continues toimprove its Creative Cloud and make it even more affordable for us students. Canva, another online platform, triesto make graphic design as easy as possible. Sites like Lynda.com provide training videos on how to use all ofthese creative tools.

Be willing to take more risks

Processes are meant to be followed and were created for a reason. However, that doesn’t mean that we cannotquestion and brainstorm ideas as to how to improve them.

We cannot let time, budget, or differences of opinion prohibit us from being creative. As Robert Redford, founder

Home Blog Policy Submissions About PRSSA Membership Chapters Conferences PRSSA Home

How to Bring Creativity to the Workplace | Progressions

http://progressions.prssa.org/index.php/2014/07/16/how-to-bring-creativity-to-the-workplace/[12/27/2014 11:43:51 PM]

← July 2014 “Progressions Writing Prompts” Ramp up Recruitment by Taking Your Chapter to a Sporting Event →

Infographic

Internships & Job Advice

Job Interview

Leadership

Leadership Rally

Media Relations

Member Services

Miscellaneous

National Assembly

National Committee

National Conference

Networking

New Professionals

Personal Branding

Podcasts

Professional Development

Progressions Writing Prompts

PRSA

Regional Conferences

Scholarships and Awards

Social Media

Student-run Firm

Twitter chat

Uncategorized

TAGS

agency blogging career ChapterDevelopment chapters code of ethics

communications diversity ethics ethics month eventplanning events internship internship adviceinternships leadership marketing media

relations National Conferencenetworking new professionals news prProfessional DevelopmentPRSA PRSSA PRSSA 2013National Conference PRSSA Chapters PRSSAnational conference PR students publicrelations public relationscareers public relations internshipspublic relations jobs public relationsnetworking public relationsstudents recruitment regional activity research

resume Social Media students twittertwitter chat writing

RECOMMENDED READING

6 A.M.

Beyond PR

Brand Channel

Brian Solis

ComPRehension

Related Posts:Ten Items on Our Public Relations Holiday WishListLet’s Party! Five Steps to Planning a SuccessfulHoliday EventDecember Twitter Chat Recap: The InternshipSearch — Secure Your FutureCompleting the Public Relations Bucket ListAttempted CNBC Bribe Reveals Honesty’sImportance in Public Relations

of the Sundance Film Festival, said, “Not taking a risk, is a risk.”

We may be students, interns, aspiring professionals etc., but we have ideas. Don’t be afraid to share them.Creativity will flow as we work smarter, so never stop learning and taking more risks.

How do you fuel your creativity?

_____

Ethan Parry, 2014–2015 PRSSA vice president of public relations, is a senior communications major with aconcentration in public relations and a business management minor at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah.Feel free to connect with him on LinkedIn and follow him on Twitter.

Connect with PRSSA

Adobe, art, Canva, challenges, creativity, design, industry, ketchum, lynda, No Go Create, PRSA, PRSSA,public relations, risks, student, The Holmes Report, time management

2 Responses to How to Bring Creativity to the Workplace

Lexie Digby July 23, 2014 at 12:41 pm #

To help myself stay creative, I make sure to always feed my senses.

For me, a big part of being creative is always being open and curious to the world. I’m always reading, orlooking at photographs, or listening to music, or trying new food. It’s sometimes as simple as simplyimmersing myself in environment I’m in.

Even if I’m doing this for my own enjoyment and not actively seeking inspiration, every new experiencegives me something to draw from that I didn’t previously have.

[Reply]

Heather July 23, 2014 at 2:56 pm #

Since I started interning in corporate, I’ve begun to take mini “creativity breaks.” If I’m feelingstuck or a little bored, I take a couple of minutes to work on something completely different

and creative. It engages different parts of my brain and keeps me happy and fueled with creativitythroughout the day.

[Reply]