Want to energize your team's creative thinking? Try these 12 proven methods

Creativity in the workplace isn't about "artistic talent", it's a vital skill for creative problem solving, innovation in business, and staying competitive in today's fast-paced world. Today businesses face "wicked problems" and require a new approach to problem-solving, emphasizing experimentation and continuous refinement. The need for innovative thinking and creative problem solving is in high demand with LinkedIn Skills on the Rise 2025 list includes innovative thinking as it's #5 skill.

When you merge intentional creative thinking and design thinking practices you have a surefire recipe for success. This article will show you how to encourage creative thinking in teams effectively.

The link between design thinking, creativity and innovation

Design Thinking, a methodology increasingly adopted in business, emphasizes human-centricity and understanding your customers. It provides tools and processes to foster enhanced learning and collaboration to develop new ideas that can lead to profitable and exciting new business opportunities.

Design thinking is at it's core a creative problem solving method that can be used to for any business problems from implementing a new process or program to introducing new products or services. The emphasis in Design Thinking is to create ideas through a process known as ideation. In this ideation process is where divergent and convergent thinking becomes important.

To foster new ideas, we need to intentionally engage in both divergent and convergent thinking. These two processes work together to transform initial ideas into actionable solutions, making your idea generation efforts more successful according to research.

Divergent thinking focuses on generating a lot of diverse ideas.  In this phase, we focus on quantity over quality (for now). Divergent thinking techniques like freewriting, where you write down every thought without censoring, or mind mapping, where you visually connect ideas, are perfect for this phase. This stage is focused on exploring every angle to boost creativity. 

Convergent thinking, on the other hand, is about evaluating, refining, and narrowing down ideas to find the most viable and effective solutions. In this stage, you might use convergent thinking methods like dot voting, where team members place stickers on their preferred ideas, or an impact/effort matrix to prioritize ideas based on their potential impact and the resources required. It's about bringing focus and structure to the ideas generated through brainstorming techniques. 

One of the biggest obstacles to genuine creativity is the fear of judgment. People worry their ideas won't be good enough. This is why it's crucial to spend time upfront creating a psychologically safe environment for creativity within your team. Psychological safety in teams means that team members feel comfortable taking risks, admitting mistakes, and sharing ideas without fear of negative consequences. 

12 proven methods to energize your team's creative thinking

Here are specific, actionable strategies to help your team unlock its creative potential: 

1. Embrace all ideas, even the "bad" ones: During creative brainstorming, the focus must be on generating a large number of ideas rather than immediately judging their quality. Every idea should be put out there, including those that might seem "bad" or impractical at first glance. Even bad ideas can inspire innovative solutions later during the converging process. If we stop ideas too early, we risk cutting off potential discoveries. You've likely experienced this in your own life when a meh idea sparks a great idea.
2. Brainstorm quietly and simultaneously: To minimize the fear of judgment, allow team members to contribute ideas anonymously and at the same time using tools like shared online documents (e.g., Google Docs, Miro, Mural) or dedicated brainstorming software. Research shows this method reduces individual fear of exposure and minimizes "groupthink," where dominant voices can sway others⁴. This also helps in overcoming fear of judgment in brainstorming. 
3. Play packground music: Use light, instrumental background music during creative sessions. It can help reduce self-consciousness, create a more relaxed atmosphere, and subtly aid the percolation of thoughts. 
4. Start with a small, low-stakes warm-up task: Begin with a quick divergent thinking exercise that isn't directly related to your main problem. For example, ask your team: "Think of another use for a stapler besides stapling."
5. Other prompts for warm-up exercises for creative workshops could be: "If our team's mission statement was a superhero, what would their power be?" The point is to get everyone thinking differently about something familiar without the pressure of finding "the right answer." 
6. Implement the "yes, and..." game: Borrowed from improvisational theater, this brainstorming technique encourages participants to accept an idea ("Yes") and then build upon it ("and...") rather than negating it. This is excellent for building on ideas during brainstorming. 
7. Utilize the idea mash-up activity: Divide the team into small groups and assign each group two seemingly unrelated ideas from the brainstorm. Their task is to combine these two ideas into one new, innovative concept. This forces creative synthesis. 
8. Use the "how might we improve this idea?" activity: Instead of just critiquing ideas, frame the discussion around how to enhance an existing idea. This shifts the mindset from judgment to constructive development, driving team innovation. 
9. Allocate dedicated, uninterrupted time: Rushing creative processes stifles new ideas. Allocate specific, undisturbed time slots for brainstorming and idea development. This is a key part of effective innovation strategies. 
10. Clearly define the problem: Teams often jump into solutions before fully understanding the problem. Spend sufficient time clarifying the challenge you're trying to solve. A well-defined problem is often half the solution. 
11. Encourage a positive, open-minded approach: A cynical or critical attitude can shut down creativity. Foster a positive, open-minded environment, reminding the team that "no idea is a bad idea" during the divergent phase. 
12. Encourage curiosity as an ongoing practice: Foster an environment where learning and exploring new ideas are celebrated. Share interesting articles, discuss new trends, and promote skill development. This helps to truly foster creativity beyond dedicated sessions. 
13. Vary team composition for diverse perspectives: When tackling new problems, consider bringing in diverse perspectives from different departments or backgrounds. Fresh eyes often see solutions others miss, contributing significantly to workplace creativity. 

This collaborative approach helps break down individual silos, generates hybrid solutions that wouldn't emerge from solo thinking, and reinforces the idea that all contributions are valuable, even if they are just a starting point for something greater. This emphasis on iteration and experimentation aligns with Design Thinking's core principles for navigating uncertainty. 

Encourage team creativity 

Even with these methods, other factors can hinder team creativity. Be mindful of these common barriers to help boost creativity: 

• Negative Mindset: A cynical or overly critical attitude can shut down creativity. Encourage a positive, open-minded approach, reminding the team that "no idea is a bad idea" during the divergent phase. 
• Celebrate Small Wins: Acknowledge and reward creative efforts, even if they don't lead to a major breakthrough. This reinforces positive behavior and encourages future participation. 

Measuring the impact of creative thinking efforts 

How do you know if your efforts to boost creativity are working? 

• Qualitative Measures: Look for signs of increased team engagement, more enthusiastic participation in creative problem solving discussions, and a general improvement in the quality of solutions being proposed. Are team members more willing to take calculated risks with their ideas? 
• Quantitative Measures: Track the number of new ideas generated, the successful implementation of innovative solutions, or any efficiency gains and cost savings attributed to new approaches resulting from your innovation strategies. 

Ultimately, the methods are more than just techniques, they contribute to a broader Design Thinking mindset that is essential for businesses navigating digital transformation. Design Thinking helps organizations deal with the inherent complexity and uncertainty of these transformations by allowing them to proceed with small, incremental iterations rather than rigid long-term plans. It is a systematic problem-solving methodology driven by stakeholder input and co-creation, leading to innovative solutions for human-centered challenges. 

Try out these simple yet powerful ideas in your next workshop or team meeting. You'll be surprised at how effective they are in encouraging creative thinking, transforming your team into a hub of innovation and problem-solving. Start small, iterate, and watch your team’s creativity  flourish. 

References

LinkedIn News. (2025, February 6). LinkedIn Skills on the Rise 2025: The 15 Fastest-Growing in the U.S. Retrieved from https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/linkedin-skills-rise-2025-15-fastest-growing-us-linkedin-news-hy0le/

Tuck School of Business. (2025, February 25). How to be creative with guest Peter Golder. Tuck Knowledge in Practice. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tuck-knowledge-in-practice/id1760028747?i=1000695967615

Tanev, S., & Hudson, D. (2024). Why do digital transformation initiatives require design thinking practices? Presented at the XXXV ISPIM Innovation Conference, Tallinn, Estonia.

Michinov, N. (2012). Is electronic brainstorming or brainwriting the best way to improve creative performance in groups? An overlooked comparison of two idea-generation techniques. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 42(S1), E222-E243