In today's competitive world, creativity is in short supply and it is more important than ever for businesses to attract and keep highly talented people. Since creativity is at the root of innovation and invention, it would benefit all companies—large or small—to help promote a creative atmosphere in which this talent may flourish. What better way to get a huge return on your investment? Champion those innovators.

Creativity comes in many forms. It can be scientific creativity, resulting in inventions or medical cures. It can be artistic or musical, resulting in beautiful paintings, sculptures, or operas and songs. It can be creative writing, designing new business processes, or translating the mundane into something exciting. The important thing to remember is that creativity includes generating the idea or concept, as well as applying that idea and producing or manifesting the end product or result. It is this form of imagination that is an integral part of taking our careers to the next level and producing stellar results in the marketplace.

A two-year in-house creativity course offered at General Electric resulted in a sixty percent increase in concepts available for patents, according to the Wall Street Journal. In 1999, after investing over two million dollars in research and development, Hewlett Packard generated more than 1,300 applications for patents.

If your creativity is allowed to blossom, your heart and soul for your career returns as well. According to Fortune Magazine (January 1998), highly motivated employees are up to 127 percent more productive than those averagely motivated employees in complex jobs. It's simple—if employees feel satisfied and encouraged in their jobs, they will become more motivated and thereby become more productive.

Smart employers are beginning to see the advantage of closely-knit teams working together to form creative, problem-solving forces. They've begun using a more open kind of office, omitting walls between the departments. In any job or profession, there are problems to be solved; and where there is problem solving, there will be creative thought.

Create an atmosphere that's conducive to creativity. Be tolerant about ideas that don't work out initially. There's always a next time when more fresh ideas can be implemented. Acknowledge the people in your organization who generate new ideas.Whether it's on the job or at home with your family, the creativity you possess is a vital tool in your life. Don't be so hard on yourself if things don't work the first time. Be observant, tap into your creativity, watch everything, learn, and don't be afraid to ask the "dumb" questions. Implement this yourself and see if you can make a change for the better in your own organization.

And keep in mind:

• Workaholics are not conducive to creativity. Take moments to rest your mind so you can produce good results.
• Write it down. Keeping a journal is an excellent way to avoid losing all those marvelous ideas which your creative mind is capable of churning out.

Estienne de Beer is a Motivational Speaker and Leadership Coach. His highly inspirational presentation, "Meerkat Motivation for the Marketplace," has been keeping conference audiences on the edge of their seats, both locally and internationally. Visit his website at www.leader2leaders.com or e-mail him at estienne@lantic.net.