Pretend & Be More Creative?
Struggling to solve a creative problem? Pretend you’re doing it for someone else. We’re more capable of mental novelty when thinking on behalf of strangers than for ourselves.
“The next time you’re struggling to solve a creative problem, try solving it for someone else. According to Evan Polman and Kyle Emich, we’re more capable of mental novelty when thinking on behalf of strangers than for ourselves. This is just the latest extension of research into construal level theory, an intriguing concept that suggests various aspects of psychological distance can affect our thinking style. It’s been shown, for example, that greater physical and temporal distance lead us to think more abstractly…you’re more likely to solve a problem if you imagine being confronted by it in a far-off place and/or at a future time.”
