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Career Counselling Advice

How You Can Improve Your Creative Thinking
By Dr. Ali Khwaja and Asha S.

Interested in a career in animation? Ensure that you have, or can build, creative thinking. In any design field, a person who can explore, look outside-the-box, and do lateral thinking, becomes most successful. Many people do not understand the concept, and only focus on their drawing skills. Drawing is only one part of being a good animator. Developing a mind that can generate new ideas and fascinating visuals, is more important.

What is creative thinking?

Creative thinking is an ability, attitude, and a process. Believe it or not, everyone has substantial creative ability. Just look at how creative children are. In adults, creativity has too often been suppressed through education, but it is still there and can be reawakened.

Thinking out of the box

Creativity is the ability to generate new ideas by combining, changing, or reapplying existing ideas. Some creative ideas are astonishing and brilliant, while others are just simple, good, practical ideas that no one seems to have thought of yet.

Often all that's needed to be creative is to make a commitment to creativity and to take the time for it.

Credit: Vancouver Film School, CC-By-2.0, flickr.com

As children we are all capable of thinking out of the box then why is it that as we grow we stop, the reasons could be any of these blocks that we put in our mind as we grow up - Oh no it is a problem, it can't be done, I can't do anything about, I am not creative, that is being childish, what will people think? I might fail.

Example: How to divide a piece of cake equally between your two kids so they won't complain that one kid is preferred over the other: "You gave him the bigger piece; you like him better! Waaaah!"
Solution: Put the kids in charge of dividing the cake. Our prejudice is that immature, selfish kids can't do the job. But the solution, one cuts the cake, the other has first choice of pieces, works very well.

Some more examples: You go to a party or a get-together and are given a glass of juice which is very sweet; what do you do?
You are cooking a tried and tested recipe and are bored; what would you do?
Have to reach a destination and there are four routes to choose from; What do you do?

Characteristics of a creative person

curious
seeks problems
enjoys challenge
optimistic
able to suspend judgment
comfortable with imagination
sees problems as opportunities
sees problems as interesting
problems are emotionally acceptable
challenges assumptions
doesn't give up easily: perseveres, works hard

Credit: Davide Restivo, CC-By-SA-2.0, flickr.com

Ways we can improve our creative thinking capacities

keep track of all new ideas that come to your mind, note them down
develop the attitude of having a curious mind and an inquiring mind
develop and cultivate hobbies
be self-aware
try to understand things that might not be important to you now, or not of much relevance
be flexible and open to new ideas
be alert to look for similarities, differences and the unique features
adopt a risk taking attitude
develop a Sense of Humour

Don’t just read these points and try to memorize them. Look at each of them critically, then be creative enough to make your own definitions and ideas. Then you know that you are truly a creative person, and will do well in animation or any other related field.

Management of Change

Information age

Management of Change We have moved from the industrial age to the information age. Changes are taking place so rapidly, that it is difficult for most individuals and organization to keep pace. While there is an element of challenge and adventure due to the fast pace of change, there is also the fear of being left behind.

Necessity for change, its adaptation and management

In the current scenario it is not enough to maintain one’s position or status. If one does not adapt to change, there is a very strong fear that one will be left behind. Evidence of this is visible in the way in which many industrial monopolies have crumbled. Bajaj scooter, which had a years long waiting list, is today struggling to maintain its market share. More recently the Maruti is faced with stiff competition from newcomers. Many public sector units that had enjoyed decades of profitability due to a protected market, are now finding it very difficult to face the global competition, and are gearing up to meet the challenge of the new millennium.

Credit: Mary Anne Enriquez, CC-By-ND-2.0, flickr.com

Adaptation to change, and management of change, has to begin at the individual level. Each executive and manager need to ask himself/hersef: "Am I more of a maintenance engineer; keeping today's business humming along, or an architect imagining tomorrow's businesses?" For soon, today’s business will become obsolete, and there will be nothing left to manage.

It is said that the change that took place in the hundred years of the early twentieth century, the same quantum of change took place in twenty five years towards its end, and similar quantity of change took place in the past five years alone! This will give an indication of the rate at which change is taking place, and the necessity to be able to manage it.

New age - Consumerism

Credit: Mary Anne Enriquez, CC-By-ND-2.0, flickr.com

As is visible everywhere, we are being bombarded with consumerism through the electronic media. Today even small children are aware of brands and their preferences. Total Quality Management (TQM) and ISO 9000 have brought in a new concept of quality of the entire system as opposed to quality of the finished product only. The customer has been redefined. Educational institutions recognize the student as a customer, the production department identifies the marketing personnel as their customers. One has also become aware of the fact that in this highly competitive age, one cannot afford to have poor quality – because the cost of servicing the poor quality products is far higher than the cost of originally producing a good quality product.

Another factor in this new age is the understanding that every organization is composed of people, and the personnel alone can determine the success or failure of the establishment. Developing and managing better manpower should be the prime focus of every organization, be it a manufacturing, servicing, educational or marketing set up.

Why we resist change?

There is inevitably a resistance to change, both at the individual level, as well as the organizational level. An individual’s resistance to change may be due to:

Habit which one cannot let go. The more senior a person, the greater his tendency to stick to old habits, and a rigid mind set that only the old method is correct.
Security of the knowledge that the old method works, so why experiment with something that is unproven.
Economic strain that an individual may face to implement the change.
A fear of the unknown and an unwillingness to experiment.
A threat to one’s expertise or power, since inevitably new methods will bring into focus the younger and junior employees, while the senior ones may tend to become redundant.
The stress that any change will induce in the individual, since people are most relaxed when they settle into a routine that they have been following since a long time.
Selective information processing whereby important areas are left untouched and undue importance is given only to certain factors.

At the organizational level, resistance may be due to any or many of the following reasons:

Structural inertia. The hierarchy pattern is set and has become a comfort zone. Tampering with it may raise so many doubts and new conflicts.
Limited focus change (sub systems get nullified). Often people look with a narrow vision only at their own role or their department, and cannot visualize the total picture.
Threat to resource allocation, since old patterns of economics may change and bring in discontent and resistance.

Steps to overcome resistance to change

Credit: Steve-h, CC-By-SA-2.0, flickr.com

An enlightened manager needs to become aware that such resistance is bound to surface when change is brought in. But resistance can certainly be overcome if one takes the following steps:

Education of the staff by informing them beforehand of the changes that are going to be implemented, the reasons thereof, and what the likely benefits are.
Maintaining a good, free and frank communication at every level in the organizational structure. Taking in advice or suggestions from every team member, and encouraging everyone to talk and express opinions.
Allowing some degree of participation in decision making. It is important that it appears that justice has been done. Delegating authority makes people rise to the occasion and take greater responsibility.
Facilitation and support to make the line managers feel that they are not being burdened alone, and that the management is with them.
Manipulation and rewards to act as incentives. Understanding that every individual is likely to ask the question “how will I benefit from this change?”

Change has to be brought in by people, and people have to be motivated enough to see through the change. Happy Changing !!!

The last one is a crucial question that has to be addressed compulsorily. Unless we take along with us every team member, someone or the other is likely to pull in a different direction and hamper the implementation of change.

Dr. Ali Khwaja throws a lifebuoy to those who are sinking in the whirlpool of numbers

I am not good at Math – HELP!

I am not good at Math - Help! Naveen was good in all subjects till he reached high school. Then he realized that he is struggling with his Maths. It was not as though he was not interested in Maths, he always was. In fact he thought languages and social studies were boring. But the irony was that he could still score well enough in those subjects, but his marks in Maths kept steadily going down. Sadder was the fact that every time he would give an exam, he would come back happily thinking that he was done well – until the results came. He would have made “silly mistakes” in his Maths paper, and the marks would be far below his expectations.

Where did I do wrong?

Credit: Danny | CC-By-2.0 | flickr.com

Worse still was the fact that Naveen’s current Maths teacher was not sympathetic to his plight. The teacher was convinced that Naveen was not putting in enough effort, and had become lazy. He would not just scold but ridicule the poor boy for making such silly mistakes. At times he would hold up Naveen’s paper for all to see, and the entire class would laugh at how he had made gross errors. This made Naveen even more nervous, and over a period of time he started hating Maths.

Naveen is now in his tenth, and is dreading only his Maths paper in the final exams. He is very confident of doing well in all other subjects, even though some of them are boring, and some have vast portions to cover. He is getting sleepless nights thinking of what would happen if he actually fails in Maths – for that would mean that he would fail in the entire Board exam! With all good intentions, his parents are goading and threatening him with dire consequences, making him feel even more humiliated and angry.

There are many students like Naveen, at various stages of fear of Maths, and they are doomed with the knowledge that there is no escape from it. But there are definitely ways and means of overcoming such a situation. One needs to start with analyzing the exact reason of the fear of Maths. Based on the cause, one can deal with the situation:

A student falls behind due to illness, absence, distraction, and finds that the class has moved ahead. Unlike theoretical subjects, if one loses continuity in Maths, one cannot follow subsequent classes. If this happens, the student should be given individual coaching (at his own pace) immediately, till he catches up with the class.
A child may have low IQ (intelligence quotient), which determines the ability of his mind to take in data, process and store it, and reproduce it on demand. Such children are “slow learners” and they should be put in a system where the standard is not very high, or where the teachers give personal attention and go at a slower pace.

I hate math!

Credit: Jimmie | CC-By-2.0 | flickr.com

Mathe-logical intelligence is only one among the eight human intelligences identified by the renowned Howard Gardner. Not all of us posses strong mathe-logical ability. Such students need to be coached very sensitively and slowly, with the assurance that after tenth standard, they can drop Maths and move on to other subjects they may be far better in.
A few students suffer from a learning disability called “dyscalculia.” They may have average or even above average intelligence, but this disability prevents them from doing calculations, while they do very well in theory subjects. It is a disorder which can be dealt with in the “resource room” of schools, or by external special educators, depending on the intensity of the disability.
Some students may actually be good in Maths, but they inevitably land up making those silly mistakes that bring down their marks. Such children need more inputs in terms of improved study techniques and concentration, and not just rigorous private tuition where they are made to solve problems again and again.
If a student is not performing because he is put off with the teacher, the problem needs to be dealt with at the psychological level. Make him talk out all his frustrations about the teacher and her behavior towards him, help him to resolve his feeling of hurt, humiliation or inadequacy that may have set in – and then motivate him to prove to himself and to the teacher that he is competent.
It is a fact that more girls seem to fear Maths than boys. This is due to the fact that girls are more often right-brained, i.e. they think more in emotional, creative and interpersonal ways than in mathematical, logical or sequential style. However, this need not prevent any girl from completing her basic education including Maths, and then opting for further studies and careers in fields that match her way of thinking.

Once we UNDERSTAND: Math is FUN like

Credit: Dylan Ng | CC-By-2.0 | flickr.com

Once we understand that the Maths phobia can be dealt with, it would be ideal for the parent and teacher to work as a team and focus on what type of help the child requires. In specific cases, the child can be referred to a special educator who implements study techniques and methodology suitable to the individual child.

I never did very well in math - I could never seem to persuade the teacher that I hadn't meant my answers literally. ~ Calvin Trillin (American journalist, humorist, food writer, poet, memoirist and novelist)

Credit: Mulan | CC-By-SA-2.0 | flickr.com

The parents need to keep on motivating the child to study Maths at least till the tenth standard, because then his basic foundation is strong, and he can face any situation in life. After tenth, he can choose various options that do not include Maths. In extreme cases, the child can even be switched over to appearing for the NIOS (National Institute of Open Schooling) tenth standard exam, where there is a wide variety of alternate subjects that the student can choose and appear for.

The role of the teacher and parent is very important whenever a child shows Maths phobia. Many a time silent support, words of encouragement, acceptance and understanding, play an important role in helping the child not only overcome this obstacle, but also in developing the self-esteem to tackle his future with enthusiasm and confidence.

Comments (1)

Check Your Aptitude First!

Fighter Plane Aditya has a fascination for planes. He would love to be a fighter pilot in the Indian Air Force and defend his country, or would like to be the Commander of a giant Airbus flying to all destinations of the world. He is also willing to work hard towards his goal, and nothing else matters to him. In principle, his parents are reconciled to his choice, but they do not know how to go about it, and they have no idea at all whether Aditya will make a good pilot. Nor does Aditya.

If Wishes were Planes, then Beggars would Fly!

The reason for this anomaly is because Aditya is going purely by his interest, his passion. It is certainly important that you choose a career that you love, enjoy, and have a passion for. But paraphrasing that old proverb “if wishes were planes, then beggars would fly.” If a desire to be a pilot were enough, then every second youngster would be high up there in the sky.

The stark reality is that in every lucrative or attractive field, there are thousands who aspire, but a handful that actually make a breakthrough and are successful. What differentiates this handful from the numerous others who have to reconcile to doing something else? It is a thing called Aptitude.

I believe I can fly ... SURE, but check your APTITUDE first - ALTITUDE is not enough!

Check your aptitude first before you chose a career

Credit: H Chaitanya MA

Aptitude is the Potential to Develop the Skills for a Career

Aptitude is not very well understood by many people. It is not a skill, since skills are acquired only when one starts studying a course. Aptitude is the potential and the inclination to develop the required skills. Without having this potential, you can struggle to learn but not make much headway.

Worse is that you may study very hard, and if you have the minimum intelligence level to match, you may actually pass the exams and gain a qualification. But you will always find the work difficult and may have to keep struggling all your life to progress in your career.

Hence it is absolutely essential that you make sure that your aptitude matches with your interests, and then only proceed. If you do not do so, you may miss the bus in your chosen field (e.g. Aditya may never be able to qualify for the NDA exam that will make him an Air Force pilot, and lose two years making repeated attempts) and then you may have to finally settle for a very mediocre and uninteresting career, having lost out opportunities that got missed out due to time wasted in pursuing an impractical dream.

You Can Try Checking Your Aptitude Now in 4 Simple Steps

Aptitude can be comprehensively tested by various experts and systematic reports given to candidates outlining what they would be good at, or matching their strengths and weaknesses to their field of interest. () However, you can yourself, to a certain extent, check out your aptitude in the following four simple steps:

List out all the human traits required to be good in the field of your choice. For example: A pilot requires good concentration, eyesight, instant decision-making ability, and general health. He needs to be good in physics, maths and geography. He should have a fondness for and the ability to adjust in diverse places and cultures, be able to keep irregular hours, and maintain the highest level of self-discipline. You can list out such qualities for any career that you are interested in, check which you already have, and which ones you can definitely develop over a period of time.
Check whether you are more logical or emotional, whether you have sequential or lateral thinking, whether you are an introvert or extrovert, whether you have a sharp commercial acumen, whether you are dominating, assertive or submissive. Each of these attributes plays a role in specific careers.
Check out how your lifestyle would be in your chosen profession. Keep in mind that some of the most glamorous and sought-after vocations have a deeper and serious side that requires hard work and struggle. For example, a pilot cannot allow himself to get addicted to drinks, he has to forego partying and late hours, he may have to be away from his family continuously, and he has to keep himself perfectly physically fit, because if he is grounded, he has no other qualification for an alternate career.
Lastly, check out what your chances are of reaching your goal. Example: To be an Air Force pilot there is extensive competition among lakhs of candidates for a few seats. Do you come under that intelligence and hard-work category that you can plough through so much competition?

After Making a Career Choice, Have 1 or 2 Alternatives

Even when you have made your career choice, keep one or two alternatives in mind, which should also be based on your aptitude, and should preferably be very close to your desired career, so that you do not get disheartened and de-motivated. For example, if you cannot become a pilot, you may consider options like Air Traffic Controller, travel and tourism, aeronautical engineering, merchant navy, military service, or adventure sports. Thus you will be able to find a niche, and who knows .... maybe over a period of time, you can still move towards your chosen field!

Hey, if I just spread my wings, I can fly ...