Editorial: Creative madness at work

The theme for the year’s last Telma issue is creativity at the workplace. Telma found creativity, for example, among software developers, metro depot employees and in accommodation services. Creativity is all around us, at each workplace and in every role. That is why it should not be tied up in consecutive Teams meetings and webinars.

In the popular imagination, creativity is often associated with artists, musicians and writers. Telma wants to bust this myth. According to studies by British psychologist Felix Post in 1994, up to 38 per cent of visual artists and 46 per cent of creative writers suffered from serious depression or other psychological conditions. Keeping this in mind, the term creative madness does not seem so far-fetched, after all.

The end result was first seen as a completely useless endeavour.

Inventing the car also involved a certain degree of creative madness. Designing and manufacturing the first cars required a whole new kind of thinking and creative approach. The end result was first seen as a completely useless endeavour, since the majority of people thought they simply needed faster and stronger horses that could pull a heavier wagon. In the end, creative madness won and, nowadays, many of us drive – or at least travel by – a car. Sometimes, the borderline between ingenuity and madness is difficult to draw.

Many people wonder whether digitalisation will kill creativity in organisations. This is unlikely, as new technologies, when used correctly, enable creative work even better than before. In meetings, people could leave their computers on the desk for a while, stand up and toss around ideas, for example, with the help of a flip chart. The flip chart is the only piece of meeting equipment dating back to the 1950s that is still used to this day, found in nearly all meeting rooms. Long-term sitting in meetings has negative effects on alertness and concentration. This hampers creative thinking.

Telma is now taking a creative break and will be back next year with new topical workplace themes.

Enjoy the rest the of the year and stay creative!