Creating Opportunities
Definition: When you are able to open your mind to new ideas, try new things and use our strengths in distinct ways to develop a unique outcome.
Criteria for effective Creativity
Creativity is a trait that many tend to believe they don’t have. Personally, I have struggled to believe that I am a creative person. However, I have taken time to learn more about my skills and I have determined that my creative personality stands out when suggesting new ideas and when practicing my hobby. There are two specific examples for this: one is creating a new event for my organization and the other is practicing nail art.
Criteria for effective Creativity
- Open-Minded
- Confidence
- Curiosity
- Risk-taking
Creativity is a trait that many tend to believe they don’t have. Personally, I have struggled to believe that I am a creative person. However, I have taken time to learn more about my skills and I have determined that my creative personality stands out when suggesting new ideas and when practicing my hobby. There are two specific examples for this: one is creating a new event for my organization and the other is practicing nail art.
In my organization, ALPFA, one of my goals has been to make our General Meetings more personal. To do that I suggested organizing a General Meeting where our Corporate Sponsors can share the story of their journey. I believe that by listening to the personal testimonies Corporate professionals shared, our members would feel more comfortable to ask questions, establish a relationship with professionals, and develop an idea of how they wish to reach their goals. The meeting took place on October 29, 2014 and to change things up I also asked if we could make this meeting Halloween themed and allow our members to wear costumes; something creative that our organization had never done before. I reached out to professionals from Deloitte and after sharing the ideas for this meeting we began our planning. As a team we assigned members into groups of mentors and mentees, and provided them with each others' contact information. Their task was for them to discuss what matching costumes they would wear in order to discover who their mentor/mentee was the day of the meeting. The day of the event was a huge success and the room was full of ALPFA members in matching costumes, even Deloitte professionals dressed up as chefs! We listened to the personal stories that Deloitte Professionals shared and many of our members, including myself, truly connected with them one way or another. Then we transitioned into dinner and casual networking and that was the time that I began hearing positive feedback about the event. A lot of our members mentioned how this event had become one of their favorite events so far and that they really enjoyed being able to wear their costumes instead of the traditional business casual attire. I was very excited and happy to have heard those comments and I realized that changing the norm is sometimes okay. Our organization had never had an event where professionals shared their stories and our members were able to wear costumes and to be the one to offer the idea truly made me realize that creativity includes creative thinking and being able to confidently share ideas. Thanks to this event, our organization offered our members a different way for them to establish relationships with professionals through a personable environment.
ALPFA Officers with Deloitte Professionals
Artifact for Creativity 2:
Another example would involve my hobby to do my nails and practice nail art. After a while of figuring out what my hobby was, I realized that I would always turn to painting my nails when I was stressed out. I own probably about 30 shades of different nail polishes and I always try to have a different color or design on my nails. I usually never saw this as a creative trait that I had but as I found myself always looking for new designs I started realizing that I could practice more complicated designs and get creative with them. Therefore, I started following a channel on YouTube called Cute Polish and am currently learning more tricks and tactics to develop beautiful nail art. Practicing nail art, to me, is not only a way for me to relax but allows me to be confident in what I do. I have always wanted to one day create my own business and I believe that if I continue to practice this hobby I can not only become better at it but I can one day open that small business. You can see some of my nail art below:
Another example would involve my hobby to do my nails and practice nail art. After a while of figuring out what my hobby was, I realized that I would always turn to painting my nails when I was stressed out. I own probably about 30 shades of different nail polishes and I always try to have a different color or design on my nails. I usually never saw this as a creative trait that I had but as I found myself always looking for new designs I started realizing that I could practice more complicated designs and get creative with them. Therefore, I started following a channel on YouTube called Cute Polish and am currently learning more tricks and tactics to develop beautiful nail art. Practicing nail art, to me, is not only a way for me to relax but allows me to be confident in what I do. I have always wanted to one day create my own business and I believe that if I continue to practice this hobby I can not only become better at it but I can one day open that small business. You can see some of my nail art below: