Beginner's Guide to Creativity

I love working with data and bringing it to life with good looking and functional visualizations. It gives me pleasure and satisfies my curiosity to search for patterns and connect the dots in seemingly incoherent datasets. The technical aspect of data analysis and visualization is like solving puzzles, devising solutions through logic, math and code.

Among many things, data visualization is also my creative outlet.  

Andy Kirk, a data visualization specialist, based in the UK, describes in his blog "The 8 hats of data visualization design", the range of different skills required to create effective visualization designs:

• Leader, Data Scientist
• Journalist
• Computer Scientist
• Designer
• Cognitive Scientist
• Communicator, and
• Project Manager

As diverse as these roles are, they all require creative thinking, especially the role of Designer who needs to have, as Andy writes, "the eye for visual detail, a flair for innovation and style and [has to be] ... fully appreciative of the potential possibilities that exist."

How do you come up with the initial idea and flesh it out to make something that is not only functional and presents the data in an unbiased and truthful way but is also aesthetically pleasing? 

I struggle with this question every time I start working on a new project, and my creative process is a bit erratic. However, it doesn't have to be. I recently did some research on the science of creativity, and I'd like to share some tips on how to nurture your creativity and become more productive.

In the first place, creativity is not the domain of a privileged few. Some researches claim (but there is no consensus on this) that some people may be born more creative. We tend to believe that since there is a limited pool of genius minds in our history who created terrific pieces of music, visual art or scientific breakthrough. However, since we are talking here about making a useful dashboard and not writing a symphony for the ages, let's agree with a psychologist Robert Epstein, Ph.D. who says that "There's not really any evidence that one person is inherently more creative than another."

"There's not really any evidence that one person is inherently more creative than another."

Good news, all of us can improve our creativity, but we have to work for it. "As strange as it sounds, creativity can become a habit," says creativity researcher Jonathan Plucker, Ph.D., a psychology professor at Indiana University. "Making it one helps you become more productive."

So let's get down to some techniques to boost creativity.

Preparation

The basis of all creative thoughts is interconnection (Epstein).

"The basis of all creative thoughts is interconnection"

• Feed these connections by broadening your knowledge, especially on topics that are less familiar and unrelated to your profession. Take a class on medieval philosophy, go to a museum, or read a psychological thriller. Meeting diverse and exciting people, either professionally or on a social footing, will give you perspective and stimulate your brain.
• Declutter your workspace, but don't keep it sterile. If you put an odd object on your desk in the morning, your thinking might move in an unpredictable direction. 

Capturing

New ideas are fleeting, they appear in our consciousness, and they go away as quickly as they arise. The trick is to be prepared when Eureka strikes. Epstein says:

"The main thing that distinguishes "creative" people from the rest of us is that the creative ones have learned ways to pay attention to and then to preserve some of the new ideas that occur to them. They have capturing skills."

• So have a sketchpad or a notepad near you at all times, even in the shower. Yes, in the shower. The typical moments when creative ideas appear are when you are not concentrating on anything in particular when your brain is relaxed and roaming free. So have a notepad ready in the bedroom when you wake up, in the gym, while you are jogging or simply relaxing. I get my best ideas while walking alone in the park. I am not distracted by a strenuous physical activity, relaxed enough to let the mind wander, and stimulated by the beautiful environment.
• Sleep on it. "We're in a different biochemical state when we're dreaming, and that's why I think dreams can be so helpful anytime we're stuck in our usual mode of thinking," says Harvard Medical School, psychologist Deidre Barrett, Ph.D.

If you prefer, record a quick memo in your voice recording app. These ideas can be chaotic or even seem nonsensical but don't censor yourself.

Executing

Time to put some more substance to your initial ideas. Don't be a perfectionist; this will only induce a fear of failure and stifle your creative process.

• Do not give in to the "empty page panic" but start sketching your most promising ideas. Alternatively, if you are like me, bypass the 'design on paper' stage and fire up your favourite data visualization program or start coding. I use Tableau because it lets me experiment, quickly try different approaches and build prototypes.
• Once you get started, focus on your task for as long as you can. Put on some music if that works for you but do not distract yourself by other tasks. Remember, multitasking is a myth and psychologists call it "rapid task-switching." It exhausts your brain and lowers your productivity.
• Every so often, take a break, step away from your design and look at it with a fresh pair of eyes.

Feedback

Once you are happy with your creation, look for feedback. Show it to your colleague or your spouse. Try not to prompt or explain but instead watch how they interact with your visualization. That is is a good test of whether the flow and navigation of your masterpiece are intuitive and easy follow.

Acting on reliable feedback is a sure way to understand your design's shortcomings and address blind spots in your design process.