To save jobs from automation, should employers build Creativity Programs modeled after Wellness Programs?

Think of a creative office space: You’re probably picturing brightly colored modern furniture that can be configured in 100 different ways to suit the needs of the space. There’s probably some funky architecture, or open ceilings, rotating art displays, and maybe even a bean bag. Or, if you work at Epic in Verona, Wis., you’re picturing upside-down staircases, talking photos, and psychedelic carpeting.
Creativity is emerging as a soft-skill in high demand. Companies are trying to hire for it and cultivate it in their existing talent. But even though the relevance of focused creativity is becoming more widely recognized, even in not-so-creative fields, most of us still have some pretty strong stereotypes when we think about creative people and creative spaces.
Office furniture and design companies have certainly had a good run of selling the connection between a creative space and creative work.
But is that what it’s really all about? Is a “creative space” really an effective way to foster creativity among your employees? Does it really communicate the message that the employer values you spending time on creative expression outside your normal job function? Or do employers not even value that?

If they don’t value it yet, they should. Creativity is the main thing that separates us from machines, for now, anyway (click on that link to read about computers that invented their own language). A 2015 report by UK-based research foundation Nesta found an inverse relationship between creativity and computerization. So the more creative a job is, the less chance it has of getting automated. With that in mind, it’s clear why individuals need to focus on applying creativity to their jobs and flexing their creative muscles often, but what about for companies?
If you don’t hire for creativity and build a truly creative culture — with or without bean bags — you’ll run the risk of having your entire operation wiped out by a company that invests in automation that can do what you do faster and cheaper. If there’s no value-added, creative element to the work your company does, you won’t exist in the future. To avoid that future, you need creativity.
The impact of creative expression at work
The great thing is, creativity is awesome. And incorporating regular creative expression into your life only makes everything better. Here’s what some of my friends have to say about the benefits creative expression — of a variety of forms — brings to their work:
Ariel Munoz, 25, an optical design engineer, shares his thoughts on drumming:
“Whenever I get behind a playing surface, whether a mylar, suede, kevlar, or aramid weave drumhead or a rubber real-feel practice pad, I can enter a sort of meditative yet forwardly-aggressive state. This is the standard mentality that most marching drummers thrive in. Whenever I have to think openly or just relax mentally, it is a good place for me to go. This meditative state is a great place to go when handling engineering problems. It maintains an aggressive momentum toward finishing any given task, but also allows my mind to expand to think of multiple possible solutions.”
Artist and teacher Leah Kohlenberg, 49, on the value of learning a new form of creativity as an adult:
“Getting good at something takes time, and it makes your brain smarter, faster and stronger because you are always problem-solving. Since most of us aren’t taught to draw or paint, learning this skill at any age is like cross training your brain. Many of my students are very smart, competent adults who are good at what they do. It’s hard to feel like you don’t know something, so I applaud them just for coming to class and trying. I affirm their feelings of failure and challenge, even their resistance. I tell them, This is what you signed up for.”
Leah also shared a testimonial from one of her drawing students, Selam Gebrekidan, a Reuters-New York reporter.
“All I know is that I walked into the room with writer’s block, and then I spent an hour not thinking about the story at all — I was trying to draw a flower, and it was hard. After an hour, I went back to my desk, and the story just flowed.”
(The story she references was nominated for a Pulitzer in 2017.)
Entrepreneur Lauren White, 29, on making creative videos:
“When I am able to creatively express things with full freedom I physically feel lighter. It makes me feel accomplished and fuels my ambition to do something meaningful in this life.”
These people all recognize the benefits of creativity, but as I’ve noted in other articles, there are a million things that will get in the way of actually making time for that creativity.
So what would it look like to truly foster creativity in the workplace? Next week I’ll present one vision for incentivizing creative expression in the workplace and explore some of the implications of doing so.
In the meantime, I’d love to hear your thoughts on the idea! What have you seen in the workplace that worked?
