Andrew Kingdom

📘 Creative Thinking

🌱 Introduction

You’ve had that moment—an idea flickers, unexpected and electric. Maybe it’s a question, a plan, a picture in your mind. You lean in. What now?

This guide is for that moment.

It maps the way ideas move: how they start, how they grow, how they become something you can use, share, or build on. It’s not a formula. It’s a rhythm—one that shows up in classrooms, studios, boardrooms, journals, and conversations.

Whether you’re sketching, solving, writing, teaching, or just thinking something through, these steps help you shape your thoughts with more clarity and less friction. They’re simple enough to remember, flexible enough to adapt, and deep enough to return to again and again.

Let’s walk through the cycle that turns sparks into substance.

🌀 Creative Thinking Steps

Shape ideas into practical outcomes via the concept cycle model

Step	One-Word Cue	What Happens
1. 🧲 Start	Notice	You feel a spark of curiosity or inspiration—something catches your attention and makes you want to explore further.
2. 🎯 Shape It	Focus 🔧	You clarify what you’re aiming for—what problem you want to solve, idea you want to explore, or message you want to convey.
3. 🎨 Explore	Play	You try out possibilities, imagine new directions, and let the idea evolve through creative or experimental thinking.
4. 🛠️ Shape	Build 🔧	You give your idea structure—choosing key elements, refining form, and making intentional design decisions.
5. 🚀 Act	Try	You test your idea—put it into motion, see how it works in the real world, and adjust based on what you learn.
6. 🔍 Reflect	Distill 🔧	You step back, notice what worked well, and gather insights you can reuse or share next time.

This cycle doesn’t always go in a straight line. You may loop back, skip ahead, or spiral deeper. That’s not a flaw—it’s how real thinking moves.

🔁 Mnemonic Suggestion: Notice – Focus – Play – Build – Try – Distill

💡 Examples: Creative Thinking in Action

Programming

* **Notice:** You see a bug or recognize a missing feature. * **Focus:** Define what needs fixing or adding. * **Play:** Brainstorm solutions with peers. * **Build:** Sketch out your solution, plan your code. * **Try:** Write, test, and deploy. * **Distill:** Note what worked, document the process, improve future design.

Political Campaign

* **Notice:** Voter sentiment shifts or a community need emerges. * **Focus:** Decide what message or action to pursue. * **Play:** Explore policy ideas or slogans. * **Build:** Draft policy, speeches, or comms plans. * **Try:** Test them via focus groups or pilot messaging. * **Distill:** Review reactions, tweak strategy, reuse insights.

Artistic Creation (e.g., Painting)

* **Notice:** A landscape, emotion, or concept strikes you. * **Focus:** Choose the story or feeling to express. * **Play:** Sketch, experiment, try different compositions. * **Build:** Decide the structure, palette, materials. * **Try:** Paint, layer, adjust. * **Distill:** Reflect on the result, prepare for sharing, note techniques.

Scientific Research

* **Notice:** A pattern or problem in data or literature. * **Focus:** Frame a research question or hypothesis. * **Play:** Imagine various experimental approaches. * **Build:** Choose methods and plan the study. * **Try:** Conduct, observe, analyze. * **Distill:** Publish, reflect, iterate.

Everyday Problem Solving

* **Notice:** Your car makes a strange sound. * **Focus:** You want to find the cause and fix it. * **Play:** Consider possible causes or ask for advice. * **Build:** Plan steps or schedule a mechanic visit. * **Try:** Take action. * **Distill:** Learn from the solution; apply it next time.

🧩 Creative Thinking Foundations

Clarify, create and communicate safely within a supporting framework

Layer	One-Word Cue	What It Does	How It Helps You
🔍 Intent	Goal	Clarifies what you’re trying to achieve or understand	Focuses your energy and defines direction
🧱 Structure	Form	Organizes your ideas clearly	Builds the framework for thinking or communication
🎨 Meaning	Tone	Adds emotion, emphasis, or clarity	Helps your work resonate with others
🔁 Refinement	Improve	Encourages feedback, testing, and growth	Lets you tweak and learn over time

These aren’t steps. They’re like scaffolding: supporting you no matter where you are in the process.

💡 Examples: Foundations in Practice

Programming: Goal = meet user needs; Form = modular code; Tone = friendly UIs; Improve = test and iterate.
Campaigns: Goal = clear message; Form = timeline & structure; Tone = emotional connection; Improve = polling and adjustment.
Art (e.g., Photography): Goal = evoke a feeling; Form = composition rules; Tone = lighting and mood; Improve = edit and get feedback.
Science: Goal = test a hypothesis; Form = method design; Tone = effective presentation; Improve = peer review.
Life Decisions: Goal = clarity on what matters; Form = a checklist or plan; Tone = clear explanations; Improve = adjust over time.

📚 How This Can Be Used

🏫 In classrooms – Teach creative flow, support project-based learning, and help students reflect
🧠 In work settings – Plan projects, test new ideas, and refine strategy
🎨 In creative practice – Shape stories, design, and expressive work with more rhythm
💬 In everyday life – Navigate choices, tackle problems, and think more clearly

It’s adaptable. You don’t have to follow every step or use all four foundations. These are guides—not rules.

🎓 Academic Connections

This guide echoes principles found in:

Design Thinking – empathize, define, ideate, prototype, test
Agile Development – iterate, deliver, reflect
Reflective Practice – pause, assess, and learn
Problem-Solving Frameworks – define, analyze, solve, evaluate

Think of these like well-marked trails. This guide gives you the map, but the journey is yours.

This paper was written as an aid to Educators, Professionals (e.g. project manager, strategist), Creative Practitioners (e.g. writer, artist, designer) and Everyday Thinkers (e.g. student, parent, curious reader).