Episode 106: Transforming Work Through Creativity

Have you hit a creative roadblock at work? You’re not alone. In this episode, we explore how creativity becomes the cornerstone for innovation, helping businesses to thrive amidst rapidly changing trends and disruptions. It’s not about wild ideas. It’s about building an environment where creativity thrives at every desk. 

This episode features Adam Kingl, an expert in reshaping how we think about leadership and strategy in the business world. Adam has influenced the minds of business leaders at prestigious institutions such as London Business School, Hult International Business School, and Imperial College Business School. He also regularly contributes as a writer and expert interviewee to The Financial Times, Sunday Times, Forbes, Fortune, The Guardian and Fast Company. 

Drawing on and his latest book "Sparking Success,” we explore strategies that can help leaders remove the creativity blockers and spark a cultural shift towards continuous innovation. From rethinking entrenched company practices to empowering teams to think differently, Adam offers a roadmap for people who want to lead with creativity at the forefront. 

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Episode Highlights

• Leadership’s pivotal role in igniting organizational creativity. 
• Challenging dated assumptions that hinder management innovation. 
• The linguistic insight into “to manage” and its cultural impact on creativity. 
• Identifying organizational habits that dampen innovation. 
• Striking a balance between productivity and creative growth. 
• Tactics for leaders to build creativity-focused workspaces. 
• Debunking the myth that creativity is limited to certain sectors. 
• Concrete steps for managers to inspire team creativity. 
• Lessons from creative companies and industries applicable across all sectors. 
• Examining barriers to creativity in conventional settings. 
• Adopting ‘micro habits’ for team-wide innovative thinking. 

Adam’s view on the greatest unmet wellbeing need at work today

“Every organization is struggling with hybrid work right now, right? When do you bring people into the office, or when do you work from home? And I think part of what I've discovered is the answer is: if you're going to ask people to come into the office, give them a reason, provide a creative focus. "I want everyone in the office on Wednesday because we're going to meet with our senior-most clients talking about their biggest pain points." If you just say, "Come in because it's everyone in the office Wednesday," like Taco Tuesday, it's arbitrary, and everyone's just going to probably sit at their desk with headphones in, tapping away at their keyboard; they may as well be at home.”

What “working with humans” means to Adam

“Working with humans is about encouraging them to find and express those qualities that make them human: curiosity, adaptability, inspiration, innovation. Surely, any organization that encourages an abundance of those qualities in their people is one that I want to work for or invest in.”

Resources

Follow: Adam on LinkedIn and X 
Visit: Adam’s website
Read: Sparking Success: Why Every Leader Needs to Develop a Creative Mindset 

Michael Glazer is the creator and host of Humans At Work. His purpose in life is to make well-being at work a globally-accepted, basic human right. Learn more about Michael here.