Food for Thought Creativity is an acquired taste, so start your company off with small bites.

You decided to build a creatively agile company based on a firmbelief that creativity will help you and your company thrive...oryou're a skeptic who, nonetheless, is willing to give it a try.In either case, experience is the best teacher. Begin byexperimenting.

Learning how to be more creative is like learning any skill: Yougain expertise over time. Starting small can help deal withskepticism among the staff and your own uncertainty. Begin bytrying some techniques by yourself or with a few colleagues. Bypracticing creative techniques and attitudes, you'll gain theconfidence and skill to build a company that includes everyone inits creative practice. Remember the goal is always to find a way totap the creativity of everyone in your company.

I've used the following exercise many times because it'ssimple yet evocative. Making a collage from magazine images is agreat prompt for new ideas. It's nonthreatening becauseeveryone can tear pictures out of magazines and arrange them-andit's fun because you get to make a mess.