Healthcare’s new leaders are likely to be creative, so the skill is something the current guard should incorporate into their repertoire.
Any hospital or health system can benefit from creative employees, and that should start from the top down, according to an article from Harvard Business Review. Business leaders from a variety of industries told the publication about ways they foster their creativity and:
- Look for the unfamiliar. A new environment may be the spark needed to get creative juices flowing, according to the article. One study cited in the article found that people became 50 percent more creative when they spend a several days in nature disconnected from their devices, but for those without the time to spend in the wild, simple observation may help. One CEO recommends looking outside the industry for inspiration on what consumers are looking for, as many healthcare facilities are doing with hotel and restaurant-inspired food and design.
- Step away for a moment. Even if a vacation is a long ways off, take a few minutes during the day to clear the mind or take a walk, according to the article. People need space to be inventive, HBR notes, and doing a low-key activity can allow your brain to run in the background. Even gym activities or repetitive household chores can give your brain the space to stimulate creative thinking, according to the article.
Though daydreaming may be a useful way to come up with new creative ideas, according to HBR, effective healthcare leaders must also be mindful and aware of what’s going on around them in their facilities. Ajay Bakshi, M.D., the managing director and CEO of India-based Manipal Hospitals, said at the Mindful Leadership Summit in Delhi that mindfulness is “real, mainstream science,” according to a post from BWDisrupt.
Bakshi said corporations of all kinds should train their staffs on the importance of mindfulness, according to the post. Bakshi said leaders must strike a balance between letting the mind wander and being hyper-focused. The key point, the article noted, is to:
- Know when you need to focus. Bakshi said that between 30 and 50 percent of the time a person spends awake each day may be lost to daydreaming, so mindfulness is important. However, it is also taxing, so a little bit of daydreaming is healthy, Bakshi said, just be aware of your surroundings and when you’re needed most.