The Art of Creative Thinking: How to Be Innovative and Develop Great Ideas [Hardcover]

John Adair (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 28, 2007

New ideas help businesses gain an advantage over their rivals. Employees who generate these new ideas -- who practice the art of creative thinking -- are one of a company's greatest assets. The Art of Creative Thinking shows the reader practical ways of becoming a more creative thinker. Each succinct chapter is built around one core idea which is then developed and illustrated. End-of-chapter key points summarize the main points. The Art of Creative Thinking shows you how to: develop your understanding of the creative process; overcome barriers to creating new ideas; broaden your vision; build on new ideas; develop a creative attitude; become more confident as a creative thinker.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The Art of Creative Thinking provides clear, practical guidelines for developing the reader's powers as a creative thinker." Voluntary Sector Magazine "The Art of Creative Thinking is an interesting and highly readable book." Management today "Will excite every intelligent reader and is thought-provoking and well-written." Professional Manager "This book will excite every intelligent reader and is both thought-provoking and well written." Professional Manager, Nov 2007 "This book is stimulating, enjoyable and instructive" Business Executive - August 2009

About the Author

John Adair is a leading authority on leadership and leadership development.  He advises many organizations in business, government, education, health and the voluntary sector.  Over a million managers worldwide have taken part in the Action-Centred Leadership programs he pioneered.  Adair is the author of over 50 books, including the leadership classic Not Bosses But Leaders, (Kogan Page), and he continues to write and teach throughout the world.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 133 pages
• Publisher: Kogan Page; 1 edition (July 28, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0749447990
• ISBN-13: 978-0749447991
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,456,743 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very infromative roadmap to inspiration., September 7, 2008

By 

John "electronic guru" (Debary, Fl) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Art of Creative Thinking: How to Be Innovative and Develop Great Ideas (Hardcover)

I would strongly recommend this book. The author offers interesting guidelines for creative thinking that were used by some of the great minds of our time. A very helpful guide to pattern your thought processes.

4 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent summary on creative thinking, June 19, 2007

By 

D. Simoes (Chicago, IL, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Art of Creative Thinking: How to Be Innovative and Develop Great Ideas (Hardcover)

I read an online version of this book in one seating. I thought it was very good, and covers all aspects of creative thinking. I also appreciate the author's concern in putting the key points in the end of each chapter, so you can quickly review them in the future.

2 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars An empty book full of quotes, February 25, 2010

By 

S. A. Saribay (Istanbul, TR) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Art of Creative Thinking: How to Be Innovative and Develop Great Ideas (John Adair Leadership Library) (Paperback)

I do not often judge books so harshly but this book was very far from fulfilling the promise in its title. It was full of empty, mostly cheesy sentences about creativity all over. Let me give you just one example (from a random page that I happen to be looking at right now; there should be better ones if you search for it):

"If you decide to take a creative approach to life it does change your perspective. You will seek out first some 'given' ideas about yourself. What are your distinctive strengths? These are not easy questions to answer. Self-discovery lasts a lifetime, and even then it may not be completed. Seek to identify what you are born to excel at, and make sure you are working in the right area."

Most of the book is written in this sort of vague, super cheesy I dare say, language. If this appeals to you, I apologize, but it provokes a strong negative reaction in me. The author, judging from a brief snippet of his life, seems to be in a position to lecture us about creative thinking, but he wastes the opportunity. I did not find much useful insight into creativity. I found a lot of quotes and some short stories (often just as vaguely written, lacking any detail, even names) about how something was invented; these were okay, definitely much better than the authors rambling. Perhaps it can serve as some inspiration to some folks, but a search on the internet would give you a lot of this kind of material. To me, the abundance of quotes and stories was further proof that the author either didn't have much to say about this topic, or doesn't know how to speak his mind. I found the author disrespectful of the reader and I felt my intelligence insulted. I hate being so harsh but this is what it was.

You would do much better to pick any random article on creativity from a respectable scientific psychological journal and read that instead of this book. If you still buy the book, please at least just read the key points at the end of each chapter, and not the whole book. That will be enough of a waste of your time.