Fostering Creative Environments

Fostering Creative Environments
Tips from Dale Carnegie Training on Enriching Employee Practices

HAUPPAUGE, NY (February 27, 2008) - Work environments can tend to feel stagnant and cumbersome when filled with forms, protocol and chains of command. As creative environments spawn creative ideas, how do you move beyond the methodology of business to spark ingenuity throughout your workforce?

Dale Carnegie Training recognizes that businesses need systems to function properly, and Peter Handal, chairman, president and CEO of Dale Carnegie Training believes there are certain practices businesses can implement to provide an innovative environment that inspires creativity and new ideas.

"The monotony of day-to-day systems can sometimes stagnate the creative juices in employees," explains Handal. "The key to getting those juices flowing again is to provide opportunities for your staff to expand beyond their cubicles. As an executive, the first step is to acknowledge that the current environment has been established by yourself, your colleagues and your predecessors over a long period of time. Next, recognize that your influence and authority will be the key in changing the environment as others will follow your example."

Peter Handal provides the following suggestions when considering programs focused on encouraging creativity in your employees and producing an environment that engages them:

Initiate Creativity
Set up a brainstorming session and be the first to throw out a radical idea that contradicts current practices. Emphasize that ideas such as this are not necessarily going to be carried out, but are to be used as stimulus. This should encourage employees to offer ideas, even if they are certain that the idea will not work. Lastly, thank people for challenging your ideas and offering solutions.

Create a Trusting Environment
The key to unleashing creativity is to provide a space where employees feel comfortable brainstorming and conveying ideas that may be more adventurous than usual. Communicate clearly that the space is one in which no one's ideas are judged or criticized, but noted, discussed and built upon.

Provide Training and Vocational Opportunities
Organize workshops for your employees to improve leadership skills and interoffice communications. Courses such as these promote the idea of speaking to one another and playing off co-worker's concepts.

Be Open and Accessible
Employees may not approach you with ideas and opportunities as they think they do not have the "right" to interrupt your day. Make it known that the door is always open to all ideas. This will be the most effective way to reach out to the most creative people who may be the youngest and newest on your team.

Ask for Feedback
The simple act of soliciting requests from your employees is an effortless task that will confirm your loyalty to and investment in your staff's happiness. Be sure to examine and respond to every submission so that your employees know why each suggestion will or will not be satisfied.

Page 2/Creativity

Click here to download a PDF of this press release.

More Press Releases ....

About Dale Carnegie Training
Dale Carnegie partners with middle market and large corporations, as well as organizations, to produce measurable business results by improving the performance of employees with emphasis on leadership, sales, team member engagement, customer service, presentations, process improvement and other essential management skills.  Recently identified by The Wall Street Journal as one of the top 25 high-performing franchises, the Dale Carnegie Training programs are available in more than 25 languages throughout the entire United States and in more than 80 countries.  Dale Carnegie includes as its clients 400 of the Fortune 500 companies.  Approximately 8 million people have experienced Dale Carnegie Training.

Dale Carnegie’s corporate specialists work with individuals, groups and organizations to design solutions that unleash your employees’ potential, enabling your organization to reach the next level of performance.  Dale Carnegie Training offers public courses, seminars and workshops, as well as in-house customized training, corporate assessments, online reinforcement and one-on-one coaching.  For more information, please visit www.dalecarnegie.com.