I’ve seen many managers inadvertently kill creativity in their employees either because they are close-minded, because they are focused on sales goals, or because of their frantic efforts just to get work done by a deadline. Some neglect to remember that their greatest asset is the combined brainpower of their people!!
A great manager maximizes creativity without killing it in the process. One way to stimulate creativity is to give employees new and challenging assignments, but not so difficult they feel overwhelmed. Be sure to give them specific goals but do not dictate how they should be met. They will likely use their creativity if you give them the freedom to decide how to climb a mountain. This is an effective way to ignite the fire under some of the employees who are average performers and turn them into top performers as they will feel they are contributing to the decision-making.
