Creativity is understood as the ability to create something new, whether in the form of ideas, objects, art, political ideologies, and so on.

Creative thinking is something that is generally seen as something positive and a gift for those who have it well developed, however, there are many ways in which it can be impeded.

There are many barriers to creativity , which make original ideas never come to light. Below are the 15 most common ones and some ways to deal with them.

The 15 Barriers to Creativity

There are many ways to obstruct creative thinking or prevent something new from being brought from the world of the imagination into the real world, however, the following 15 ways are the most common ways of preventing or hindering the creative process.

1. Lack of time

Like all things in this world, the creative process takes time .

First you have to have a moment of calm in which you can set your mind at work, then you have to take your time to shape the idea, making its improvements and discarding its possible defects, and then materialize it. For example, if we want to paint a picture, first we will need to think about what we want to do, then, more carefully, we will make a sketch of what we want to paint, in this case, an autumn landscape.

Then we are painting, making the elements of the painting and, while we are painting, we will also have new ideas and improvise some aspects of the painting.

2. Lack of self-esteem

Lack of self-esteem is often the main factor that kills creativity. It can happen that you are very original and have very good ideas, but this is never materialized because it is believed that they are bad occurrences .

Whether you have had ideas or not, what you need to do is let your imagination flow, waiting for people to judge the ideas for what they are, not for who made them.

3. Everything is invented

Many people, when they try something new, become unmotivated because they come to the conclusion that everything has already been invented. It is true that there are as many ideas as there are stars in the sky, but this does not mean that none of them can be improved .

Sometimes, a small change can be a major nuance between the new and the old. There is always something that can be reformulated or improved.

4. Fear of failure

No one likes to make mistakes, but the truth is that if you don’t try already, failure is guaranteed .

Trying to do new and different things is always a risk, since there is no guarantee that people will understand our world view or that the idea we originally saw as very innovative will turn out to be something unconvincing in the end.

If we think about it in depth, what risk is there in trying something new and that in the end it doesn’t work? If it does work, then great, but if it doesn’t, we still benefit from learning a valuable lesson that will help us deal with other options.

One message should be clear from this point: every creative process is risky, because there is some uncertainty. If there were no such uncertainty, i.e. if the results were already known, what would be new to offer the world?

5. Perfectionism

You can always improve what you have done, but sometimes trying to make what you have done perfect can spoil a good idea and also waste your time. Perfection is often the enemy of good .

6. Inability to be self-critical

Just as you should not be afraid of failure, you should be critical of what you do. Taking for granted that what you have created is undoubtedly good and that others are wrong is a great limit to creativity.

Firstly because you are not motivated to have new ideas, and secondly because you may be defending an idea that is not seen as something creative, either because it has been done before or because it is simply bad.

The defects of what has been done must be detected and, on the basis of them, what has been done must be reformulated. This activates the creative process, given that we are constantly trying to improve ourselves, encouraging divergent thinking .

7. Rigid rules

Rules are fundamental to life in society, and they serve to comfort us in the knowledge that there is a code of conduct and laws that guarantee us rights and obligations. They create a safe zone.

However, there are other kinds of rules, which vary from individual to individual, and which can limit our actions quite a bit, especially when they are related to novelty. These are rules that are not given.

Terms of rigid beliefs and automatic behaviours can be defined that, in order to change them, some effort is needed. An example of this would be to always go to work on the metro, to always wear the same type of clothes, not to try vegan food…

Rules that are not given can affect all aspects of the person and, although not pathological in themselves, greatly limit one’s originality. Creativity arises when these unwritten rules are broken.

But breaking them is not so easy, because they are invisible , that is, they are automated behaviors that are done unconsciously. In order to break them, it is first necessary to ask why we should do things the way we are doing them.

8. Hold on to the first idea that comes up

It often happens that, if you find a good idea or it happens that the first thing you thought of ended up being successful, then there is no need to change it and try new things .

It is good to consider that first idea, but one should not ignore the possible improvements it requires or other options to do things that may be much more beneficial than the original idea.

You should always aim for more, never get stuck in one place, no matter how good the results.

9. Difficulty isolating

This barrier to creativity prevents the emergence of lateral thinking, and could be translated into the worldly language with the expression ‘a tree does not let us see the forest’.

Not being able to isolate a specific problem from the rest or from the context in which it has been formulated can be an aspect that makes it difficult to find new alternatives.

People tend to classify things into categories , giving them an order that, by default, we can hardly change.

If you want to be creative, you must try to separate the elements in order to give them a new organization or to relate them to other aspects that, normally, you would not find any relation.

10. The obvious is the obvious

Normally, we people simplify reality and do not ask ourselves certain questions . There are aspects of our daily life that have always been lived in a concrete way, so that doubting them is unthinkable.

However, it must be understood that what is understood as the obvious is, in fact, a social construct. Each thing has been assigned a function, but this does not mean that it cannot be put to other uses.

While not questioning the obvious things in life may indicate possessing a normal, healthy mind with a well-organized thinking style, it may also imply some creative limitation.

For example, an old chair can be seen as something that was used to sit on but is no longer useful, or, with a little imagination, it can be converted with a couple of ropes and a cushion into a comfortable and fun swing.

If you want to be creative, you should not take things for granted . Everything supports a new function.

11. Difficulty in relating remote ideas

Creativity lies in finding previously unseen relationships of two or more concepts. That is why it is very important to understand that two aspects that may seem to be very unrelated can be exploited in such a way that they result in a totally transgressive idea.

It is normal that we try to associate two aspects that are closely related at first sight, but we must make an effort and try to go a little further to acquire a more holistic vision of reality .

Going farther can be a very good way to avoid blockages, since you have a greater amount of creative possibilities.

12. Lack of motivation

The lack of motivation and willingness to carry out something new is a great enemy of creativity. There are people who have a great mind, which generates great ideas but, due to the laziness of those who have it, they never materialize .

Besides, if we are not curious and interested in the world around us, where will the questions come from that will make us question the pre-established reality?

To be creative one must have great conviction, doubt everything and draw strength from anywhere to offer the world a new way of doing things.

13. Analysis paralysis

When it comes to being original, it is always advisable to try to see what has been done before, to see how you can improve and avoid repeating something that has already been created.

Sometimes, however, this search becomes too extensive, overloading the creative genius with hundreds of ideas each more original than the last.

When trying to get things out of them, the mind gets blocked by making a great effort to select and analyze it, giving itself the creative paralysis .

The best way to avoid this is to select specific sources of information and forget about the rest. It is true that you will run the risk, unlikely, of being able to repeat an idea already made, however the creative process will start.

14. Envy

Many people are jealous of those who show different, innovative and clearly creative thinking. Thus, through certainly toxic behavior, they can make us not feel bad for having believed that we could be different .

Envy can be very evil, throwing all our most original ideas to the ground. That is why, to avoid it, we must be convinced of our vision of the world and try to materialize it.

15. Consumerism

It may seem a bit far-fetched, but the truth is that the consumption trends of the population have defined what is understood as a good and a bad idea .

This forces companies and their employees to work within certain limits, without allowing themselves to step outside the lines, or else they are taking too many risks.

Productivity takes precedence over any other factor, which can be a great stress for workers, who find that they are not free to express themselves. In turn, they become fatigued, which also inhibits creative thinking.

Bibliographic references:

  • Csikszenmihalyi, M. (1998). Creativity. The flow and psychology of discovery and invention. Paidós. Barcelona.
  • De-Bono, E. (1999). Creative thinking. The power of lateral thinking for the creation of new ideas. Mexico. Editorial Paidós Plural.
  • Mitjáns, M. A. (1995). Creativity, Personality and Education. Havana. Editorial Pueblo y Educación.