The other day, I was chilling out with one of my best friends. He’s a foreman in the construction industry, and we got talking about his work. As usual, I was fascinated by the stories he shared—juggling team management, finding quick fixes on-site, keeping projects on schedule. So, I told him, "Man, that takes some real creativity."
He just looked at me, confused, and said, “I’m not creative. I’m just doing my job.”
That really stuck with me. Here’s a guy who spends his days solving problems on the fly, coming up with new ways to work around unexpected issues, and making out of box decisions in real-time. And yet, he doesn’t see himself as creative. This is a concept that has emerged to me time after time, something I call Invisible Creativity—the creativity we use every day without even noticing it.
What is Invisible Creativity?
Invisible Creativity is when you’re using your brain to come up with solutions, ideas, or new ways of doing things, but you don’t realize it’s actually creativity. Because you’re not drawing, painting, or writing songs, it’s easy to dismiss these moments. But creativity isn’t limited to artists or designers. It’s in the way you solve problems, adapt to unexpected situations, or come up with little hacks to make life easier - by combining what we know when facing the unexpected.
Take my friend, the foreman. He’s not sitting in front of an easel painting a masterpiece, but every day, he’s problem-solving in ways that require quick thinking and resourcefulness.
That’s creativity, plain and simple.
Everyday Creativity Happens All the Time
Most people don’t see themselves as creative, but I’d argue we’re all a lot more creative than we think. Think about the last time you:
Had to figure out a way to keep your kids entertained while juggling work
Found a quicker way to do something at your job
Improvised a solution when things didn’t go as planned
That’s creativity at work—just not the kind we usually think of. It’s easy to overlook because we’re so used to seeing creativity as something that belongs to artists, writers, or musicians. But the truth is, creativity is happening all the time, often right under our noses. Psychologists like J.P. Guilford have long argued that creativity isn’t just about artistic ability, but also about problem-solving and adaptability in everyday situations (Guilford, 1967).
Why Do We Miss Our Own Creativity?
We’ve been trained to think that creativity is some kind of magical gift, only reserved for the “creative types.” It doesn’t help that our education system pushes us to focus on the right answers instead of encouraging exploration and innovation (Robinson, 2011). Over time, we start believing that unless we’re making art or inventing something groundbreaking, we’re not creative.
But in reality, creativity is about how we think, how we solve problems, and how we navigate challenges. It’s something we all do.
The Science: Creativity is in Your Everyday Problem-Solving
Here’s the thing—creativity isn’t just for artists. Science backs this up. Research shows that creative thinking involves two key processes: divergent thinking (coming up with multiple solutions) and convergent thinking (picking the best one) (Kaufman & Beghetto, 2009). We all do this every day, whether we’re planning a project, deciding how to handle a tricky conversation, or organizing our time.
My foreman friend, for example, is constantly weighing options and figuring out what’ll work best on-site. He’s engaging in the same mental processes that artists or entrepreneurs use. He just doesn’t call it “creativity” because it doesn’t fit into the typical box.
Additionally, studies show that creativity is deeply connected to neuroplasticity—our brain's ability to adapt and form new connections as we learn and solve problems (Csikszentmihalyi, 1996). This means that creativity is something we all can develop, and we likely use it far more often than we think.
How to Recognize Your Own Invisible Creativity
So how do we tap into and recognize this invisible creativity? It’s easier than you might think:
Start seeing problem-solving as creative: Anytime you’re solving a problem, you’re using creativity.
Look for it in your day-to-day: Reflect on moments when you had to think on your feet. It could be as simple as rearranging your schedule or making a last-minute change.
Shift your mindset: Don’t limit creativity to traditional roles. See it in everything you do—at work, at home, in relationships.
Celebrate the small wins: Creativity isn’t just about big ideas. It’s in the little solutions and adjustments we make every day.
Let’s Start Recognizing Invisible Creativity
Invisible Creativity is all around us. It’s not just something you find in an art gallery or on a stage. It’s in the way we adapt, solve, and create every day, often without even realizing it. And the more we acknowledge that, the more we can tap into our potential to think differently, innovate, and improve.
So, next time you catch yourself figuring something out—whether it’s at work, in your personal life, or even in a random conversation—recognize it for what it is. That’s creativity. It’s just invisible. You are creative - and simply with that thought, you will be more creative.
Cheers, Ronny
Sources:
Kaufman, J.C., & Beghetto, R.A. (2009). Beyond Big and Little: The Four C Model of Creativity. Review of General Psychology, 13(1), 1–12. Link
Guilford, J.P. (1967). The Nature of Human Intelligence. McGraw-Hill. Link
Robinson, K. (2011). Out of Our Minds: Learning to Be Creative. Capstone Publishing. Link
Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1996). Creativity: Flow and the Psychology of Discovery and Invention. HarperCollins. Link
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