CREATIVITY IN THE DIGITAL AGE

 

With the proliferation of digital technologies, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of ways individuals can tell their stories and express their creativity. Virtual reality, Artificial Intelligence, Social Media, 3D modeling and printing, Blogs and Vlogs, YouTube videos, and Audio podcasts have become the new norm for storytelling and personal expression.

But how is technology reshaping our creative process?

Popular myths depict artists as rebels who succeed despite social forces, but that is not what the data shows. As noted psychologist, Mark Freeman’s interviews with artists have revealed, rather than creativity being affected by social conditions, creativity is constituted through those conditions

Increasingly, creative production processes are dominated by digital data transmission which makes the connection between people, ideas and creative processes easy to achieve within collaborative and co-creative environments. In other words. Technology is augmenting human creative abilities. In context with the business world, this means that newer and rapid forms of innovation are possible and at a much lower cost of iteration.

From Computer aided design (CAD) to 3D printing, the cost of innovation is significantly lower in the digital world than it is in analog. Constant iteration is a key success factor in creative excellence and digital platforms certainly provide the environment to experiment before investing in an idea.

With all the warnings about what digital technology is doing to human cognition, there has been less talk about what we’ve gained from it. Human machine networks are enabling new areas of creativity where art is emerging as works of partnerships and tools. Historically, creativity has always been something to be nourished and challenged, and it thrives because of cultures and technologies. One can be active or passive with digital technology just as one can be active or passive with a pen and paper. Digital devices offer views into the way the world works, and they invite rather than stifle creativity.

Microsoft’s video titled ‘CREATIVITY IN THE DIGITAL AGE’, featuring noted musician Johnny Marr, brings out a succinct message. One that speaks about sustained creativity being the true differentiator. Mentorship, collaboration, continuous learning, a growth mind set and, most of all, the human spirit are the engines that drive transformation in society, in business, and in the arts. Recognized as one of the most accomplished and diverse artists of his era, Johnny demonstrates how a timeless art form keeps in tune with the advances of technology and the methods that transform it— methods that have sustained his own creativity for nearly 40 years.

It would be naïve though to imply that the mind-boggling proliferation of web content today is indicative of general increase in creativity. This view from The Guardian resonates with me – “although user-generated content has been growing exponentially in the past decade, much of it is noise and the result is that valuable and trustworthy information is now harder to find.“

However I do believe that innovative thought, at an organizational level, can be genuinely creative and can lead to transformational change in today’s digital age. Rishi Jaitley, CEO Times Global & Former Twitter India head, when talking about Creativity & Storytelling in a Digital Age at All India Management Association (AIMA’s) 3rd National Leadership Conclave in 2017, urges all organizations to think of themselves as a media company. “If all of your companies have the word productions attached afterward, all of a sudden you are a storytelling company, right? What stories would you tell, what podcasts would you host, and what videos would you produce?”. Though it is the amalgam of the creative and digital world that can yield transformative change, it is important to keep the true human spirit at the core of it, so as not to lose perspective.

An example is social media. While Social Media (SM) platforms have revolutionized the way businesses are able to market their brand and products effectively and cheaply, there is certainly a downside in a larger societal context. Growing overuse of SM across people of all ages can lead to a false sense of connectivity and hinder human ability to sift real relationships from meaningless casual encounters. What started as a venue for self-expression is becoming a space to seek validation from perceived personas in the virtual world.

But the rapid advent of the Digital era is unprecedented and like everything else that disrupts the way we think, act and live, there is bound to be a flip side. At the end of the day, human cognition has to be the game changer in how we adapt and derive benefit from the huge digital strides we’re making every day.

Anand Mahindra, leading industrialist and Chairman of the Mahindra Group, when asked at a conference last year, “Will technology save the world?” said in response, “No, it will be poets, writers, and musicians”.

I believe it is the collusion of the two worlds – the creative and the technical, the art and the science – that will create lasting and disruptive impact in the digital age. And it is important for organizations and leadership to understand the importance of this married skill set for true creativity in the digital age.