Creating Creativity in Pharmacy

If you were a dedicated fan of “Mad Men” like I was, then you probably watched this past summer’s series finale. When the credits rolled one last time, I was left pondering a lot of personal and professional questions.

The TV show’s main character Don Draper ends the series by abandoning his job and taking a cross-country trip. His journey is filled with self-loathing, confessions, and a support group that leads to him share a smile and very popular carbonated beverage.

The viewer is led to believe that this journey ultimately inspires Don Draper to return to work and design a popular and memorable ad campaign for the company behind the carbonated beverage. This is an example of creative inspiration coming at an extremely high and selfish price.

Was the show illustrating that workers cannot be creative within their daily workflow? Is it is best to exit and re-enter the workplace to exercise your creative muscles? Can you strengthen your creative core without adapting to disruptive behaviors that characters like Don Draper bring to the workforce?

These questions made me reflect on how I typically brainstorm and search for creativity. You don’t have to be an artist or ad man to come up with an idea, paint a picture, and capture someone’s attention.

Here are some things that I have incorporated into my daily workflow that have helped me strengthen my creative backbone:

• Daydream Take a break away from your screen Set aside 15 minutes a day away from an on-switch
• Use vacations to travel and broaden horizons When you visit a new city or country, you become hyper-observant. Bring your ideas and culture back home and incorporate them into your lifestyle. Low on travel money? Open a browser window and read the travel section of an online newspaper or try a new recipe at home for dinner. Open your company’s webpage and browse through it like an outsider.
• Take baby steps Understand that there will be edits, drafts, frustration, more drafts, and more frustration. Take small steps with your big ideas. Have the courage to try out prototypes. It isn’t failure if you have the courage to move forward and improve.
• Keep an idea journal Use the note feature on your phone to capture your thoughts. Re-visit your ideas. Do they still sound like good ones a few hours, days, or weeks later? Add and delete your ideas as your mind circulates the thoughts. This helps you keep your head clear.