One of the simplest psychology tests, to find out how creative you are is the “Brick Usage” test.
It takes only 5 minutes of time, and it would be most desirable if you can take it without any type of visual, sound, or any other type of distraction.
- You will need a piece of paper and a pen.
- Set the countdown timer to 5 minutes and start the clock.
- In those 5 minutes, try to imagine as many different ways as possible to use a brick, and write them down. In addition to the traditional uses; try to invent or imagine some unusual ways.
Take the test first, and then continue reading.
Photo source: "house bricks" by Steve Johnson
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The test gives feedback on how imaginative someone is, but it also gives feedback about his intelligence and ability to combine things. The average person will imagine around 5 to 8 different uses, and an imaginative person will find between 10 to 15. Everything above that is a sign of a really creative spirit.
Now, the question is: can we boost this number?
If you have scored below the average number that does not mean that all hope is lost for you. You need to know that it is possible to improve your creativity by practicing. The way to do this is by taking time to practice combining different operations on seemingly impossible things. The first technique would be to list all the verbs we can think of and then to try to associate a brick with each word.
For instance:
- Walking: Can we make shoes out of bricks?
- Flying: What flies? Birds, airplanes, speeding bullets... Can we make an airplane out of a brick? Can we make a bullet? How can we combine it with the bird?
Now, try on your own.
Remember: keep practicing. Do not think about how much time it takes to imagine the next use. At first, if you are not an overly-creative person, it will take time to loosen a bit and let your imagination run wild, but, with enough persistent practice, you will become better and faster at imagining interesting and funny things.
“Imagination is more important than knowledge.
For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand,
while imagination embraces the entire world,
and all there ever will be to know and understand.”
― Albert Einstein
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