How Can You Tell If Someone Has Creativity? What to Look Out For
Creative people tend to share traits like curiosity, comfort with failure, and the ability to connect unrelated ideas. Creativity isn't just about artistic talent, though, it also shows in how anyone approaches problem-solving. Watching for these behaviours in a team can reveal hidden creative potential, but observation alone is biased and limited, so structured assessments give a more accurate, fairer picture.
“That person really seems to have great ideas.” It's a phrase many of us have said about a colleague or someone we know. But in reality, creativity has clearer signals than a general impression, and it isn't limited to people who work in art or design. This article looks at the traits highly creative people tend to share, and how to spot them, both in yourself and in your team.
Traits of Highly Creative People
While creativity shows up differently from person to person, some common traits tend to appear again and again:
- Curious, frequently asking questions, especially about things others assume “just are the way they are”
- Able to connect seemingly unrelated things, such as applying an idea from one industry to a completely different one
- Not afraid of failure, willing to try something new even without knowing the outcome
- Able to see a problem from multiple angles rather than sticking to a single solution
- Open to feedback and willing to adjust ideas when new information comes in
- Observant, quick to notice small details others tend to overlook
Not every creative person needs to have all of these traits, and different people express creativity in their own way.
Creativity Isn't Measured by Artistic Output Alone
A common misconception is assuming that people who are good at drawing, writing or design are the only ones who are “creative”. In reality, creativity shows up in many forms, for example:
- An engineer who finds a way to speed up a production process
- A salesperson who comes up with a way to present a product that no one has tried before
- An accountant who designs a document review system that reduces errors
Assessing creativity shouldn't focus solely on “visually impressive output”. It should focus on the thinking process and how someone approaches problem-solving.
How to Spot Creativity in a Team
For team leads or HR professionals who want to identify creative potential within their team, useful behaviours to look out for include:
- Someone who regularly proposes new approaches in meetings, even when the idea isn't fully formed yet
- Someone willing to challenge existing ways of working, backed by sound reasoning
- Someone who adapts well when situations change suddenly
- Someone who enjoys trying out new tools or ways of working on their own
That said, relying on observation alone has its limits, since it depends heavily on how often a manager actually gets to witness these behaviours, and unconscious bias can creep in. For example, assuming that someone who speaks confidently in meetings is more creative than a quieter colleague who thinks deeply.
Tools That Measure More Accurately Than Observation Alone
To make creativity assessment more accurate and fair, many organisations are turning to structured creativity assessments rather than relying on gut feeling or personal impressions.
The benefits of using an assessment include:
- Getting standardised results that allow comparison between individuals or teams
- Uncovering potential in employees who may not show it clearly in meetings
- Having data to inform more targeted individual development plans
In Summary
Judging who has creativity shouldn't be based on appearances or job title. It should be based on real behaviour and thinking processes. For greater accuracy, using a structured assessment tool gives a much clearer picture than relying on observation and gut feeling alone.
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