While sticking out your tongue at strangers may not be productive, thinking like a kid can boost creativity.
Researchers Darya Zabelina and Michael Robinson of North Dakota State University wanted to see if tapping into a childlike mind-set would enhance an adult's creative output. College students wrote about what they would do if they had a day off from school now, or as their 7-year-old selves. The first group produced "boring" results, such as catching up on work or sleep, while the second group stated that they would go buy the biggest lollipops they could find or spend the day playing with friends. Afterward, the second group performed better than the first on a test of creativity. Thinking like a kid helped introverts the most, because they're typically more inhibited.
Zabelina advocates applying a childlike mind-set to our daily lives. "It's about giving yourself permission to explore and free time to play. It would not just increase your creativity—it would also motivate you to create."
