For most people in business, creativity is a one-size-fits-all affair. You think creatively, and you get ideas. Simple, right? Well, not quite. Spend more time exploring how breakthrough ideas come about (like I did for two decades). You’ll realize there are three different types of ideas—and, by extension, three different types of creativity: great ideas, best ideas, and the elusive “WOW! I’m freaking out, that’s it!” ideas. Today, let’s dive into how these types of ideas (and their underlying kinds of creativity) differ from each other.

What are the different types of ideas all about in a nutshell?

“When do you get your best ideas? Where are you when it happens? What are you doing?” When I ask people these questions during a creativity training, while the specifics vary, the underlying pattern is consistent: most people get their best ideas when they are relaxed, doing something they enjoy, or simply resting. In those moments, it’s as if an idea just pops up out of nowhere to solve a problem they’ve been stuck on. This phenomenon is subconscious creativity. It’s when an idea surfaces spontaneously during moments of relaxation—when your brain is taking a much-needed break. 

On the other hand, conscious creativity happens when an individual or, more often, a group consciously generates ideas for a specific challenge. Often, one or more of the many ideas generated is a great one.

And then, there’s the Holy Grail of creativity: the WOW! idea. These are breakthrough ideas, forged through prolonged immersion in a challenging problem— and when you let go of it, an epiphany suddenly lights up your entire world.

Why are we talking about different types of ideas and creativity?

When we brainstorm ideas in a group or individually generate ideas during an Ideation session, we operate using our conscious mind, with brainwaves in alpha or beta states. This is where most great (but also to be expected) ideas are born.

Subconscious creativity, however, often strikes when we are in a more relaxed state—when our brains are in alpha or even fast theta waves. This is where your best ideas live, those that have a bit more originality and insight.

Then there’s the superconscious level. This is where breakthrough thinkers play—where they achieve true WOW! moments. They often reach a deeply restful, almost trance-like state, and the brain settles into slow theta waves. This isn’t just any idea; this is a breakthrough idea that rewrites entire industries or solves wicked problems.

Who is involved?

Subconscious and superconscious creativity are more often solo activities. You might have a friend or a close companion around during those moments—Einstein famously cracked his theory of relativity while hiking with his friend Michele Besso in the Swiss Alps—but it’s largely a solitary journey. Conscious creativity, in contrast, is usually a team sport. This is the collaborative effort where groups come together to ideate collectively.

When does it happen?

Great team ideas are born during work hours, often in workshops or as part of a structured group effort. Your best ideas, and certainly those WOW! ones, typically don’t conform to a nine-to-five schedule. They happen in those in-between moments—early morning yoga sessions, an afternoon run, a relaxed evening with friends, that sleepy haze before you drift off to slumberland, or even in your dreams.

How does it happen?

Great conscious creativity is sparked through structure. You guide a team through the stages of a systematic creative process, using different thinking tools and creativity techniques. In our X-IDEA method, for instance, we pass through five stages: Xploration, Ideation, Development, Evaluation, and Action—all with the support of tailored creativity tools such as What If, Born To Be Wild, Yin And Yang, Idea Circles, and so on. The approach is systematic, structured, and designed to draw out great ideas collectively.

Superconscious creativity, on the other hand, follows a different rhythm. Graham Wallas first outlined this advanced creative process in 1926 based on letters exchanged by scientists Henry Poincaré and Hermann von Helmholtz. It consists of Preparation, Incubation, Illumination, and Verification. During the preparation stage, an individual works intensely on a wicked problem. But the real magic happens when they let go and move to Incubation—when they stop consciously focusing on the problem and allow their subconscious mind to continue doing the work. The sudden, exhilarating Illumination that follows is what I call a WOW! idea. In such a Eureka moment, breakthrough creativity flows from a superconscious source to an open, prepared subconscious mind.

This kind of creativity is not about grinding away at a task; it’s about knowing when to let go, to let your mind wander, and to trust that the solution will reveal itself when it’s ready. As I often tell my Genius Journey students, achieving a WOW! idea is about mastering your inner creative game and developing the creative leadership mindsets that allow true breakthroughs to flow.

How Much Time Does It Take?

Conscious creativity requires a dedicated time commitment. Think of an innovation or creative problem-solving workshop that spans one or more days—that’s how you get a group of people together to think through an innovation challenge. And while busy executives may complain, “We don’t have that much time for creativity,” this time commitment is minuscule compared to what it takes to achieve a true breakthrough. 

To reach that level, we’re talking about months or even years of mental preparation to deeply understand the challenge, followed by a period of letting go, and then—when you least expect it—a WOW! moment of illumination that may last only an instant but changes everything.

How many ideas?

Conscious creativity is a numbers game. When we guide a team through the X-IDEA process, we ensure targeted outputs at every stage. For example, a team of ten people might generate 800-1,000 raw ideas in a morning of Ideation. Then, they develop two to three dozen idea concepts in the Development-stage. Next, they elect roughly five top ideas during Evaluation, which they finally pitch in the Action-stage to gain support for at least one idea with the biggest WOW factor.

By contrast, sub- and superconscious creativity doesn’t concern itself with quantity. It’s about allowing one of your best ideas to pop up when you’re relaxed or that one magical breakthrough idea that emerges out of nowhere when all your empowering creative mindsets align. And when it happens, the feeling is pure, exhilarating euphoria: “YES! That’s it! WOW! I’m going nuts!”

Ready to Take the Next Step?

• Learn more about the creative process and Wallas’ model of superconscious creativity in my new book, Unleashing Wow!
• Find out how X-IDEA can reinvigorate your creative sessions. Visit our X-IDEA website and explore the X-IDEA booklet to learn more about our know-how of wow. Also, check out some real-life case studies to understand how we use X-IDEA to help companies innovate and solve their creative problems..
• Learn about how to unleash your full creative leadership potential and prepare your mind for breakthrough creativity in our Genius Journey programs.
• Contact us to explore our training formats and innovation workshops—and let’s explore what types of ideas and creativity you need to unleash the hidden creativity of you and your creative team.

© Dr. Detlef Reis 2024.