Being creative means having curiosity, the ability to observe keenly, and a passion for innovation to move about in space and time in new ways.

According to Deborah J. Cohan, Ph.D., who is a professor of sociology at the University of South Carolina-Beaufort, it means trying something different, which requires us to take the leap to trust our intuition so we can play in the unknown.

So I don't know about you, but to me the folks at 'Redneck Engineering seem really creative!

And maybe even more than the people who condescendingly call them rednecks. "It’s paradoxical that in higher education many faculty members often report feeling stifled or deadened when it comes to creative practices," Cohan wrote.

"One would think academe would be one of the more open arenas for nurturing creativity. But, formulaic and status-quo constructions generally prevail for what makes scholarship and pedagogy good enough for us to achieve successful annual reviews and ascend the ranks through tenure and promotion."

There are many ways we can foster our creativity and help our inner redneck engineer grow. For example, we can do that by strengthening our verbal fluency and working memory. The more we have stored in our memory bank, the wider the variety of material we can choose from when we want to create.

Gina Simmons Schneider, Ph.D., who is a licensed psychotherapist, certified coach, corporate trainer, and codirector of Schneider Counseling and Corporate Solutions, said that we can strengthen our verbal fluency by cultivating a reading habit and studying a variety of subjects. Looking up words we don't know and growing our vocabulary also helps. A broad background of stories, language, and knowledge gives us a deep well to draw from when you want to create something.

We can also increase our creativity by cultivating an openness to new ideas and experiences. Some people already possess that personality trait, making them naturally more creative.

But it also helps to think of yourself as a creative person or as a person who enjoys being creative. When you think of yourself as creative, you will likely engage in creative and imaginative activities more often.

Simmons Schneider said there are three simple ways to increase our creative productivity. The first one is to simply take a walk.

"Stanford University researchers found that walking can increase creative output by as much as 60 percent. Many famous creative thinkers made walking a part of their creative process, including Steve Jobs, Ludwig van Beethoven , and Stephen King," Simmons Schneider explained.

Then there's the so-called Cathedral Effect. "If you want to encourage more lofty, expansive, divergent, or abstract thinking, try working in a room with a high ceiling (10 feet or higher), or get outside," the psychotherapist said.

"Research shows that higher ceilings inspire expansive thought. Working in rooms with lower ceilings lends itself to more convergent, detail-oriented thinking as it primes us to take a narrower focus."

And lastly, embrace limitation. "Innovation often stems from constraints ... We all face limits in time, money, imagination, and ability. Embracing our obstacles and finding workarounds is a creative act," Simmons Schneider said.

"Theodore Geisel, the famous Dr. Seuss of children's book fame, took on a bet by his publisher to write a book using only 50 different words. The result, Green Eggs and Ham, is a perennial best seller."

Limitations don't necessarily block us from accomplishing our goals. They might make us more creative if we embrace them.

For more redneck engineering, fire up our older publications on the subreddit here, here, and here.