Finding creative new ideas requires both release from fixation and a productive search mindset. Recent research has shown that messy desks, walking, and mind-wandering can lead to more new uses for old objects. Here we show that a human-centric mindset is superior to mind-wandering for generating more alternative uses and more creative uses because it provides both release from fixation and an effective search strategy. A human-centric mindset entails perspective-taking, and perspective-taking is likely to be an effective general strategy for enhancing creativity, problem-solving and innovation.