Developing Creativity

“Fame has been a mixed blessing. It opens doors, but it locks you into other people’s preconceptions. I’ve sometimes thought about using a pseudonym, but it’s late for that. I’ve worked too hard to become myself.” Molly Ringwald

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A Hungarian psychology professor once wrote to famous creators asking them to be interviewed for a book he was writing. One of the most interesting things about his project was how many people said “no.”

Creative expression is not just about outside tools, but actually being an instrument oneself. The greater the access to ourselves, the more creative we can be.

Martha Graham famously said, "There is a vitality, a life force, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique.

"And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and will be lost."

Need a burst of inspiration? Wildly creative thinkers share ideas, strategies and warmhearted encouragement to let your genius out.

Student: Do I have what it takes to be a professional? Teacher: No. Observer: Why crush the student's spirits now? Teacher: If the student believes me and gives up, then she doesn't have what it takes. To be a pro in this business, you have to take a comment like that as a spur to work harder.

Being able to bounce after a failure, set-back, or critique is an important life skill. Set-backs, failures, and partial successes are the building blocks of experience. Without the ability to turn failure in to learning, people give up on dreams.

They may be identified with one form of creative work, but so many people express themselves in multiple ways, in more than one area of creativity.

“The violin player looked at me as if I had just expressed bafflement that an orange was the color orange. ‘All creative people have multiple talents, don’t they?’

“They do, scientists tell us, even if they don’t realize it,” Ross adds.

“I didn’t discover I was an artist until I was 17… It was very hard to be an artist and a child… it was like having sand up your butt when you go to the beach.”

One of the most interesting details shared in the graphic above is the information about the Princeton University Study which demonstrated that the brain of a person telling a story and the brain a...

To be a successful creative, you need to not only be a good generator, but also a good evaluator. The problem is that in practice, it’s remarkably hard to be both. By switching between Promotion and Prevention focuses we can generate our best ideas.

Illustration: Oscar Ramos Orozco

How does being a mother affect a creative woman, especially someone engaged in a career in the arts?

“The motherhood thing – I think of it like a marathon, except a marathon is over in a day. It’s an endurance test and it’s something you absolutely can’t stop for a second" Filmmaker Caren McCaleb

The image is from a new documentary Lost in Living – “the story of four extraordinary women who share their personal triumphs and struggles as mothers and as artists..."

Our brain’s prefrontal cortex is thought to filter out irrelevant thoughts.  This helps us concentrate better in a chaotic world.   But maybe this isn’t always helpful.  Like when we want to think creatively.

In fact, switching this filter off may actually increase “outside of the box” thinking.

"TED Quotes brings you salient bits of TEDTalks, on everything from activism to storytelling, from chemistry to curiosity."

The power of creation [VIDEO]

"Creativity is not just an opportunity, it's a responsibility."

"Though the creative process can be long and hard, it is with determination, persistence and fruitful collaboration that makes creation possible. This incredible video by Behance will inspire you to create."

By Scott Barry Kaufman, Ph.D. 

"Every single day, all across the globe, extraordinarily creative and talented students sit in our classrooms bored out of their minds.

"Since so much is at stake for increasing creativity in society, it's essential that we continually question and attempt to improve the methods by which we identify, mentor, and cultivate those who are ready and capable of becoming our next generation of innovators."

Are people who write, create illustrations and movies and other artwork highly respected, in high demand and getting great compensation?

The Creativity Post Co-founder Scott Barry Kaufman talks about the importance of passion, inspiration, play, and creativity.

By Scott Barry Kaufman, Ph.D.

"Creative thinking is influenced by many traits, behaviors, and sociocultural factors that come together in one person. It would be surprising if all of these factors didn't sometimes appear to contradict one another."

"Do I contradict myself? / Very well then I contradict myself, / (I am large, I contain multitudes.)" - Walt Whitman