Expanding Our Idea of Creativity
I think we all have a general understanding of what creativity is. It’s something that is used by all of us daily, whether we realize it or not. We were all born with creativity inside of us, because we ourselves, are a creation! Even so, it’s sometimes still a hard thing for us to recognize.
There are several ways that creativity can be defined. One of my favorites is this: The ability to transcend traditional ideas, rules, patterns, relationships, or the like, and to create meaningful new ideas, forms, methods, interpretations, etc.; originality, progressiveness, or imagination.*
I personally see creativity, in the simplest way, as the journey of making, seeing, doing and thinking about something in a new way.
But since creativity is such a broad topic which can be used and interpreted in so many ways, it feels difficult to capture it in just one sentence. So I was happy when I came across this video by John Spencer, which claims the need for a bigger definition of creativity. Take a look:
So, by broadening our definition of creativity, we can also begin to recognize that it exists all around us. We can start to see that:
Creativity is a powerful and accessible tool because it allows for endless possibilities in every aspect of our lives.
Pretty exciting, isn’t it? So next time you think about creativity remember these things :
Creativity is accessible to all of us. We ALL have the ability to come up with ideas and to make things our own. The assumption that you are not creative because you don’t label yourself as an artist, is simply not true. We use creativity to make decisions and solve problems on a daily basis, and that can be applied to all sorts of occupations and activities…it’s for everyone! Knowing that you are a deeply creative and unique individual, can fuel your life.
Creativity is part of how we think about things, how we make decisions, how we see things - it’s not solely about making something. So if we step back a bit and think about creativity as a way of life, rather than just a skill for making something, we can begin to widen our appreciation for it and utilize it more broadly. We can feel free to think outside the box, to go against the grain and take on new perspectives and hopes - that is powerful!
Creativity can grow with us (and instill joy in our lives). As we get older, the desire to fit in, to aim for sameness and acceptance and “success” all become part of the social pressures that begin to shape us (and perhaps even limit us). The idea of play diminishes and our minds begin to close up for many reasons. All these things are normal and to some degree, expected as one gains responsibilities and needs to survive in a culture where certain things are expected in order to fit in. And the truth is, we need some degree of order and rules to maintain a safe society to live in. But - we don’t have to lose creativity just because we are adults. We might just have to try a little harder to keep our creative muscles activated. Play with legos, do a cartwheel, make a sand castle, dance to your favorite song, do something spontaneous - you’ll thank me later :)
The bottom line is that creativity is here and ready and SO willing to be in our lives. Let’s give attention to it and be proud of it.
I guarantee that the world would be a much brighter, more fun, wild and free place if we’d all tap into the creativity that exists in all of us.
Next on our creativity tour, we’ll start to peel back the layers a bit more and expose why creativity is often difficult to access - we’re going to talk about fear (da, da daaaa, sound the dramatic music).
In the meantime, I made a fun, little worksheet with simple prompts to help bring back creativity and connection in our lives. Print it out, hang it up, have some fun with it. Remember - play is okay! :) Please enjoy!
*Definition source: dictionary.com