My wife Tori was once told she wasn’t creative.
My blood boiled slightly on hearing this.
Firstly because I could tell how much it hurt her and must have stomped on her confidence.
Second because being told that has almost certainly prevented her from trying things she would have loved.
But most of all because it’s not true: Everybody can be creative. No exceptions.
Creativity is the communication of something in your mind.
Experiencing creativity, as we all have, sparks the feelings and emotions that make life worth living. That’s why “creative people” are worshiped.
But I believe that every one of us has the ability to thrill and excite ourselves and others with our own creations. I’ve written this article to convince you why, just like everybody else, you have that ability…
The baseline of creativity is thinking. But everybody in the world thinks and everything created in the world began as a thought in a person’s mind.
So thinking alone isn’t creative, its automatic.
Creativity is the reproduction of a thought from your mind into the real world. It is creation.
There isn’t a single profession or vocation that doesn’t have creative people.
Typically we think of the arts as being the home of creativity, but they are no different to other professions. Computer programming, engineering, negotiation, science, marketing, gardening, plumbing, teaching, medicine, sports…
I challenge you to find any area of life where there is no creativity.
I believe that in everything we do, no matter how mundane, there is someone who is amazing the people around them with their approach to it.
And to me, if there is no limit to the things we can be creative at, everyone can find something to be creative in.
So why are some people more creative than others?
There is one common factor of creativity in every area of life – creativity only comes once you have learned the practical communication skills of your profession or art form.
Wherever you find a creative person, you will find a person who has first spent the time practicing (at least) the basics of their craft. I believe this is the reason many people never get to experience the joy of creating – because it takes time to learn the skill that will unleash your creativity and persistence is in short supply.
Ever started something and felt like you gave up a bit too easily? That’s your creativity itching to get out and express itself.
Creativity can manifest itself, in other words appear to the outside world, in many forms. But we’re all born with the 2 tools to create – our minds and our bodies.
Creation always starts with a thought, which we communicate with our bodies using a skill we learned.
We all have thoughts, we all have bodies, it’s only learning a skill that stands in the way of your own creativity.
To find your creativity, just follow a single idea when it comes with a feeling that compels you to do something. Then learn the skill to make it real.
Once you experience the thrill of creating and the joy in others who you share it with, you might find it becomes an addiction.
John