Nurture Creativity: "A" for Passion, "E" for Boring

“Passion drives creativity. Fuel it, protect it, tend it, grow it.

Manage it as the renewable resource it is”

(Marty Neumeier, The 46 Rules of Genius)

Passion is everything. Creativity that work doesn’t happen without it. Passion plays an important role in creative pursuits. At first, passion sparks our interest and a relentless desire to focus and learn. During the tough times and as idea development become harder, passion keeps us going. Yo-Yo Ma, a French and American cellist, said, “Passion is one great force that unleashes creativity, because if you're passionate about something, then you're more willing to take risks.” Many of the greatest ideas are fuelled by passion. For example, Google is fuelled by passion for information, Virgin is passionate about customer service, and Apple is for design.

When I was a kid, I have many interests and passions. I love drawing, playing video games, create my own toys, making Batman costume and gadgets (and tested it on my sidekick-childhood friend), watching Ultraman, and almost obsessive of becoming a Superman. My childhood passions then change as I walk into adulthood and I find new things to be passionate about. But as I get older, I become focused on my passions such as teaching, reading, writing, theology and creativity. All of these becomes key part of my life and actually almost defines who I am. If you want me to fall asleep while you’re talking, talk about car and clothes. But if you want to hear my sense of excitement and energy, talk about books and theology.

Now, everyone’s passion is different, I know. But let me ask: What is your passion in life? You must dig deep to identify your true passion. Remember, passion drive creativity. “Passion makes the world go around,” wrote Henri-Frédéric Amiel, “It is the juice that drives creativity. When you care enough to put your heart into your work, passion will keep you going through thick and thin.” Do what you love. The moment you find your passion can be one of the most fulfilling moment in your life. Doing what you love will lead you to success and sustain you when you fail. Ask yourself, ‘What makes your heart sing?’ Follow your heart.

When I think again about my first sentence above, I changed my mind.

Passion is not everything.

But then again, without passion life is boring.

God, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

Nurture Creativity: Purpose Stimulate Breakthrough Idea

“A noble purpose inspires sacrifice, stimulates innovation and encourages perseverance”

(Gary Hamel)

I’m fascinated by the life of Thomas Edison. Anybody who can give the world the electric light, the microphone, the storage battery, the phonograph and a thousand other inventions, is worth studying. Historians say he was driven by one word: PURPOSE. Not pleasure, not popularity, not even personal gain, but – PURPOSE. Purpose stimulates breakthrough idea.

Here are some of the recorded principles by which he lived:

1)    Work to obtain all the knowledge you can about what you want to achieve,

2)    Fix your mind on your purpose. Persist! Seek! Use all knowledge you can accumulate or learn from others,

3)    Keep on searching no matter how many times you meet with disappointment,

4)    Refuse to be influenced by the fact that someone else tried the same thing and failed,

5)    Keep yourself sold on the idea that a solution to the problem exists somewhere, and that you’ll find it.

Then he added: “The trouble with most people is, they quit before they ever start.” Anyone can come out with idea, brilliant idea, but without purpose the motivation even to start will not make idea into a reality. Quitting is idea-destructor. Purpose, “fix your mind on your purpose” is a great idea-stimulator. Because of the vision and purpose that God puts in Nehemiah’s heart, he can rebuild the city wall. Nehemiah (of the Bible) didn’t conquer through brilliance (remember, most creative people in the history are school dropouts), he conquered through persistence, perseverance – and yes, prayer. He never quit. He have a purpose. In spite of the criticism, in spite of the pressure, he refuse to give up – that’s why he rebuilt Jerusalem. Purpose stimulate breakthrough idea.

What inspires you? What could you do to make this world a better place? Could you improve your local community in some way that contributes to the greater wellbeing and safety of its residents? Could you invent something or come out with ideas that will improve people lives and create awareness in your campus, church or community? Can you come up with a creative breakthrough that will challenge your potential and develop your personal skills? Will you use your God given mind and knowledge to come up with a way to raise funds for your favourite charities and causes?

What is your purpose?

Purpose stimulate breakthrough idea

Lord, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

Characteristics of Creative Person

Conan O’Brien expresses himself for Fast Company’s Most Creative People issue (June 2011). 

This is funny!

Creative people are idealistic, energetic, confident, independent, thorough, adventurous, child-like, possesses a sense of humour, are perseverance and spontaneous and are risk-takers. Do you possess any one (or more) of these characteristic? If you do, then you are a creative person.

Creative people are independent thinkers. They can work by themselves and are not afraid of what people may say. They transcend accepted patterns of thinking. They do not conform to rules and regulations that restrict their freedom to think and act. They do not follow the crowd. People who are creative are full of energy. They possess a certain characteristic zest and a habit for spontaneous action. Creativity requires energy. Energetic people have the power and stamina to create new ideas, new things and new journeys.

Creative people are more likely to engage in adventurous and stimulating acts such as kayaking, mountain climbing, going places in rural areas or working overseas. They trod the unbeaten path. They have a strong curiosity and urge to understand the world around them and to try almost everything. Hence their wide interests and unusual hobbies. A sense of self-confidence is central to creativity. One cannot create if one is not confident of one’s abilities and capabilities. Self-confidence is not only inborn but it may also be developed through experience and exercise.

People who are creative are also playful and child-like. They have no prejudices and are not tainted by adult notions of what is proper and not proper. They are still full of wonder and are not afraid of criticism and comment. They are not bound by convention. Creative people are non-conformists to some extent. A sense of humour is another attribute of creative people. Humour may lead to great discoveries, invention and artistic creation. A fanciful, playful and excitable state of mind is an important feature of creative thinking and creative thinkers. Developing the ability to see the humorous side of life is a prerequisite to creativity.

A strong sense of perseverance, persistence and unwillingness to give up is another characteristic of creative people. They do not give up so easily or so readily. They will try again and again. Each failure is viewed as a learning experience. Creative people also risk-takers. Risk is everywhere. We take risk while driving to work, while playing games and when giving an opinion. If we do not try out new ideas and take risk, how do we know it will work or not? The greatest failure is not to attempt a new idea at all. The world’s greatest inventors, discoverers and pioneers are all risk-takers. Because they have independent mind and high-confidence in themselves, they are more willing to take creative risk than the average person. They dare to differ, to make changes and to deviate from the usual.

Are the characteristics enumerated above innate or are they acquired? The answer is – both. We are born with creative characteristics and we can learn to be creative too. Creative abilities exist in varying degrees in everyone of us. It is a matter of getting these abilities to surface and make them work for you. Creativity is within every one of us. It not the exclusive possession of a select few*.

Lord, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

*These characteristic are taken from Leo Ann Mean’s On Creativity: Awaken the Creative Mind (Chapter 2: Creative Person). Use and modified without permission. That’s what creative people do.

Barriers of Creativity #4: "Be Practical"

Creativity, like common sense, is supposed to be common. Creativity is natural and spontaneous. Yet it is not exhibited as frequently as it should. Experts believe that there are several reasons for this. These reasons are called ‘Barriers to Creativity’. ‘Barriers’ are the thing that stop us from thinking creatively and the reason that make us not as creative as we should be.

Barrier #4: “Be Practical”

            Remember when you suggest something and someone says it’s impractical? Kills your enthusiasm doesn’t it? Unlike any other God’s creations, human beings possess imagination. Our thinking is not limited to the real and present. We can imagine – and imagination is the first step in creative thinking.

            But the problem here is too many people always think of the practicality of things. “Your ideas”, they say, “must be practical.” And practical is what they know until then. We haven’t even tried the idea yet to see whether it works and it is already shot down. Frustrating. But creative people are perseverance and stubborn. They do not give up easily. For them, there is a place for practicality and there is a place for possibility. Remember Mr. Thomas E. Edison? He failed almost a thousand times before he finally invented the incandescent light bulb that evolves into the many type of lights that we’re using now.    

Cultivate your imagination.

Lord, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

Story of Idea #3: From Correcting Mistakes to Liquid Paper

“Anything that increases the stress on a system leads to a jump to a higher level of being.

Instead of breaking down physically, you jump through a creative Eurika!

Experience into a higher state of mind.” (Ilya Prigogine)

In the 1950s when the electric typewriter was first introduced to the market, a kind-hearted boss bought one for his secretary. The new electric typewriter fascinated Bette Nesmith Graham, who had to struggle with a mechanical model all along, as it would save her from having sore fingers from pounding the keys.

Bette’s joy was short-lived. Being unfamiliar with the soft-touched keys, she made mistake after mistake until her waste-paper basket was full of incorrectly typed letters. She was unable to finish a single letter at the end of the day.

Bette thought hard on ways to overcome the problem but no solutions came. Finally she gave up and switched her thoughts to the reaction of the boss. He had invested a lot on the new typewriter and would be very disappointed if she was unable to work more efficiently. She could even lose her job.

In the midst of her sad thoughts, an idea suddenly flashed into her mind. She remembered that in her art training she had learned to paint over mistakes with a special paint called Gesso. Eureka! That’s it!

Bette rushed home to find a tin of white paint and used her small paintbrush to paint over her mistakes. Thus the corrector fluid, Liquid Paper was born. In 1972, she sold the company to the Gillette Corporation for US$50 million!

Lord, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

Quote from Dr. Yew Kam Keong’s You Are Creative: Let Your Creativity Bloom! 3^rd Edition (Petaling Jaya: Advance Quest Sdn. Bhd., 2007) pg. 18