Secret of the Millionaire Mind: Wealth File #9 Rich People are Bigger than Their Problems

This is a chapter-by-chapter summary of a book by T. Harv Eker’s Secret of the Millionaire Mind: Mastering the Inner Game of Wealth (2005) series. One chapter, one article. Read this summary, buy the book. Enjoy!

Wealth File #9:

Rich People are Bigger than Their Problems.

Poor People* are Smaller than Their Problems.

The size of the problem is never the issue, what matters is the size of you! Harv Eker said, “If you have a big problem in your life, all that means is that you are being a small person!” Either you are whining about the problem or you are working on the solution. This is straight to the point: It’s all about you! Whatever happens in your life, be it good or bad, interesting or boring, tough or easy, what matters is how you get affected by it. What matters is you! There are no problems, there are only situations. We then make them a problem. Respectively, some people make it a problem, others don’t even get affected or realize it. How can that be?

Good question, right? How can it be that the exact same situation is a problem for one but not for another? It depends on the person, you may say – and you’re right. It depends on you. I remember when I went to work from KL Central to Times Square. Monorail KL would take people every five minutes or so. At times, these trains were crazily crowded (especially on weekends). You see in the faces of people how they felt about the situation. And interestingly, some people got negatively affected by the crowded train EVERY SINGLE DAY. Why? Are you that small of a person that a crowded train is a problem for you? And even if it is (e.g. due to claustrophobia, fear of being in closed/crowded places), you do have other options such as go earlier, go by bus or bike, use a taxi or Grab, or walk…

Do you see my point? You can either whine about the situation (make it a problem) or work on the solution. Eker says it over and over again, “What matters is the size of you.” The more you work on yourself, the fewer the problems there will be – you’ll be bigger than any problem. So, don’t be the person whining about the crowded train… that’s NOT a problem! “It’s not what happens to you,” said the wise Epictetus, “but how you react to it that matters.” Say this to yourself…

[*I need to note that the Harv Eker makes it clear in this book that he does not mean to degrade poor people. He does not think that rich people are better than poor or middle-class people. They’re just richer.]

I Have A Millionaire Mind!

The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life (Conclusion)

If you like to read all the summaries from Mark Manson’s The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life (2016), click HERE

The key to becoming a happier person right now is to build a better sets of values. When your values are realistic, constructive and completely under your own control, you will be able to lead a life filled with healthy challenges.

If you really want to gain the knowledge from this book, and apply it in real life. Then here’s a checklist for actions to take:

Sit Down Right Now and Make An Honest List of the Values and measuring systems you use to evaluate your life. Then go through the list and using Manson’s criteria, determine which are good and had values. Brainstorm how to change the bad values into good ones.

Take An Honest Look at How Your Thought Measure Up with Your Actions. Are you deluding yourself into thinking that you are extraordinary and exceptional when in reality you have not done anything?

Next Time You Run Up Against A Problem You Are Struggling to Solve, Don’t Just Sit There, Do Something – anything. Let your action lead to inspiration and motivation rather than waiting around for inspiration to strike.

Not Giving A F*ck!

How to Nurture Your Child to Be Creative #7 Make Them Feel Safe

The emotional stability of the world we create for children will have a huge effect on how creative they are. Long-standing research reveals children need emotional stability before they begin to express themselves.

In his classic work, psychologist Abraham Maslow set out what is termed as a Hierarchy of Needs. His theory is generally illustrated as a pyramid, setting out the different kinds of needs people must meet before they can move up to the next level. At the very bottom, we must meet our physical needs – to be warm, fed and safe. Moving up the pyramid, we then have to meet our basic psychological needs – to be loved, and have a sense of belonging and to feel confident. Only when all of these needs are met, according to Maslow, can we begin to be creative, spontaneous and solve problems.

Making sure children are warm, fed, safe and loved is something that most parents do as a matter of course. But by doing these things, and by paying careful attention to your child when they seem anxious and doing your best to reassure them that they are safe and protected, you are instinctively playing a huge part in nurturing their creativity!

Lord, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

Is Your Child Naturally Creative? Nine Sure Signs that They Are

I believe that creative talents are due to nature (gift) and nurture (learn) at the same time. It is a blend of the two. But some children seem to be outstandingly creative from a very young age. Victoria Wilson in her book Boost Your Child’s Creativity (The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc; 2009) listed nine signs that your child may be creatively gifted or naturally creative:

1)    They’re Often Lost in Daydreams. A vivid imagination, and a love of fantasizing and being playful with thoughts is a strong sign of a creative child.

2)    They Connect Seemingly Random Objects and Ideas in Their Fantasy Play. Of course most children love imaginary play, but a key thing to look out for is if your child connects seemingly random objects or ideas into their play or stories. For example, they are an alien descending to sample the tomato soup on planet Earth, or their pretend horse loves chatting to the flowers on his mobile phone. This ability to make unusual connections is a key trait of very creative children.

3)    They Ask Lots of Unusual Questions. Most children go through a phase of asking ‘Why?’ to everything. But if your child is always asking questions and especially if he or she comes up with very strange, seemingly silly questions such as, ‘What would happen if the sun came back up at night-time?’ or ‘Why don’t apples grow from our fingers?’ it is a strong sign they are very creative. What they are also demonstrating is the ability to rearrange elements of thought to create new ideas and the inclination to question things others take for granted.

4)    They’re Often the Odd One Out; They Don’t Dress or Act the Same Way Others Do. It’s natural for children to want to be accepted by their classmates and friends, but some children will deliberately choose to be the odd one out no matter how much pressure there is to fit in. Often this is simply because they think differently to others, and thinking differently is thinking originally.

5)    They’re Resourceful and Good at Solving Problems. Creative children are, by definition, good problem solvers because they are flexible in the way they think and adapt quickly to different situations. Also, by definition, children who are creative will have lots of ideas and potential solutions to problems.

6)    They Love Playing Alone and Can Entertain Themselves for Long Periods of Time. Of course, children need some organized activities, and there’s even some evidence that a little carefully selected TV can stimulate learning and ideas. But a child who’s naturally able to come up with ideas is usually able to find plenty to occupy him or herself. In fact, it is very hard for children who are shuttled from one arranged activity to another, or put in front of the TV for long periods every day, to be creative.

7)    They’re Often So Absorbed in What They’re Doing, They Don’t Even Hear You. Being utterly absorbed in creative play or activities is to be in what famous psychologist Abraham Maslow labelled a ‘peek experience.’ This is the ability to ‘become lost in the present.’ It’s an important ability, particularly for young children who need constant supervision, because it allows them to free themselves from interaction and interruptions by others, while remaining in their presence, so they can really focus on their own thoughts, feelings and experiences. This is essential for creativity, because it allows children to form individual and original thoughts.

8)    They’re Rebellious. Of course, sometimes this is simply bad behaviour, but the instinct to think for themselves and to be individuals will drive creative children to question parents, teachers and books. It is down to you and your innate knowledge of your own child to determine whether a demand to wear a ballerina costume to bed is an act of creative expression, or a ploy to put off bedtime…

9)    They’re Often Both Extroverts and Introverts. Psychologists have found that very creative people can often be very outgoing and very shy at different times, whereas most of the population are either one or the other.

Lord, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

Leonardo da Vinci's Unquenchable Curiosity and Acute Observations

Helen Gardner, in her book Art through the Ages (1970) writes of Leonardo da Vinci’s “unquenchable curiosity,” and we see this reflected in the 13,000 pages of his famous journals, in which he made a daily record – in notes, drawings, and scientific diagrams – of his observations and studies. These notebooks cover a wide range of interests and phenomena, from human anatomy and facial expressions to animals, birds, plants, rocks, water, chemistry, optics, painting, astronomy, architecture and engineering.

Biographer Daniel Arassa recounts just how far da Vinci would go to try to understand everything around him. On one occasion, the great man coated the wings of the fly with honey to find out if this would change the sound of its buzzing noise in flight. Observing that the note produced by the fly was lower than usual, he attributed this to the fact that the ballasted wings were beating the air less rapidly than before. Thus, da Vinci concluded that the pitch of a musical note is connected with the speed of the percussive movement of the air.

Da Vinci’s acute observations led him to think about and try to solve problems that hadn’t been seriously considered before. Nobody, for example, was asking for a parachute, a car, a submarine, a hang glider, a diving suit, a helicopter, a calculator, or floating shoes and stocks for walking on water, but Leonardo da Vinci invented, or at least conceptualized, these things.

He also came up with military innovations like the machine gun, the armoured tank, the finned mortar shell, a giant crossbow, a triple-barrel cannon, and a mobile bridge. He sketched mechanical breakthroughs such as a steam engine, a hydraulic pump, a reversible crank mechanism, a flywheel system, ball bearings, a hoisting machine, a more accurate clock, an automated bobbin winder, a lens-grinding machine, and a machine for testing the tensile strength of wire. He designed the world’s first canal lock system, a method for excavating tunnels through mountains, a 720-foot (220 m) single-span bridge, a new kind of musical instrument, a double hull for ships, an industrial use for solar power, and a fully functional robot (which he built and displayed for his patron, Ludovico Sforza, at a celebration in Milan in 1495).

“Da Vinci,” writes Rowan Gibson, “was able to spot unmet needs and innovation opportunities because he was vastly more observant and more engaged with his environment than others. He was focusing his attention on issues and frustrations that most people simply ignored.”

[Quoted from The 4 Lenses of Innovation (2015) by Rowan Gibson. Title mine]

                                                                                                                    

Lord, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

Change Your Life: Think and Act Purposefully

“Rumination inevitably backfires. It merely compounds our misery.

It’s a heroic attempt to solve a problem that it is just not capable of solving”

(Mark Williams)

We often ruminate about a problem we face, obsessively playing and replaying the scenario in our mind. We tend to believe that rumination will help us overcome discomfort or unhappiness, but in fact replaying the scenario over and over in our mind usually makes things worse. In the words of psychologist Mark Williams and his colleagues, “Rumination is part of the problem, not part of the solution.” On the other hand, purposeful thinking – whether through writing in a journal or verbalizing our thoughts – is a much better way of dealing with psychological and emotional challenges. Purposeful action – actually doing something that could make us feel better – is a lot more helpful than allowing chaotic and usually very negative thinking to wreak havoc on our emotions.

Do this: Instead of focusing on the helplessness of your situation, which gets you nowhere, you could choose to engage in an activity that will help you feel better as well as perform better. Begin by creating a personal blog or/and writing your thoughts and feelings about the situation. Writing will help you feel better, and the clarity you reach will help you commit to taking concrete steps toward meeting the challenges you face today.

Don’t obsessively replay a scenario,

Think and act purposefully.

Lord, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

 References:

1. Choose the Life You Want: 101 Ways to Create You Own Road to Happiness by Tal Ben-Shahar, PhD (New York: The Experiment, 2012)

2. The Mindful Way Through Depression: Feeling Yourself from Chronic Unhappiness by J.M.G. Williams (New York: The Guilford Press, 2007).

Creative Mind: The Creative Environment

Just as any plant needs a specific setting in which to strive, your mind needs a nurturing environment in which to maximize its creative abilities. The right creative environment will vary from person to person. Use these ideas to find yours:

Choose the best atmosphere. T.M. Amabile says that people are more creative and imaginative when they spend time around other creative folk. Hang out with people whose thinking inspires you. Find locations that energize you (Starbuck? Mine is State Library, surrounded by books already make me think smart and creatively). Play music that puts you in your desired mental state (Mine is Jason Mraz’s songs!). Paint your study walls your favourite colour. Experiment to find the atmosphere that most seems to free your mind.  

Give yourself time to “sit” with a question. Rushing can stifle your creative ability. When you allow time for thought to percolate, or you take breaks when figuring out a problem, you may increase your creative output. Change your environment, get some exercise, sleep; talk with a friend, work on something else. Some of the best ideas pop up when you have given your brain permission to go “off the job” for a while.

Let yourself play. People often hit upon their most creative ideas when they are exercising or just relaxing. Often when your mind switches into play mode, it can more freely generate new thoughts. Mental play can allow you to find a brilliant discovery in what seems like a crazy idea. For example, the idea for Velcro^TM came when an inventor examined how a burr sticks to clothing.

Write it down. Many people think of ideas while exercising, driving, or in the shower, upon walking, or even while dreaming. When an idea occurs – a solution to a problem or a new thought – write it down as soon as possible. To make sure your creative environment includes a way to write ideas, try keeping a pen and paper by your bed, your smartphone in your pocket (Do we need a reminder?), a marker attached to your notebook, or a notepad and pen in your car. Try it, make it a habit!

Lord, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

References and Suggested Readings:

1. Roger von Oech, A Whack on the Side of the Head (1998)

2. J.R. Hayes, Cognitive Psychology: Thinking and Creating (1978)

3. T.M. Amabile, The Social Psychology of Creativity (1983)

Story of Idea #3: Soichiro Honda Never Lack of Resource

“Innovation creates a resource. There is no such thing as a ‘resource’ until man finds a use for something in nature and endows it with economic value. Until then, every plant is a weed and every mineral just another rock” (Peter Drucker)

Soichiro Honda was always fascinated by things mechanical. However, he was not the academic type. At 28, he joined a technical high school to pick up the theories in engineering needed to help him is his endeavours. Nonetheless, he chose only to attend the classes that he wanted to. His principal was not too amused about that and promptly dismissed him. That did not discourage him. Instead, it fired him up and he succeeded in manufacturing sound and functional devices.

Immediately after the World War II, Japan was immobilized by a severe fuel shortage. Honda could see that there was no point in driving cars. He solved the problem by attaching a motor to a bicycle. Using a small gasoline engine that had been used for electrical generators during the war, he created the world’s first motorcycle, which is today the ubiquitous mode of transportation in the less developed nations.

Because of the governmental restrictions on gasoline and the manufacture of gasoline-using machines, Honda substituted pine resin, which he recalled had been used a temporary aircraft fuel towards the end of World War II, for gasoline. Since then, Honda had never looked back.

He turned a temporary problem into a long-term global demand. In fact, he was so passionate about the motorbikes that he created the Dream, a sleek and powerful motorcycle with a four-cycle engine. As he said later: “We do not make something because the demand is there. With our technology, we can create demand; we can create the market. Supply creates its own demand.” The name ‘Honda’ is now seen not only on motorcycles but also on cars and other vehicles. It is a name that spells quality.

Reference: I Can Cre8! (Prentice Hall, 2001) by Peter Leong. Page 15-16

Lord, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

Nurture Creativity: Reverse Your Thinking

“Reversals destabilize your conventional thinking patterns

and frees information to come together in provocative new ways”

(Michael Michalko)

I have a love-hate memories when I think of Singapore (Whatever!) It is an interesting place, of course. There they have the world first nocturnal zoo and is one of the most popular tourist attractions. It is called the Night Safari. What amazing about this zoo is that, ‘unlike traditional nocturnal houses, which reverse the day-night cycle of animals so they will be active by day, the Night Safari is an entire open-air zoo set in a humid tropical forest that is only open at night.’* The concept of a nocturnal park in Singapore was suggested in the 1980s by the former executive chairman of the Singapore Zoo, Dr Ong Swee Law. Instead of having a day zoo, they reversed the situation to having a night safari. If you haven’t been there, I encourage you to experience it yourself.

Reverse thinking. It is looking at your problem and reframes it by reversing the order of the problem in order to view it from a completely different angle. Creative people sometime come up with great ideas by reversing the problem by reversing their thinking about that problem. For example, a student came to me one day and ask if we can get more helpers during the camp because he said that based on the program we have a shortage of manpower. Instead of looking for more helpers, and obviously we had not enough people, I reversed his thinking and asked him, “Can we decrease some of the program activities instead?” By doing that we managed to organize the camp with no unnecessary extra helpers, lower budget and relaxing-well-planned program.

Marelisa Fabrega, lawyer and entrepreneur, writes, “Start at the end; think of what you don’t want; flip it on its head… these are all examples of reverse thinking. Now think of a problem that you’re having or an obstacle that you’re facing, and apply reverse thinking. You might be surprised by the ideas you come up with.” Consider other possible areas in which reverse thinking are prove useful. Just read how this statement by John F. Kennedy can impact our lives: “Ask not what the nation can do for you but ask what you can do for the nation.” Reverse thinking. Powerful, isn’t it? Now let’s be honest, you cannot practise reverse thinking all the time but there will be opportunities to do so. “Reversing the way you look at things encourages you to consider things that may not be considered at all,” said Michael Michalko in his book Cracking Creativity. “Reversals break your existing patterns of thought and provoke new ones. You take things as they are and then turn them around, inside out, upside down, and back to front to see what happens.”

Do you want to nurture and be more creative? Think in reserve.

God, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

Nurture Creativity: Steve Jobs said "Creativity is Just Connecting Things"

Picture: Credits to Hugh MacLeod & Vitor Bellote  

“You cannot force creativity to happen—every creative person can attest to that.

But the essence of creativity is making connections and solving puzzles”

(Nancy C. Andreasen, Neuroscientist)

Creativity is connecting things. In other word, making connections where none existed before is what creativity is all about. The world is our field. Thus, there are practically unlimited possible connections that can be made. We are making connections all the time as part of our learning process. For example, a lot of things happen when I’m doing one thing and I’m not thinking about what my mind is doing. I’m either watching movie, I’m reading a book, eating my lunch and then – I make a connection. It may have nothing to do with what I am doing, but somehow or other I see something or hear something or do something, and it pops that connection together. People use to say, millions saw the apple fall, but Newton asked, ‘why?’

“Creativity is just connecting things,” Steve Jobs, late CEO of Apple told Wired magazine. “When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while. That’s because they were able to connect experiences they’ve had and synthesize new things. And the reason they were able to do that was that they’ve had more experiences or they have thought more about their experiences than other people… Unfortunately, that’s too rare a commodity. A lot of people in our industry haven’t had very diverse experiences. So they don’t have enough dots to connect, and they end up with very linear solutions without a broad perspective on the problem.”

Jobs told a story when he took calligraphy in college, a course with no practical applications to his life then. But after he came back later he used his knowledge and skills to added Macintoch, the first computer with beautiful typeface, fonts, and calligraphy. The dots were connected. Creativity is connecting things. Can be few years from now, can be months from now, can be in a minute later. So how to connect the dots? Here are my suggestions (at least, these are the things that I do myself):

§  Carry a notebook and keep track of everything – especially in the toilet (sometime I just write ideas on tissue!)

§  Read to add more knowledge. Logically, the more knowledge you have, the more connection you can make.

§  Play or try to experience more things in life. Most of the time, connections just happen when you least expected it.

§  Review the last sermons or scratch or whatever notes you had wrote before. Recalling and reminding are the best way to spark creative connections.

§  Try observation skill. Just look around you and try to make connections between things which may show similarity or maybe totally unrelated.

Don’t just stare the ceiling, make connections.

Don’t just read and play, make connections.

Don’t just eat and sleeping, make connections.

Maybe just relax, and there is a connection!

God, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

Nurture Creativity: Believe that You're Spider-Man

Spider-Man, the creation of writer Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko was an idea that almost didn’t happen. At first, Marvel Comics, the publisher did not think that readers would like or be able to relate to a superhero that was a spider (I wonder, how about Ant-Man?) But after almost 50 years now, Spider-Man has become one of the most famous and popular superheroes ever.

I re-watched Spider-Man movies all over again. How Peter Parker becomes Spider-Man is quite simple. Peter Parker, a nerdy high school student who wears thick glasses, loves reading, enjoy studying and is very unpopular and low profile. While attending a school field trip to a science exhibition on radiation, Peter is bitten on the hand (other version, on the neck) by an irradiated spider. Then, Peter begins to feel sick and soon starts to develop spider-like abilities. These include ability to stick to things, great strength, very fast and agile, and some versions adds night vision and ability to make spider webs (or through a machine he creates). The most unique of all is his – spider sense. Spider-Man the superhero is born.

What I like about Spider-Man a.k.a. Peter Parker is that he is unique among all superheroes. He is a teenager with all the issues that teenagers face (so it is with his adulthood). He is not really a tough hero. He shows a wide range of emotions that I can really identify with such as vulnerable, makes mistakes, doesn’t always have perfect relationships with women or others, is not always trusted by society and is not very comfortable in life generally. He is also alone much of the time than many other superheroes. In fact, Spider-Man doesn’t have sidekicks like most heroes. He often talking to himself. Spider-Man is so appealing to me because he is among the most human of the superheroes. Spider-Man, my favourite hero!

Now, what Spider-Man have to do with being creative? Simple: Spider-Man is you and me. We might not have great strength, speed and agility but we have minds that can produce great ideas. We might not have night vision but we can dream dreams, fill the world with imagination and casting visions for the future. We might not have the ability to make spider webs but we can make idea happened. Believe that you’re creative. God have provide you with these abilities, use it for good and responsively. Uncle Ben before he die says this to Peter Parker: “With great power there must also come great responsibility.” We are not superheroes but we’re special. We’re creative. Isn’t that amazing? Amazing Spider-Man are human being like us after all. Failures, mistakes and rejections may come your way but if you believe that you’re creative, you can make a difference like heroes. Use your spider sense, produce ideas and take actions.

You’re creative. “Everyone is born creative,” write Hugh MacLeod, “Everyone is given a box of crayons in kindergarten. Then when you hit puberty they take the crayons away and replace them with dry, uninspiring books on algebra, history, etc. Being suddenly hit years later with the 'creative bug' is just a wee voice telling you, 'I'd like my crayons back, please.”

Spider-Man is born

You’re born to be creative

Lord, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

Barriers to Creativity #8: "Don't be Foolish"

This picture of Richard Branson play as AirAsia waitress really make me laugh!

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 #8: “Don’t Be Foolish”

Don’t be afraid to appear foolish. Granted that all of us are subject to group pressures but in creative situations we cannot simply follow the majority, for the majority is not always right. Furthermore new ideas are not formed in conforming environments. When in a group, people tend to get the approval of others rather than trying to come up with creative solutions or ideas. When everyone think alike, no one is doing much thinking. All we need to do is to agree.

To be creative we need to take a ‘poke’ at rules, regulations and conventions that keep us thinking the same old stuff. It will get us out of the rut and put our thinking to finding better solutions and ideas. If Christopher Columbus really believed that the world is flat, he would not have dared to attempt to sailing around the earth.

Occasionally play the fool and see what crazy ideas you may come up with. The crazy ideas, my friend, may prove to be winners!

           

Play the fool sometimes.

Lord, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

Barriers of Creativity #7: "Avoid Ambiguity"

Artistic ambiguous illusion design

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 #7: “Avoid Ambiguity”

Most of us do not like ambiguous (unclear or lack of clarity) situations. They are confusing and can cause communication problems. As a result we learn to avoid ambiguity (Personally, I am like that). This is a good rule to get your message clearly across. There are instances however, when ambiguity can be a powerful stimulus to imagination.

When in the creative process, a little ambiguity can provoke us into asking questions that will lead us to new ideas. We have to learn to look at things ambiguously. We ask questions such as “What does this mean?” and “How else can this be interpreted?” For example, the question, what is half of 8? The answer is of course 4. But if we assume the question is ambiguous, we will look for other answers such as 3 (if you slice vertically) or 0 (if you slice horizontally) depending on how we define “half.”

To be more creative we have to look for ambiguity in the world around us. I see a brick as a hammer and a ballpoint pen as a hole puncher when I need these things and there are none around.

Think ambiguously.

Lord, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

Barriers to Creativity #2: "That's Not Logical"

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 #2: “That’s Not Logical”

            Logic commands that things must be consistent and non-contradictory. While this principle must be followed faithfully in science and certain fields, in creative thinking situations, this rule need not necessarily apply. Imagination is required in problem-solving. Overemphasis on logical thinking inhibits and stagnant our thinking. If everything must be practical and correct, we leave no room for ambiguity and imagination. Furthermore we also do not give room to intuitive hunches. Intuition may have no apparent logical reason but they do help in many problem-solving situations. Sometimes we have to listen to our sixth sense or gut feelings. Logic is good when we are evaluating ideas but during stage of searching for ideas it short circuits the creative process.

Do not depend on logic alone.

Lord, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)