Common Blocks to Creativity #3: Resource Myopia

“Resource myopia is common among pragmatic,

no-nonsense realists who ‘see things as they are.’

Innovation thrives on seeing things as they might be” (David P. Campbell)

Myopia means “the quality of being short-sighted” and “lack of foresight or intellectual insight.” Resource myopia, thus in this context, mean, the inability to see the resources at our disposal. It is a common block to creativity! We are often unaware of our own strengths. The resources at our disposal are usually much larger than we imagine. Consider a man like Nelson Mandela. He had no formal authority nor, to begin with, an exceptional gifts. But by his pen, by his speech, by his example, and by his ability to bring together dedicated men and women, he was able to move mountains, so to speak.

The ability to perceive one’s strengths and weaknesses accurately and the awareness of the resources in one’s environment are indispensable for overcoming resource myopia. Curiosity about the situation one find oneself in, the habit of asking around who has what resources and where, “the managerial trait of being able to draw readily on the resources of others,” are worth cultivating to get rid of this block.

Resource myopia gives rise to a number of other disabilities that also hinder creativity. They chief of these are fatalism, excessive dependence, “learned helplessness,” and inferiority complex. These are dangerous! All these disabilities arise because resource myopia makes us poor problem-solvers. Get rid of resource myopia, immediately!

Lord, Give Us Today Our Daily Idea(s)

References:

1.      Lifelong Creativity: An Unending Quest by Pradip N. Khandwalla (Tata McGraw-Hill Publishing Company Limited, 2004).

2.      Take the Road to Creativity and Get Off Your Dead End by David P. Champbell (Center for Creative Leadership, 1977)