Creativity Is Not As Creative As We Think

Fireworks. Multicolored lights. Human voices engaging in complex harmonization.  All of these experiences feel magical as we immerse ourselves in the immediate.  The combination of dozens of ordinary things creates an extraordinary experience. 

However, their assembly is no mere accident.  The architect of the masterpiece must carefully piece together the puzzle that reveals the overall picture to the audience.  Sequencing the pieces is a matter of taste and preference to deliver a one-of-a-kind experience. 

Creativity is the magic that keeps us mentally young and in wonder.  Even the most hardened people open up to the whims of creativity.  Whether younger or older, male or female, left-brained or right-brained, creativity keeps us on our toes in anticipation of new experiences never imagined. 

Our imagination expands through each application and experience of creativity.  Here are some examples: 

• A vibrant, textured wall full of color communicates excitement and makes us more alert.   

• A symphony with 100 musicians under a single baton paints an emotional audio message, harnessing every note played.   

• A stage full of choreographed dancers builds suspense through the increasing intensity of coordinated individual effort. 

In each situation, individual contributions that otherwise appear random unite harmoniously to captivate the audience. Due to the beauty and elegance of a high level of orchestration, our senses kick into overdrive while we take everything in. The improbable outcome appears too good to be true, but we love it anyway. 

However, creativity is not reserved solely for those with guitars, cameras, and paintbrushes. Everything around us, from the roads we drive on to the buildings we occupy, is the result of creativity to some degree. 

Creativity Is Everywhere 

Until recently, most people believed that creativity was reserved for the privileged few who were blessed with immeasurable gifts and talents. These days, thanks to the abundance of information and training available to everyone, these myths have been dissolving, allowing more people into these creative realms.

However, despite the resources that showcase countless facets of creativity, many old-school views hold strong and fail to acknowledge the beauty of creativity beyond the arts. 

While art is an abstract application of creativity that tugs on our hearts, invention is a more practical counterpart.  Applying scientific principles to engineer new products requires creative and critical thinking, whether creating a new product or improving upon an existing iteration. 

Nowadays, everyone with a laptop can create their own software thanks to the plethora of resources that teach aspiring developers to code. 

In social encounters, creativity is the cornerstone ingredient that keeps relationships fresh.  Couples who go on adventures use creativity to plan a day out or be spontaneous with each other.  Friends use creativity to crack jokes at each other to see who can get the upper hand — all in the name of fun and laughter. 

Sports is another application of practical creativity.  Athletes use creative tactics to adapt to rapidly changing situations.  Coaches communicate creative messages to fire up the players and develop new plays to catch the opposing team by surprise.  Fans muster new chants to spice up the games they watch. 

Businesses are not exempt from creativity, no matter their industry. Each must deliver market-ready products and services that require developing a competitive advantage. They often draw their ideas from their competition, customers, and in-house teams that bring internal and external experience. Without creativity, most businesses would become forgotten relics, and customers and competitors would carry on without them. 

Without a doubt, creativity is in everything listed above and beyond.  However, creativity isn’t just a spontaneous occurrence.  Much like our own muscles, creativity is a mental muscle that can be built, trained, and harnessed.  The more we use it, the better.  If we forget it, we lose it. 

Clever Borrowing & Combinations 

When we think of creativity, it’s easy to fall for the misconception that only masters of their craft can use it, but this is far from the truth. There is a correlation between mastery and creativity, but we do not need to wait until we are complete masters to become creative. 

What is the best way to become creative? Get started. 

At first, we will have limited options, but being comfortable and well-versed with a few options is the key to becoming more confident in using our creativity.  As we master our craft to expand our capacities, it becomes natural to implement more relevant creative solutions to our problems. 

Before we can discuss creativity more, we need to dispel a myth that has plagued societal perception for centuries and correct it:   

Creativity is seldom abstract and pure.   

We’ve all envisioned a creative who generates a grand idea from sitting in a room and staring at the wall.  Whether it happens in minutes or days, they seem to have an aha! moment that changes the game as if they uncovered a missing puzzle piece.  However, creativity does not exist in a vacuum. 

Instead, most creativity comes from connecting the dots differently by trying new combinations of existing things.  That’s mostly what it comes down to — combinations.  At first, it may sound depressing to view creativity this way, but it opens doors for more of us to become regular creatives. 

In his breakthrough book Steal Like An Artist, Austin Kleon provides an engaging guide for creating our own work through the inspiration of others. In no uncertain terms, his recipe for becoming more creative is not to plagiarize other artists’ works but to take inspiration from them as we create our own. 

By studying several other professionals we admire, we can distill essential principles and patterns that work and incorporate them into our work.  I like to combine this principle by averaging 5 different sources.  Five is enough to uncover common patterns that work without becoming involved in paralysis by analysis.  

Borrowing is not only seen in the arts.  New inventions are crafted by assimilating older inventions to stand on the shoulders of giants.  Like how we crawl before we walk, successful inventors take products once considered breakthroughs and assemble them into a new cutting-edge masterpiece. 

Here is a small list of inventions that were made through combining old things into new: 

• iPhone = Mac + Touchscreen + Cell Phone 

• Television = Radio + Cinema + Cathode Ray Tube 

• Airplane = Kite Design + Propulsion + Math & Physics 

• Automobile = Wheels + Internal Combustion Engine 

• Steel = Iron + Carbon + Trace Elements 

Of course, these inventions incorporate many other nuances to become market-ready and operational. However, they aren’t the result of abstract thinking; they were invented by creatively combining existing products into a new design to serve a purpose. 

How We Can Become More Creative Ourselves 

With a new mindset on creativity to connect the dots, engaging in our own creative pursuits becomes easier.  We’re not expected to reinvent the wheel but instead use what we have already to make our work more engaging for ourselves and those it serves. 

Here are a couple of ideas on how to become creative in the fewest moves possible: 

Borrow Things That Work 

It's worth stating again that most creativity involves borrowing and combining a few things to produce something remarkable. 

When we think of our creative heroes, we should ask what we enjoy about their work. Is it their simplicity, delivery, or perhaps their confidence or attitude? What x-factor do they bring to the table that sets them apart? 

Whatever it is, we should try to incorporate it to some degree into our creative endeavors.  The goal is not to be a replica or imitator, as seen in Kleon’s work, but to become an incorporator of ideas in clever ways to inject some juice into our work. 

Study Processes of Other Creatives 

Psychologists and social scientists have always been fascinated with the creative processes of others.  They learn from these artists from an objective stance to piece together things themselves.  As honorable as their approach is, sometimes it's better to learn from the sources themselves. 

YouTube is a treasure trove showcasing creatives willing to share their processes.  Most of these free demos are a way for them to bring in new clients, which is a great way for us to sample their creative methods to decide what we can use. 

As we learn their processes, it’s wise to be cautious about what we see. We may watch a remarkable presentation and get a glimpse of what's going on, but we should never assume that everything we see is as it is.   

It's best to learn from several creative sources and piece together aspects of their creative processes that make the most sense to us.  From there, we experiment, analyze, reflect, and adjust what fits us best and produces our desired results. 

Use Curiosity & Reverse Engineer 

The majority of creative work is the result of refined processes. Processes are documented and scrutinized in business and engineering for unnecessary redundancies, inefficiencies, and stages. 

Creative processes follow a similar pattern to those of their engineering and business counterparts. However, most creatives are not known for documenting their processes because they're either in a flow state or do not wish to reveal their secrets. 

This is where reverse engineering processes come into play.  Using our intuition, we start with the output and ask what the stage was before that. It will most likely be some refinement and final review. Then what comes before that? Maybe another refinement or to produce a draft or prototype. What about before? An outline, a template, or a written plan for execution. 

Before we know it, the process is documented in reverse. It may not be 100% exactly how they do it, but now we have a baseline template for creating our work and filling in the blanks.  We have to switch the arrows and start from the beginning. 

Understand That Perception Plays A Massive Role 

Magicians are known to be magical for one reason: mastery of perception.  Their sleight-of-hand and visual illusions make their tricks appear more mysterious to those who don’t know their creative ways. 

Perception goes beyond what is seen and heard.  How we feel about artists and businesses is much bigger than what we see and hear.  If we look at some of the most popular brands, they are not necessarily the best at what they do, but have the biggest relationships with their consumers. 

There's an old saying that what is popular is not always the best, and the best are not always popular. 

With creativity being such a subjective outlet for our imaginations, it's challenging to gauge whether somebody else's work is better.  All things being equal, as long as a minimum threshold of skill and quality is achieved, the question of who is better becomes a matter of personal preference over objective scoring criteria. 

The old saying goes that one man's trash is another man's treasure. 

Therefore, we should not hold ourselves to producing a world-class result right away, but instead focus on a starting point prototype that can stand on its own two feet. From here, we figure out the gaps and what steps are required to transform a good product into a great product, from great to incredible, and then from incredible to world-class. 

Create In Small Steps 

As we discussed earlier, our goal as creatives is not to achieve a remarkable result immediately but to get the ball rolling for ourselves.  Therefore, baby steps to build confidence in our creative abilities are necessary to watch the magic unfold before our eyes. 

Another principle in our creative ventures is to aim for volume initially.  Pottery makers often start by spinning several pots at a time, knowing some will have defects beyond their control.  

It’s important to note that nobody has a perfect batting average in any creative endeavor.  Creatives aren’t under the same scrutiny as others regarding their percentage of success.  Even the most revered artists have discovered multiple defects, especially in the beginning. 

However, to work out these defects, it’s important to focus on the small steps that permit complete focus on that stage.  Instead of writing a symphony, start with a melody.  In place of building a great machine, focus on the frame.  Starting with small steps will lend itself to the momentum of the larger elements we seek. 

Now Let’s Create! 

We are creative in more ways than we think.  We don't need to be involved in the arts for our creativity to flourish.  All we need to do is find a profession, hobby, or activity where we can apply ourselves and let our curiosity and imagination run wild to tinker with our craft. 

It's tempting to wait for the right moment to act.  It's easy to get in the mindset of “if only we had more tools, knowledge, or other things at our fingertips, everything would fall in place” before starting. Far to the contrary, sometimes a lack of tools, ignorance, and other limitations are better for us to become resourceful. 

A simple setup to provide such an opportunity is with a pencil and paper. We can start by drawing our letters, lines, or sketches for an idea. We don’t need to commit to being calligraphers or sketch artists, but our improvements to become more creative will transfer to theirs. 

Finally, becoming more creative is not always about being goal-oriented.  Creatives immerse themselves in the moment and respond to their options.  When one path is chosen, they travel it until more options present themselves, then choose repeatedly.  Before they know it, they’ve connected the dots uniquely in ways never seen before. 

Where will you unleash your creativity to let your imagination run wild? Leave a comment below.