Inspiring Creativity Part 3/5

There is no one right answer. The only certainty in life is uncertainty. When trying to get ideas, do not censor or evaluate them as they occur. Nothing kills creativity faster than self- censorship of ideas while generating them. Think of all your ideas as possibilities and generate as many as you can before you decide which ones to select. The world is not black or white. It is grey. To keep the creativity flowing, never stop with your first good idea. Always strive to find a better one and continue until you have one that is still better.

This relates back to my first blog on my creativity class: don't shut yourself down. There's a reason why "You are your own worst critic" is a cliche.

Expect the experts to be negative. The more expert and specialized a person becomes, the more their mindset becomes narrowed and the more fixated they become on confirming what they believe to be absolute. Consequently, when confronted with new and different ideas, their focus will be on conformity. Does it conform with what I know is right? If not, experts will spend all their time showing and explaining why it can't be done and why it can't work. They will not look for ways to make it work or get it done because this might demonstrate that what they regarded as absolute is not absolute at all.

This is a good lesson for myself to remember as I head into education, especially in the English department. Whenever you hear complaining about English classes, it is that the teacher is closed off to new ideas that don't line up with their own. I pray that when I become a teacher I will have the discernment to tell which ideas are creative and deserve being pursued (and which ones are completely made-up crap).

The best source for creativity is your own experiences. This last semester was a hard one for me; the fragility of life was extremely prevalent as my family faced disease and death. In the same breath, we also experienced new life with my new (and first!) niece. It is surreal to be so aware of the interconnected circle of life and death. This is a poem that I wrote during that time.

The Chorus

You enter the world with a mouth wide-open

Your immaculate voice joins with ours

Enter in with the choir

Sing loud, O Crier

Sing of the glory and power!

You persist through the struggle of heartache and illness

Your spirit, it yearns to surrender

But you sing all the louder

You snub out its power

And shout of the greatness and splendor!

You followed the call of life ever-after

Darkness has snuffed out your light

But your pain has now lifted

Your countenance shifted

Breathe in the resplendence and might.


PS: I just have to post a pic of my new niece, because I'm just irrationally proud.