I have been reading a lot of articles about creativity lately and I have come to the realization that a sure-fire way to kill creativity is to box it up, number it and attempt to define it. Creativity is a personal process, born of personal experiences and personal revelation. In group settings, creativity by the quieter, more introverted members is often times lost to the boisterous appeals by the more social of the group. I am not saying that creativity does not exist in group settings or when following a planned method, but it makes what should be a natural process unnatural. I read a funny article on the five tips on how NOT to be creative and found it to be straight-forward without pretense and was in itself a creative approach to helping people be creative. [You can read the entire article at http://www.creativity-portal.com/articles/angie-dixon/not-creative.html.]
1. Never talk to strangers
2. Never go to new places
3. Never ask, “what if?”
4. Never think about the alternative.
5. Never ask, “what do you think?”
Obviously, by reversing the “never,” the tips turn out to be really useful guidance in becoming creative, or rekindling creativity. In a nutshell, get out and live. Reading journal articles about how to be creative doesn’t cut it. Sitting around thinking about how you can be more creative doesn’t work either. These things may help you write an article about being more creative but I can’t see how they will actually make you more creative.
