The Creativity Article

The instructor gave the class a article to read about creativity.

Here is a link to the article: The Art of Creativity

Here are the article highlights:

- the opportunity for creativity exists in all facets of life
- it is a good practice to get into to try and see things from different perspectives - alternative solutions to problems
- mistakes are good - they provide an opportunity to learn
- mistakes offer guidance as to what one should try next
- creative people make more mistakes, but they also make more attempts at taking innovative approaches
- humor and laughter seems to be a constant element among the most creative people
- nothing is too absurd to be taken into consideration
- playfulness is a creative state

- the article refers to something called a 'white moment' - this is a moment which psychologists refer to as 'flow'
- creativity occurs effortlessly when somebody is 'flowing'
- a person is said to be in this zone when their 'skills match the demands of the moment' (imbalances of skills or demands would lead to anxiety or boredom)
- from a zen perspective, it is said that a person loses self-consciousness and taps into a 'larger mind' - a state called 'no mind' where there is no internal chatter and creativity flows

- the article also discusses creativity as a natural state in children
- creativity gets killed in children due to the following elements:
- constant surveillance / attention
- being evaluated
- competition
- too much control / too many rules
- pressure
- the most subtle reason: time
- children are accustomed to dealing with open-ended time - no limitations or deadlines
- when kids are interrupted because 'time is up' it stifles creativity