To watch when you are creatively blocked

Steve Jobs: How to live before you die | Video on TED.com

This video gives us a moment to think about why we might choose to make each day important in our lives, and our creative lives.

Creativity- What is Creativity Anyway?

Recently a reader asked me for my definition of creativity. That question helped me realize that I have been using the word in a way that assumes everyone knows what I mean, that we are all on the same page. Intrigued, I was stimulated to begin to look at creativity beyond the vernacular, i.e. the discovery of new ideas and insights.

I wondered what definition others might offer. Searching the websites of other creativity coaches and organizations which offer tools for creative change, I found that few offered up a definition of creativity. Most just assumed that the reader knew and accepted the idea of creativity. Like I did. So to begin to answer the question for me, and for that reader, I will present the ideas of a few current authorities on the subject, although there are far too many to include in this small blog.

Finding a simple answer is not so simple.

Posing the question, "What is Creativity?" I pondered whether it is problem solving or related to high intelligence; convergent thinking or divergent thinking; lateral thinking; conscious or unconscious thinking; associative thinking leading to invention; or is it thinking at all? Is creativity equated with the arts only? If it is also innovative, then are new products and scientific discoveries creative? Is creativity random or strategic; primarily sensory; affect laden; or intellectual?

The answers I uncovered are as varied as the authorities who try to answer it.
First, for anyone who is interested, Mark A. Runco, in Creativity, Theories and Themes, Research, Development, and Practice, Academic Press, 2007, details in 492 pages current research on creativity. In his chapter one conclusion, he states: "The most fascinating thing about the cognitive research on creativity may be its diversity." He likens the creative mind to an ecosystem: diverse species, diverse environmental influences, actions occurring on multi-levels, independently as well as interactively.

Clearly creativity is not just an issue of mind or of cognition. Runco spends the remainder of the text exploring developmental factors, biological dictates, and personality attributes, as well as how economics and culture influence or affect the process of creativity. Ultimately, he stresses throughout that care must be taken with the word "creativity" as "it is imprecise" (p. 384). After perusing the book, I had been exposed to much information but no answer that satisfied my personal question.

And another 450 pages of answering the question.

Authority Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, in Creativity, Flow and the Psychology of Discovery and Invention, suggests like Runco, that creativity as commonly used covers too much ground. He places creative people into three categories. The first refers to people who seem unusually verbally bright. The second refers to people who experience the world in fresh, novel ways but only for themselves personally. third, those who have innovated and have changed the world through creativity. He distinguishes between talented people who can do something well but do not originate anything. He states that talent and creativity are not related. Now who would have imagined?

"Creativity is the cultural equivalent of the process of genetic changes that result in biological evolution, where random variations take place in the chemistry of our chromosomes below the threshold of consciousness". These changes result in the sudden appearance of a new physical characteristic. If the trait is an improvement over what existed before, it may contribute to the evolution of the species. In the evolution of culture, the equivalent to genes are "memes" or units of information that we must learn if culture is to continue. These are passed on to our children so that they are remembered -like language or theories or stories. Creativity, according to Mr. C. is the action of changing these memes, and "if enough of the right people see the change as an improvement, it will become part of the culture "(p.7).

Csikszentmihalyi's bottom line on creativity is that a creative person is one whose idea, product or act is new and valuable in a specific field or domain. It must actually change that domain and be recognized by other people in that specific domain as having changed it. So from this definition, DaVinci, Einstein, Picasso, Stravinsky, or Newton would be creative as they were recognized in their domain by their peers and each one's contributions changed our world forever. Thus, creativity is not just individual, but each person is a link in the cultural chain, culture being as important as the idea.

This definition certainly raises the "what is creative and what is not" bar to an impossibly high level. All you writers, actors, singers, graphic artists, etc. might be wondering if what you do would be considered creative based on Csikszentmihaly's criterion. Write the great American novel, or create a new art form then you are creative. How about your interpreting that Cole Porter song in a new way? Or developing a new plot twist for your cartoon strip? Does it count as creativity?

Great minds think alike-says who?

Let's consider definitions quite different from Mr. C. For example, Sigmund Freud designated creativity as a sublimation of sexual energy into socially acceptable acts, creativity being people's highly charged unconscious material dissipated into the arts. Julia Cameron, one of our current creativity muses offers that "creativity is inspiration coupled with initiative". Eric Maisel, a well known creativity coach, suggests in his 346-page book, Creativity for Life, that "artistically creative people love what they are doing, know what they are doing and actively engage in art-making. the three elements of creativity are thus loving, knowing, and doing; or heart, mind and hands...". (p. 7)

A bottom line-any bottom line?

I guess what I am driving at is that, even after thousands of pages of authorities trying, it is nearly impossible to nail a single definition of creativity; however, it seems that at its bottom line is the development of new ideas, acts or products, or taking old ideas and concepts and reworking them into new ideas, acts or products.

So in regards to "your" creativity versus Bill Gate's creativity, I want to add that from my perspective, even though your creative act does not change society to the sweeping extent that his did, if it is new to you, the person doing it, then it is indeed creative. You may not have changed society, but you have changed yourself and your "individual domains", possibly forever. And even though society may not take much notice of your contribution to its beauty or its ideas, your perception has been altered; your unconscious has been expressed; you have deeply felt the life stirring within you and have been moved to represent it with a story, drawing or song. And with this, your life takes on new meaning. Although perhaps not a tsunami in the culture, just lighting this little light of creativity in the world could ultimately have an impact. (See last blog for The Butterfly Theory)

Finally my answer to the question.

My attempt at answering the reader's question would be that, creativity is the making of beauty and/or of new meanings; the emergence of deeper self-awareness; the expression of long buried unconscious wishes or shadows; and alteration of sensual and cognitive perceptions. All this is shared through the rich metaphor or captured pixels of a poignant expression.

Moreover, your creations and you, transformed by them, are like water drops wearing holes in a stone. Slowly over time, they deeply impact not only your inner self but also your outer world, one little creative act at a time.

Creativity and Chaos Theory. Are they Connected?

Understanding what happens when one creates, in terms that somehow explain that complex process, has been one of my long-term interests. Could understanding the dynamics help me, as a Creativity Coach, understand my client's, as well as my own creative process? Of course, with that understanding, I could be a more helpful guide, coach and creator.

Recently, as I was reading and thinking about it, I found an article by Anne Sterling called Human Creativity and Chaotic Dynamics. Her theory of creativity seemed to explain a lot of experiences that my friends, my clients and I have had as creatives. It's based on Chaos Theory, a mathematical idea with far reaching significance; "chaotic" as in "without order or connection".

Chaos Theory was developed in 1961 by a meteorologist named Edward Lorenz, whose original interest was to use it to predict weather patterns. Since then Chaos Theory has been applied to phenomena in many fields, like medicine, biology, physics and music. Even though it is based in math principals, as Chaos Theory has become better understood, and accepted, researchers find that lots of systems behave in similar ways. They find that one can actually compare apples and oranges, chemistry and creativity.

According to Sterling's interpretation, a creative person is a highly "dynamic system". The creative process moves from the idea to create, through a period of seeming, utter confusion and disorder. This state of disorder, however, has holistic intrinsic organizing patterns that do in fact ultimately create order, although you can't always see it. However, because of these unseen organizing patterns, out of this chaos, an order mysteriously appears.

Sterling gives a great example that demonstrates this idea that things can seem chaotic but are not really. Imagine a commuter train station during rush hour. From a bird's eye view you see people rushing one way or another, and if you didn't know better, it would seem that they were doing it randomly for no reason. However, everyone is trying to catch a specific train. If a track change is announced, the traffic flow distinctly changes revealing that there was an underlying order. Compare that to mass hysteria, which is highly chaotic, and random, and where any attempts to establish order are difficult, if not impossible.

disequilibrium=creative process=anxiety

In regards to humans, creativity cannot be analyzed into simple cause and effect relationships. It too is a "dynamic system". Although it may seem random, it is clear that there is an intrinsic order which organizes the initial creative impulse to flow in certain directions, from equilibrium through internal disequilibrium towards some kind of goal.

During this process every creative artist or thinker experiences some anxiety. This anxiety emerges from a sense of lack of mooring, or lack of knowing what might happen. Normally, we don't tolerate ambiguity well and react with anxiety symptoms. Even highly creative people prefer to relax into routine. As Eduard de Bono, a noted authority on creative thinking says, every human brain prefers the comfort of habit.

If I were a neuropsychologist, I might be imagining that during that disequilibrium phase, the brain is undergoing a kind of mad destruction and reconstruction of neural pathways trying to find creative solutions and finally relax again. The artist, however, experiences it as a desperate need for the third cup of coffee or "gotta get to the gym" feeling.

This state of disequilibrium may last a few angst-filled moments to perhaps, in some cases, months or years. Thankfully, this uncomfortable state compels the creative is to move to a higher level of organization. Remarkably, each new level or re-organization produces something fundamentally new, ta-da! A creative leap, a perfect metaphor or a new gizmo.

How does this relate to you and your creating?

Firstly, I hope that it is somewhat reassuring that during that head-scratching-stuck-creative-process- period, where nothing seems to be happening and pacing seems your only option, actually there is plenty of creating going on. However reassuring that may be, it doesn't detract from the unpleasant physical, emotional or mental anxiety, discomfort and confusion that accompanies the creative process.

What are the options? Certainly one doesn't usually want to interrupt the creative process, and in the case of highly creative people, it cannot be fully arrested anyway. Is there anything to do to help the creative, so that all that frustrating ambiguity (aka chaos) clears up, that that Eureka! moment occurs, and you can sleep again? Yes, I believe there is.

So what to do?

If you buy the Chaos Theory, it might follow, logically, that a creative thinker might want to add to the disequilibrium, however anxiety provoking it is. They might want to add additional internal and external circumstances that would increase the probability of generating creative ideas and products quicker. The variables to add to that creative fire would be mind boggling: genetics, aptitudes, the culture, memories, health, training, mood, textures, colors, sounds or chance factors, yada, yada, and on and on. Maybe a better widget or breakthrough script could emerge because of the added information? Maybe, but maybe not. Let's consider it further.

The Butterfly Theory

Adding to what Sterling puts forth, there is another interesting tidbit. In Chaos Theory it has been proven that a very small occurrence can produce unpredictable and sometimes drastic results by triggering a series of increasingly significant events. For example, according to the Butterfly Theory, if a butterfly flaps its wings in India initiating tiny incremental changes in the atmosphere, it could create a tornado in New York. Thus, it could be that even little things added to the creative process can affect the outcome.

What could one add or subtract of value, when creative challenge is propelling routine life into a state of creative anxiety towards, that finished product or idea? How do you engage with, and/or augment the already "chaotic" creative process so that you don't either quit or go into overwhelm? Yes, you knew we were headed there....that's when you hire a Creativity Coach.

How a Creativity Coach Can Help.

A great coach can sensitively and intuitively tune into that state of creative chaos to help you move through it gracefully, effectively and productively. Your Creativity Coach-and he or she can do this with a far better perspective -will collaborate with you. You will work together to decide whether you might add information to the chaos ( eg. role play or field trips); detract from the chaos (eg. relaxation exercises or time management); express the chaos (eg. journaling); shift the experience of the chaos (eg. Meridian Tapping or visualization work); or support you by being there when you just want to scream and quit.

Working together, you and your Creativity Coach, can journey through the unknowns in the creative process and celebrate when you arrive at that Eureka! moment. Ta-Da!

Why Use a Creativity Coach?

Ever wonder what underlies that creative block you just encountered? What do you do when you find yourself staring at the blank page again, the empty canvas or the silent instrument, after the third cup of coffee, wishing that you hadn’t really stopped smoking. Smoking would be so convenient now to take your mind off the deadline, self-imposed or not. Creative blocks or ruts, are all about the anxiety, that limiting, agitated feeling that nags and prevents relaxing into the narrative. It is the fear that you really are a fraud and don’t deserve to have an exhibition. Who would want to see your work anyway?

The professional creative knows that this anxiety is part of the process and, after years of practice, learns how to bob and weave around the resistance until it is time to go for the knockout. The knockout is never easy, no matter how many times the illusive opponent is out for the count. And then how about the newly creative soul, who encounters, for the first time, every last statement every teacher said about getting a real job; Or who has the haunting sensation that this is all a waste of time, this art making? How does one make meaning out of art making when you can’t quit criticizing yourself? How does one move past that block of resistance into the flow?

That’s where finding the right Creativity Coach comes in. We often cannot see the forest for the trees when it comes to our own issues, but someone trained in recognizing those anxieties and gently helping you work through them, is invaluable. Every great athlete has been coached through their limitations and fears, and supported in their dreams, so why not artists? From newly developing to professional, the same theoretical and practical creative issues need to be faced. Does being an artist presuppose that one must create alone to be authentic? Does the nature of art making in its lack of concrete, measurable goals, rule out fear of failure?

Creativity Coaches can help you in all phases of the art making process, from inception to product. They will advise you in skill building and time lining. They will mentor your search for the deeper piece of yourself that will transform your story or enable you to shoot from a different perspective. Most of all, they will enable you to acknowledge your adversities and fears and convert them into the creative energy that fuels your artistic process. They will be that teacher who cheers you into exquisite self-expression.

Where can you find this mentor? Just Google Creativity Coaching Association and you will find numerous certified coaches, who will help initiate the change necessary to move those stubborn artifacts of resistance to develop your best artistic self or uncover your artistic soul.