Episode #134 Creativity Takes Courage

There is something deep within every human being that compels us to create, but so few of us actually fulfill this desire. This week, Dr. Michael Brown and innovation lab leader Dr. Shawn Cramer identify the barriers to imaginative expression and introduce the practices required to overcome them.

Show Notes

Seinfeld vowed at the beginning of his career – every day he will write one bit. Pretty soon, you’ll have a few good bits. And as you put those bits together, you have a segment. And if you put enough segments together, you have a show.
Dr. Shawn Cramer

Five Problems

  • The fear of failure leads us to reject some of our best ideas.
  • Preoccupation with the opinions of others often stops creativity in its tracks.
  • When others criticize what we create, it can feel as if they are challenging our worth as individuals.
  • The fear of judgment often persists even when we are alone.
  • Mind-numbing activities paralyze our creative muscles.

Seven Principles

  • There is a time and place to invite feedback, and there is a time and place to ignore it.
  • Whatever we create can have meaning and make a difference, even if it is not the best of the best.
  • We are worth so much more than what we produce.
  • We can do difficult things even when we are uncertain, and we can do scary things even while we are still afraid.
  • We don’t need to be artistic in order to be creative.
  • The accumulation of creative efforts performed with great consistency will inevitably result in something amazing.
  • If coasting is the enemy of creativity, then intentionality is its greatest ally.

Five Practices

  • Create something that exists for your personal growth and enjoyment alone, and keep it entirely to yourself.
  • Identify an area in your life where you would benefit from improvising, breaking the rules, or coloring outside the lines.
  • Whatever it is that you dream to create in your lifetime, begin by taking one small step towards creating it today.
  • Reinvest half of the time you spend consuming – TV, movies, music, or podcasts – into time you spend creating.
  • Lead a monthly dreamers’ group based around these 3 questions: How has the dream developed? What have you done? What are you going to do?