Episode #134 Creativity Takes Courage

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?