Creativity has been one of the most desirable qualities in the last 10 years. It has been talked about at meetings, conferences and conventions; books have been written about it; seminars have been developed. Creativity is the asset that drives nowadays progress and makes everybody long for it. I hear people sigh: “I wish I was as creative as Steve Jobs”, or “Why don’t I have any talent like all these artists, singers and composers?”
Therefore, it is time to bust the myths that surround creativity. I am sure there are many more, but we will start with only 5 of them.
- There are only a few geniuses who are truly creative
Not true! Everybody has an unexpectedly incredible amount of creative potential. The problem is in our inability to recognize this potential and tap into it. Some of us have acknowledged it but haven’t been using our creativity to a full extent. Others still mistakenly believe they are not creative at all.
- Creativity only exists in the field of Art
Just like the level of our intelligence is not limited by our ability to calculate and find logical solutions, creativity is not limited only by talents in the field of art. Take any sphere of our life and I will tell you – there’s a way to be creative in it.
- There’s nothing creative about Math or Science
This is probably one of the most surprisingly creative spheres. When speaking about creativity, the majority of people imagine music and art, cinematography and dancing. But creativity is all about finding new solutions and coming up with new ideas. There have been so many incredible life-changing ideas in science that we should call it the most creative field of work.
- It’s impossible to develop creativity
This is the biggest and saddest delusion. We can and must develop our creativity. If you want to run a marathon, you will train your body for that. With time you become stronger and faster. The same goes for creativity. Psychologists found that people, who spent more time brainstorming, eventually started coming up with more creative ideas. Their level of creativity increased with time and practice.
- I don’t need creativity to be successful
In the modern world, when everything changes with the speed of light, we should be ready to develop the skills of the future. Creativity is known to be such a skill. To achieve sustainable success, and not just temporary one, we need to invest our time and efforts into personal development and into creativity in particular.
