My Interpretation of Creativity.

Recently, I decided to share my draft of what I hope to be a book in the near future with a select few people. I was instantly nervous and started to second guess whether or not any of it was even worth reading. Exposing a world that I created inside of my head is one of the scariest things I have ever done. A friend (thank you Ali!) reassured me that the critics didn't matter and she recommended that I watch a video by Brené Brown. Well, I did, thus this blog post.

Creativity is defined as the ability to make new things or think of new ideas. This implies that everyone has the ability to be a creative being. However, this concept often gets misconstrued because when we hear the word “creative” we are trained to think of painters, sculptures, writers, etc.

If we all have the ability to create, why do we often feel like only those who are more dominant on the right hemisphere of their brain have the ability to be labeled as creative? I am very “right-brained” so to speak, and I for one could never create something so magnificent that it could single handedly advance our technology or save human lives. But, I am often told just how creative I am. Yes, I am creative in the stereotypical ways—I enjoy writing, drawing, designing, and I drink too much coffee; however, some of the most creative people throughout history do not necessarily fit this stereotype.

Steve Jobs literally created a technology revolution— that is creative. My mother is a cosmetologist and she has to create new looks on her clients every single day—that is creative. Alexis Jones and the rest of the I Am That Girl team had a vision as to how they could successfully empower women through a multitude of mediums in a way that had never been done before— that is beyond creative.

People often keep their ideas, opinions, or creations to themselves when they do not fall onto the artistic side of definition. Maybe this is because sharing your imagination with others can be frightening. Brené Brown, an author and vulnerability researcher, gave a talk titled Why Your Critics Aren’t The Ones Who Count that covered this exact concept. During the talk she made a statement that really hit home, she said, “there is nothing more vulnerable than creativity".  There is nothing more frightening than the moment that you expose your ideas to the world. Imagine if your favorite author never overcame the fear of rejection and therefore never published a story or your favorite artist burned every painting before anybody could see it in fear of the failing. Better yet, imagine the world without individuals like Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. Be brave enough to find your creativity in whatever sense it means to you.

You can watch Brené Brown's video here!