You’re More Creative Than You Think

Time and again I hear people say, “I’m just not a creative person.” Nonsense. You’re more creative than you think. 

You just need to break through some of the common barriers we put in our own way — starting with self-doubt.

Overcome your doubts.

Lin-Manuel Miranda is known to be a pretty creative guy. But when he got the idea for “Hamilton: An American Musical,” he thought it was so good that someone surely had already thought of it.

After searching online, he realized it was indeed his own idea. The lesson? Even creative geniuses have their moments of self-doubt.

So, if your latest brainstorm strikes you as obvious, then it may just be because it’s brilliant!

Don’t expect a thunderbolt.

The artist Chuck Close said, “Inspiration is for amateurs; the rest of us just show up and get to work. All the best ideas come out of the process; they come out of the work itself.” 

Put another way by one of my instructors at Second City: “Craft liberates genius.”

Feeling blocked? Don’t just sit around waiting for a bolt from the blue. Think, write or work your way through it.

But embrace when it happens.

Ringo Starr famously sang, “It don’t come easy.” But sometimes it does.

When fellow Beatle Paul McCartney was demoing an early version of “Hey Jude,” he came to the lyric “The movement you need is on your shoulder” and immediately assured John Lennon that the line was just a placeholder.

“I’ll change that,” he said. ”It’s a bit crummy.” Lennon told him to keep it: “That’s the best line in it!”

On a vastly smaller scale, I’ve experienced something similar in my own writing. When the words seem to flow effortlessly, I suspect they’re no good. But inevitably those are the passages that get the best feedback. 

So even though creation is mostly about perspiration, don’t discount the power of inspiration.

Dare to voice your idea.

How many times has this happened to you? You’re in a meeting and you have an idea, but then you second-guess yourself. You think it’s too obvious a point or it’s not very good, so you don’t speak up.

Yet a few moments later, someone else pipes up with that exact same idea, prompting enthusiastic nods and affirmations that completely change the course of the meeting.

That could have been you! We are often our own worst critics, so resist the temptation to self-censor.

Get up and move.

Multiple studies point to the role of physical activity in firing our imagination. I’ve found that to be true. Whenever I’m stuck on a problem, a walk or a workout tends to break the logjam.

In fact, like a lot of people, I get some of my best ideas in the shower — and there’s some science behind that as well.

So get up and get moving. (And bring your phone to document these lightbulb moments so you don’t forget them.)

Look to the arts.

I’m often inspired by movies, TV and books. Here’s a favorite passage from the novel “All the Light We Cannot See” by Anthony Doerr: 

“Doors soar away from their frames. Bricks transmute into powder… Flames scamper up walls… fires pool and strut [and] splash into alleys…”

Not an ordinary verb to be found! To me, it’s a reminder that we can always strive to do better and go beyond the expected.

Trust yourself.

It all comes down to trusting our instincts. We’re conditioned over a lifetime to doubt ourselves, to ignore our gut in favor of cool, rational logic. But sometimes, the little voice in our heads knows the answer. Listen to it!