Creativity Is Intelligence Having Fun!

I read this absolutely delightful book last month called The Gifts of Imperfection by Brené Brown. It was lying in my “to-read” list for a long time and I finally decided to read it this year. Let me just say this is one of the BEST books I’ve read.
As I devoured the book, I found so much wisdom in it.

This one paragraph stood out because my views about it are exactly the same. The paragraph read:

There’s no such thing as creative people and non-creative people. There are only people who use their creativity and people who don’t. Unused creativity doesn’t just disappear. It lives within us until it’s expressed, neglected to death, or suffocated by resentment and fear.

Food for thought, do you remember how you would participate in every single contest or competition in school? Be it quizzes, music, dance, painting and whatnot, you would eagerly go ahead and enjoy yourself. But what about now? When was the last time you actually pursued an interest that made your heart soar like no other?

Exercising our creative muscle takes a backseat once we grow up and get busy in achieving our goals. For some strange reason, we assume that creativity is something only kids have and we have to resign ourselves to the fate of our mundane, routine work-lives.

Telling ourselves that “we aren’t the creative type” is the simplest excuse we could give. Of course, a certain few people do have a lot more creativity in them. But that does not mean that the rest are lacking in their creative skills.

Creativity is ingrained within us. We were born with it. It is just that we choose to ignore what we have in us. We look at another person’s skills and talents, envy them and wistfully think, “Sigh! Wish I had this in me! I cannot even be one per cent of what that person is. I cannot paint like her! I do not have a great voice like him! I have two left-feet, I am not made for dancing!” And so on and so forth.

But hey! We need to remember that exercising your creativity is purely for joy. No one needs to be a master at whatever they love doing. You do not have to win accolades for whatever you pursue. We need to just be cool with the fact that not all that we create has to be perfect and artistic. What matters is that you just do it.

Another silly assumption people have is that they aren’t the “right age” to pursue their hobbies and skills. You often hear people tell they have gone past the age where they could do it all. Oh no no! This is such a terrible thought. I am quite proud of my own mother who enjoys creating handmade jewellery during her free time. She does it for joy and the enthusiasm with which she creates her pieces is infectious.

So, the whole point here is that we just have to try and let ourselves loose and do what makes us feel amazing. It can be anything really.
Do you like to sing? Go ahead and look up for karaoke mixes on YouTube and sing at the top of your voice.
Do you have a green thumb? Get yourself a mini gardening kit and revel in watching the plants grow each day.
Do you find joy in cooking? Scour the internet for recipe ideas and videos.
Do you like to clean and organise? Oh yes! Organisation can also be a creative process.

Also, we have the best technology at our disposal. There are tons of online classes you can take from the comfort of your home. Be it photography, cooking, writing, painting and a lot more. Find what makes you get creative and delve deep. The satisfaction derived is invigorating, to say the least!

It is just a matter of self-introspection to understand what is that one thing that you love to do, without any inhibitions. As Albert Einstein said, “creativity is intelligence having fun.”

Until next time, stay blessed (and be creative!). 🙂