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Creativity for Success

Posted By: Randy GageDecember 16, 2011

While changing planes at Charles de Gaulle airport, we had to board a bus to take us to the terminal.  It pulled up to the building, everyone got off and stopped in front of an automatic door.  Which automatically stayed closed.

People started to pile up.  They began to peer through the glass, look around, while others looked back at the bus driver.  A few tapped on the glass.

Being one of the last people off the bus, I walked over to the side door on the left, the one with the “use this door” sign, and walked in.  Immediately, everybody laughed or grinned sheepishly, and followed me in.

What happened?

The first person off the bus went to the wrong door.  The second person followed the first, the third the second, and so on for almost 40 people.

You can see a similar kind of thing when you enter some place with a winding velvet rope line.  Even though it’s empty, if the rope is there, people will follow it blindly, walking 60 feet to get to a counter that’s six feet away.  Until someone comes along and unhooks the rope, or goes under it.  Then everyone behind will follow the same process.  They know enough to follow up on a good thing, but they don’t have the creativity to think of it themselves.

They are trapped in “tribal-think” and go through their lives following the velvet-roped path.  They do things this way because it’s always been done this way.

You have to be different…

But you know that already.  What you may not know is one of the attributes you need to stay out of tribal-think and accomplish great things.

Creativity.

Creativity helps you think differently.  You see the unseen, dream the undreamt, and do the things that have never been done.  Creativity is simply the process of looking at the same thing as everyone else and seeing something new.  It is a method of generating ideas and bringing something new into existence.

Some creativity is adaptive—modifying or altering what already exists in new ways.  Other creativity is innovative—introducing something entirely new that had not existed before.  Either one can make you rich.

So what are your best strategies to foster your creativity?  Please share them below, and next post I’ll check in with mine.

-RG

21 comments on “Creativity for Success”

  1. Hi Randy,
    I remember I heard you say at an event. When everyone is going Zig you need to Zag.

    I used to look at things and wonder how I can improve them but now more frequently I look at what everyone is doing and I focus on the opposite to inspire new ideas.

    For example, to build a business I respect everyone's choice to use programs like Facebook and as an experiment I am currently focusing more and more on meeting people face to face instead of online.

    It is bringing me great opportunities in business.

    I look forward to hearing your ideas.

    David

  2. Hi Randy,

    Yesterday, I went on my PR round to pop in to my retired Gynaecologist's clinic with Christmas Card and Garrett's cheese and caramek popcorn. Dr. Tow was the founder of the quite well known clinic. Then with similar gift I visited another speicalist whom I have not seen for quite a while. The two clinics were packed bursting at the seams. I know we will get in contact again soon and very soon. Today we had Holy Spirit meting, then lunch with 2 old friends and dinner with another 2 old friends. That wraps up the day. Then I will use the phone more to speak to perhaps the Personnel Manager or Staff Welfare Officer and press on....
    Am praying for favour.....

  3. Randy,
    I simply ask open-ended questions on a regular basis. And I ask them in the direction I would prefer to go. New and creative ways and ideas come almost daily. People can start by making a calendar reminder to ask such questions until it becomes second nature.
    Safe travels, Randy.
    John

  4. Randy,

    I think we are all creative... It starts with small things.. You don´t like some traditional food because of some ingredience you don´t eat? You create different way and eat what you like...

    I love clothes, colours and playing with materials... I love indoor design...
    When I was a child my mother was crazy of me... The details... I loved simple outfit with small very interesting details.. And this I love till now... I rather show my dressmaker what I have idea... what color, what material... and rest is hers work..

    I think that this is about listening your inner voice... This voice allways tell me the best way... Inspiration coming from inside...

    I am not listening the trends, I am choosing what I love.. Colors, types... and also when I see something in shop I know what is missing and how to make it for my perspectíve more interesting.

    This habit, to do by my own way... I can use in other things...

    For example... Blog is interesting... but I have idea to make different one :o)

    So creativity for me means, to do things which I love and if I find something what is not useful for me, find a way how can be done more useful to be satisfied and happy.

    Take care,
    Marketa

  5. ...going after unsolvable tasks in life and trying to find the backdoors (creativity) on either another landscape/biz field/character to solve it.

    It´s FUN! 🙂

  6. Yet another inspiring blog from you Randy! Great start to my day reading what you have to say 🙂 Of course I meditate first thing in the morning. It is amazing how successful I have become just because someone creative motivated and inspired me to push past what I thought were limits. I am getting better at writing in my blog. Where as last year I would have sat there for hours with that deer caught in the headlights expression wondering what the heck to write about. Thank you 🙂

  7. Randy.. it's interesting (though not surprising in a spiritual way) that you posted this topic today. Yesterday I was feeling in kind of a funk and needed to get out. I took a David Sedaris book I was reading and went to the library. As I read one of the hilarious short stories a feeling came over me, which I'm quite sure was my Higher Self. The inner voice said, "you can write stuff as funny as this too!". So with that I went home and started to write a totally hilarious short story which I will continue with. The feeling I had was one of exhilaration. as well as Joy. It also unblocked my creativity and brought me back to being centered.

    I AM a very creative person, but the old 'story' of not being good enough can get in the way. By doing exercises like this one, it really helps connect with the Joy we all have and also pushes us forward. As we all know, emotion is energy in motion and doing creative things that inspire us to do more, is a great thing! Thanks for posting..

  8. Hi Randy,
    Creativity is the manifestation of the Gods. Nothing is more magical than a new idea.
    I used to stay with a girl(cousin) who will, day after day, change the position of furnitures, carpets, curtains, every time she cleans the house. At the beginning, I thought, because she hadn't been to high school, that she was a bit stupid. I later notice that each time she changed the position of everything, she will tell me a new story in the night.
    I got her habit and now, I shuffle my surroundings every week to have a new look at things.

  9. This may explain why there is such a bias against creativity in society.

    This is what I believe is responsible for why so many people are unhappy: Some people do not want to think, imagine or dream, and others wish to have power and control. They are co-creating an existence of pain and misery.

    This is the parent who tells their child to police officer or a nurse instead of a musician or an architect. This is the business owner who neglects the welfare of his building and employees. This is the employee who sees that her boss is clearly doing something which hurts others, but does nothing. This is the parent who uses the fact that they are not wealthy as an excuse to not encourage their children to achieve something in life.

    Creativity changes that. The moment a writer types the opening of a novel, the moment a pianist plays a note, the moment a parent decides that their child's future is their responsibility, the moment a business owner sees value in how he interacts with the community.

    These are moments which change the world. The moment when a person decides to create wonder and beauty.

    Creativity is not predictable: it can't be bottled or distilled. The products of it can.

    Not even creative fields are free from tribal thinking: there is only this way of painting, there is only this way of composing.

    There is only this way of learning to do these things.

    We can change this. We can move this world.

    However, it must be what each of us can bring as individual people, not as people sacrificing for each other. This is what lead us to be where we are in the first place.

  10. Hey Randy! My best strategy for fostering creativity is a four-letter word: PLAY!

    Not playing cards or even playing softball (although those are great activities), but I'm talking about pure unadulterated, no-rules, no-winner, no-loser, no-expectations play. The kind of play that kittens, puppies, and small children know how to do instinctively, but that we as adults have often forgotten... or we feel that our play must have a purpose, or we must justify our play by producing some useful result.

    I think that if we would spend just a few minutes a day in mindless, pointless play, we'd automatically start to rediscover our lost creative genius.
    jim

  11. Listened to a webinar today and one guy said if you think faxing businesses is dead, you're dead wrong.. everyone is trying to do it online.. what better time than to fax someone?

  12. Journal. Dream. Be in the moment. Read. Do improv. Surround yourself with people who have different views on things. 🙂 Great post.

  13. Creativity can seem combative to those protecting the status quo. I visualize the change that I want to see in my fallow neighborhood then share those juicy creative concepts to the amazement of neighbors.

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  • 21 comments on “Creativity for Success”

    1. Hi Randy,
      I remember I heard you say at an event. When everyone is going Zig you need to Zag.

      I used to look at things and wonder how I can improve them but now more frequently I look at what everyone is doing and I focus on the opposite to inspire new ideas.

      For example, to build a business I respect everyone's choice to use programs like Facebook and as an experiment I am currently focusing more and more on meeting people face to face instead of online.

      It is bringing me great opportunities in business.

      I look forward to hearing your ideas.

      David

    2. Hi Randy,

      Yesterday, I went on my PR round to pop in to my retired Gynaecologist's clinic with Christmas Card and Garrett's cheese and caramek popcorn. Dr. Tow was the founder of the quite well known clinic. Then with similar gift I visited another speicalist whom I have not seen for quite a while. The two clinics were packed bursting at the seams. I know we will get in contact again soon and very soon. Today we had Holy Spirit meting, then lunch with 2 old friends and dinner with another 2 old friends. That wraps up the day. Then I will use the phone more to speak to perhaps the Personnel Manager or Staff Welfare Officer and press on....
      Am praying for favour.....

    3. Randy,
      I simply ask open-ended questions on a regular basis. And I ask them in the direction I would prefer to go. New and creative ways and ideas come almost daily. People can start by making a calendar reminder to ask such questions until it becomes second nature.
      Safe travels, Randy.
      John

    4. Randy,

      I think we are all creative... It starts with small things.. You don´t like some traditional food because of some ingredience you don´t eat? You create different way and eat what you like...

      I love clothes, colours and playing with materials... I love indoor design...
      When I was a child my mother was crazy of me... The details... I loved simple outfit with small very interesting details.. And this I love till now... I rather show my dressmaker what I have idea... what color, what material... and rest is hers work..

      I think that this is about listening your inner voice... This voice allways tell me the best way... Inspiration coming from inside...

      I am not listening the trends, I am choosing what I love.. Colors, types... and also when I see something in shop I know what is missing and how to make it for my perspectíve more interesting.

      This habit, to do by my own way... I can use in other things...

      For example... Blog is interesting... but I have idea to make different one :o)

      So creativity for me means, to do things which I love and if I find something what is not useful for me, find a way how can be done more useful to be satisfied and happy.

      Take care,
      Marketa

    5. ...going after unsolvable tasks in life and trying to find the backdoors (creativity) on either another landscape/biz field/character to solve it.

      It´s FUN! 🙂

    6. Yet another inspiring blog from you Randy! Great start to my day reading what you have to say 🙂 Of course I meditate first thing in the morning. It is amazing how successful I have become just because someone creative motivated and inspired me to push past what I thought were limits. I am getting better at writing in my blog. Where as last year I would have sat there for hours with that deer caught in the headlights expression wondering what the heck to write about. Thank you 🙂

    7. Randy.. it's interesting (though not surprising in a spiritual way) that you posted this topic today. Yesterday I was feeling in kind of a funk and needed to get out. I took a David Sedaris book I was reading and went to the library. As I read one of the hilarious short stories a feeling came over me, which I'm quite sure was my Higher Self. The inner voice said, "you can write stuff as funny as this too!". So with that I went home and started to write a totally hilarious short story which I will continue with. The feeling I had was one of exhilaration. as well as Joy. It also unblocked my creativity and brought me back to being centered.

      I AM a very creative person, but the old 'story' of not being good enough can get in the way. By doing exercises like this one, it really helps connect with the Joy we all have and also pushes us forward. As we all know, emotion is energy in motion and doing creative things that inspire us to do more, is a great thing! Thanks for posting..

    8. Hi Randy,
      Creativity is the manifestation of the Gods. Nothing is more magical than a new idea.
      I used to stay with a girl(cousin) who will, day after day, change the position of furnitures, carpets, curtains, every time she cleans the house. At the beginning, I thought, because she hadn't been to high school, that she was a bit stupid. I later notice that each time she changed the position of everything, she will tell me a new story in the night.
      I got her habit and now, I shuffle my surroundings every week to have a new look at things.

    9. This may explain why there is such a bias against creativity in society.

      This is what I believe is responsible for why so many people are unhappy: Some people do not want to think, imagine or dream, and others wish to have power and control. They are co-creating an existence of pain and misery.

      This is the parent who tells their child to police officer or a nurse instead of a musician or an architect. This is the business owner who neglects the welfare of his building and employees. This is the employee who sees that her boss is clearly doing something which hurts others, but does nothing. This is the parent who uses the fact that they are not wealthy as an excuse to not encourage their children to achieve something in life.

      Creativity changes that. The moment a writer types the opening of a novel, the moment a pianist plays a note, the moment a parent decides that their child's future is their responsibility, the moment a business owner sees value in how he interacts with the community.

      These are moments which change the world. The moment when a person decides to create wonder and beauty.

      Creativity is not predictable: it can't be bottled or distilled. The products of it can.

      Not even creative fields are free from tribal thinking: there is only this way of painting, there is only this way of composing.

      There is only this way of learning to do these things.

      We can change this. We can move this world.

      However, it must be what each of us can bring as individual people, not as people sacrificing for each other. This is what lead us to be where we are in the first place.

    10. Hey Randy! My best strategy for fostering creativity is a four-letter word: PLAY!

      Not playing cards or even playing softball (although those are great activities), but I'm talking about pure unadulterated, no-rules, no-winner, no-loser, no-expectations play. The kind of play that kittens, puppies, and small children know how to do instinctively, but that we as adults have often forgotten... or we feel that our play must have a purpose, or we must justify our play by producing some useful result.

      I think that if we would spend just a few minutes a day in mindless, pointless play, we'd automatically start to rediscover our lost creative genius.
      jim

    11. Listened to a webinar today and one guy said if you think faxing businesses is dead, you're dead wrong.. everyone is trying to do it online.. what better time than to fax someone?

    12. Journal. Dream. Be in the moment. Read. Do improv. Surround yourself with people who have different views on things. 🙂 Great post.

    13. Creativity can seem combative to those protecting the status quo. I visualize the change that I want to see in my fallow neighborhood then share those juicy creative concepts to the amazement of neighbors.

    Leave a Reply to Arman Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


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