Earlier this week I created graphic recordings for a tech summit that impressed me beyond belief. Not because of their products or services (which were really pretty darn impressive), but because of the company’s energy, creativity, and ability to act on their creative ideas at a moment’s notice. Their creativity showed up in every detail of the event, and since their summit I’ve been a wee bit fixated on how creativity shows up and how we act on it.
Here, then, are 22 quotes on creativity to get you thinking.
“What kills the creative force is not age or lack of talent, but our own spirit, our own attitude.” -Robert Greene
“There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. When you learn to tap this source, you will truly have defeated age.” -Sophia Loren
“Passion is one great force that unleashes creativity, because if you’re passionate about something, then you’re more willing to take risks.” -Yo Yo Ma
“An essential aspect of creativity is not being afraid to fail.” -Edwin Land
“Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.” -Scott Adams
“Creativity requires the courage to let go of certainties.” -Erich Fromm
“Don’t think. Thinking is the enemy of creativity. It’s self-conscious, and anything self-conscious is lousy. You can’t try to do things. You simply must do things.” -Ray Bradbury
“I always tell people a clean cooking area is a clean mind which is available for the creativity.” -Carla Hall
“Creativity is more than just being different. Anybody can plan weird; that’s easy. What’s hard is to be as simple as Bach. Making the simple, awesomely simple, that’s creativity.” -Charles Mingus
“Creativity is not just for artists. It’s for businesspeople looking for a new way to close a sale; it’s for engineers trying to solve a problem; it’s for parents who want their children to see the world in more than one way.” -Twyla Tharp
“Innovation is creativity with a job to do.” -John Emmerling
“Creativity is not the finding of a thing, but the making something out of it after it is found.” -James Russell Lowell
“I can always be distracted by love, but eventually I get horny for my creativity.” -Gilda Radner
“A hunch is creativity trying to tell you something.” -Frank Capra
“Living creatively is really important to maintain throughout your life. And living creatively doesn’t mean only artistic creativity, although that’s part of it. It means being yourself, not just complying with the wishes of other people.” -Matt Groening
“Creativity is piercing the mundane to find the marvelous.” – Bill Moyers
“A lot of my business is about protecting creativity.” -Drew Barrymore
“Creativity comes from trust. Trust your instincts. And never hope more than you work.” -Rita Mae Brown
“You can’t fake creativity, competence, or sexual arousal.” -Douglas Coupland
“The nature of creativity is to make space for things to happen… We can drive it out with our busyness and plans.” -Iain McGilchrist
“When I ask for help with my creativity, I get it.” -Julia Cameron
“The only problem is time.” -Seth MacFarlane
How does creativity show up for you, and how do you act on it? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!
I cannot wait to see what you draw forth,
