The Probity Post

Where does creativity come from? Why isn’t it always available when we need it? How do we get more of it? Why are some people more creative than others? Why is it that sometimes we’re very creative, and, other times, we’re not creative at all? The answers to these questions are often ambiguous and illusive—seldom clear and precise. However, I believe that everyone has the same access to the unlimited supply of creativity available in the universe. Our supply of creativity is endless, we could never, Ever, EVER, run out of creativity. Better said, we always have the option to express our self creatively—whether or not we choose to exercise that option, and access our natural, pure creativity is entirely up to us. Creativity is simply the productive originality of the Soul—it’s what our Creative Spirit does when we’re not in the room. And “Creative block” is simply the head interfering in what the heart wants to say!

If you think about it, what actually lies before us, each and every moment, (whether we draw or not) is a blank canvas that’s just waiting for some wet paint. However, sadly, most of the time, we choose the same colors over and over again, expecting a different picture to show up on the canvas. We use safe colors that we think have worked for us in the past, or we suspect have worked for others. Seldom do we ever dip our brush into a color that’s controversial, because we don’t want to rock the boat, or worse yet, have people think we really don’t know what we’re doing. I’ve always observed that if you’re rich and successful, and do outrageous things people think you’re a creative, eccentric genius. However, if you’re broke and unknown, and do outrageous things, people just think you’re crazy. Our society seems to grant creative liberty to people who are wealthy and successful, and hold suspect, people of little means. Therefore, it would be reasonable to assume that our degree of creative expression or performance is predicated on the reaction of our friends, family, peers and audience. If they all approve, then we’re awarded the moniker of “creatively talented.” If they don’t approve, we retreat, and try harder to please them, until we get it right.

The author of Eat, Pray, Love, Elizabeth Gilbert, has a different way to think about creative genius. Check out her “TED” speech.

Contrived Creativity
From my humble show biz perch, I can easily recognize two types of creativity: “Contrived Creativity” and “Pure Creativity.” Contrived Creativity is efforting and demanding, and is usually “sold-out” for money, fame, or a hollow ego-stroke. It’s forced, like writing supermarket novels or mundane TV shows. It never feels natural, and the result is, it never expresses what you really want to say. This type of creativity starts with an exciting idea, then gets passed through the gauntlet of considerations, useless gossip, false rules, and fear, until it becomes a manufactured garment made from synthetic ideas. What’s wrong with that you ask? You’re ripping your Self and the rest of us off by holding back, and not fully and honestly expressing your particular gift of originality. You’re attempting to generate ordinary, predictable results out of fear, rather than simply manifesting extraordinary results out of the fearlessness of your Creative Spirit.

Pure Creativity
Then there is pure creativity. Pure Creativity has no boundaries or rules. It has no rhyme or reason, and is not based on any logical conclusion of what is the proper way to produce or create a result. Pure Creativity is free of impurities, totally naked, and does not wear the clothing of pride, selfishness or ego. Pure Creativity has absolutely no purpose until its creator gives it one. Pure creativity bubbles up from the heart, it does not trickle down from the head. It cannot be bought, taught or found in any book. It has no formula for completion, and is only available to its creator when used in conjunction with the truth. Pure Creativity is not learning how to play guitar, it’s remembering how to play. It’s not writing a new script, it’s summoning the thespians of your imagination. It’s not painting a pretty picture, it’s getting out of the way so a colorful expression can appear on the canvas. The place where pure creativity exists has not yet been fully explored. However, it has been known to hide in such elusive places as that serene, silent space between one thought and the next, prowling in the privacy of naiveté and innocence, wedged between bright ideas and self doubt, and dancing in the shadows of spontaneity and impulsive behavior. The ultimate result of Pure Creativity is expressed love.

The masters and merchants of creativity all have one thing in common: They all agree that art, creativity and imagination are the keys to unleashing the human spirit. Listen closely, as they whisper their wisdom from the grave:

Pablo Picasso: Painting is stronger than I am—it makes me do what IT wishes.
Henry Miller: An artist is one who has faith in himself. He does not respond to the normal stimuli—he is neither a drudge nor a parasite. He lives to express himself, and in so doing he enriches the world.
John F. Kennedy: We must never forget that art is not a form of propaganda, it is a form of truth. If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him.
Jose Ortega: Being an artist means ceasing to take seriously that very person we are when we’re not an artist.
Albert Einstein: Imagination is more important than knowledge, for knowledge is limited while imagination embraces the entire world.
Igor Stravinski: The artist has an imperative need to make others share the joy which he experiences himself—in order to create, there must be a dynamic force, and what force is more potent than love.

Taking Creative Career Risks in Showbiz
This industry needs more risk-takers! It has become the business of staying within the stifling boundaries of certainty for the mere satisfaction of seeking a personal, financial or egotistical advantage. There are far too many genuinely creative people selling out their talent in all areas of Show Biz today—from TV producers lured by networks to maintain the acceptable status quo, to the actors and writers themselves, who sell out to mundane scripts that have the potential to inadvertently subject us and our children to disturbing violence and mindless drama.
We need to risk the chance of being criticized, and create a new inner motto: “I will fully express myself creatively no matter what people think of me, and I will follow my Creative Spirit wherever IT leads!”

The truth is, the risk-takers in this business, who have followed their own personal Creative Muse are praised and rewarded in life for being the pioneers of the industry, for being the ones who paved the way for the rest of us to follow. They’re the ones who have opened doors so that others may fully express themselves.

To Conquer Without Risk, Is To Triumph Without Glory! - From The Movie “El-Cid.”

Using your own creative instincts as your sword, you can dispel your fears, and forge through the fictitious barriers, blocks and filters of the mind, and access pure creativity, thereby fulfilling your secret, inner desire to contribute your talent to the world. Because, underneath the daily occurrences of your life, entangled deep in your human condition, stuck in the silly putty of the social circumstances that you find yourself in, there is an essence, the sweet essence of your Creative Spirit, that longs to express, craves to contribute, lives to experience, cries to create, and is more than willing to risk it all! Learn to recognize your own personal and unique Creative Spirit—give thanks for it, honor it, praise it, and be grateful for it. Follow your own Creative Spirit, wherever IT wants to go, without hesitation, and it will always guide you toward stimulating and  inspiring, adventures.

As always, I appreciate and look forward to your comments.

Peace & Love,
Michael