“Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up”

It’s a bold statement from Pablo Picasso, especially when you see what I draw and paint, but I agree with him, if not for any other reason than faith and hope that if I undo some things, I can become more artistic. UNDO is the operative word in that first sentence. Undo so much of what I was taught as a child to be right and true, with the express outcome of fitting into an adult world, getting a job, paying my taxes, and doing the same thing to my own children.

How one reclaims one’s creativity (or artistry, as Picasso might say) is a large interest area for me. I am convinced that world is short of creative, curious and thoughtful minds. It takes only one newspaper read to conclude that the world is a throughly bankrupt place with very few solutions to the quagmire of hopelessness we reside in.

A week or two ago I stumbled across a post on Colour Living written by Richard Huntington. Richard lists 9 things that keep him creative. You’ll have to read the original post to get the full context. I’m going to simply list a few of his thoughts that appealed to me:

I don’t read business books and I try to avoid the very many books that people write about brands, advertising and communications – unless they are of ground breaking importance. Rather I try and consume random stuff that interests me and that might provide a lateral spark that helps solve a problem

 

Most of the time I am exposed to exactly the same stimulus as other people its just I am on the look out and listening for thoughts that others have ignored because they don’t see their significance

 

Focus on what is interesting and not what is right

 

I find that the more that your thinking is unpalatable the better it is

 

I am all for things that help us enjoy the idiosyncrasies of the World around us, for in those moments are locked real insight about people’s lives

 

I have a little trick if the solutions are slow in coming. I ask everything that I come across to help me

 

I find that people are far better at getting their heads around new thinking if they can see it rather than simply read it so my life is full of Venn diagrams, triangles, wedges and visual metaphors

 

Find your creative routine

 

You and your life to date should always be your greatest source of inspiration and insight