Re-Gaining Our Creative Confidence in 2021
IDEO’s David and Tom Kelley wrote a powerful book, titled ‘Creative Confidence,’ that helps readers unleash the creativity that lies within us all. Creative confidence is the belief that everyone is creative, and that creativity isn’t confined to our ability to draw, compose or sculpt. It presents itself as a way of understanding the world.
The Kelley brothers liken our creative confidence to a muscle in our bodies. The more you train, exercise and utilise this muscle, the stronger it becomes. The same holds for your creative confidence. When you become strong creatively, only then do you have the creative confidence to come up with creative new ideas and encourage others do the same.
Over a lifetime, our creative confidence can be shattered by several events. We may have been told we can’t draw all too well in school or that our clay sculpture looks nothing like the model. As these events often occur in our younger years, it can have a profound impact on our creative confidence for years to come.
We often doubt our creative abilities and believe that creativity is a fixed trait that we’re born with, a trait that cannot be acquired or developed. We can be led to believe that creative endeavours are reserved for artists, sculptors and musicians alike and those who work in academia or as a lawyer or a G.P could never dabble in such creative ventures. These misconceptions can be considered as prime examples of the ‘creativity myth’ that many of us encounter. Creativity in fact, is not a fixed trait, nor is it limited to a particular profession. We encounter creativity when we have the opportunity to generate new ideas, solutions or approaches.
As we look towards re-gaining our creative confidence this year, we hope you too can recognise and embrace your creative abilities. The manner in which we are creative may vary depending on our profession or interests. However as the Kelley brothers state, creative abilities reside within us all. To discover your creative personality and creative strengths, complete the Adobe Creative Types quiz available here.
