How to be Creative
Creativity is like biking to the top of a big hill. Do the hard work so that you can enjoy the wind downhill.
Creativity is like biking to the top of a big hill. You work really really hard going up the hill. You break sweat. Your muscles ache. It takes you 45 minutes to reach to the top. And, once you are at the top, let it go. Let it cruise. Let the bike pick up speed downhill. And you’ll find yourself speeding without any work. Let the gravity do the work. You get so fast so quickly it is scary. Enjoy the the wind.
Many believe that to be creative you need to break your chains. Be a hippie. Don’t be a robot. Don’t work too hard. When I examine the times when I came up with breakthrough ideas they were always after a very busy time. Maybe I was tired but I was also full of ideas.
Vacation is great. I love spending time with my family. But, after a few days I feel like my mind stops. I can’t remember any of the problems my product/users have. I can’t come up with new ideas. I can’t sit down and write something. I’ve lost momentum. Now that I have this amazing machine all oiled up and cleaned up spotless, it does not want to move. I am out of ideas. I am checked out.
Two summers ago, My wife and I took a 3 month road trip around Europe. We travelled great places and had an amazing time. But, my creativity took a big dive. I felt like my mind was getting rusted. I wanted to get back to the work. I wanted to think deeply about something important, find solutions to problems, build new things, have discussions with my team.
Here is the formula for creativity: 1. Work really really hard on an important problem. 2. And then, let go. Let ideas come to you. You need both the hard work and the relaxed state afterwards.
- If you don’t work restless on an important problem your brain has no reason to force itself to find solutions.
- If you don’t have downtime after the hard work your brain does not have space to think deeply.
When I am reading a book I always have a notepad and pen with me. When I find myself re-reading the same sentences, I know that my brain stopped reading and started coming up with ideas. I dump ideas from my mind to paper.
The reason this happens is that the brain needs to be alone when it needs deep thinking. Reading a book is slow so your conscious is spending so much energy and time on the processing the written words, and your unconscious mind is free to sneak out and do some deep thinking.
On an unrelated note, most of the time the ideas I write are not very good. I never have to re-read what I write to the notepad. If a great idea comes up it’ll stuck with me until I execute it.
How to use this technique in real life?
Writing. Think hard about your topic. Research it, but not too much. Force yourself to write about it, and then throw away what you wrote. Take some time, and then write again.
Hard Problem. Don’t accept the first solution that comes to your mind. Discuss ideas with others. Write them. Mindmap. Let your mind wonder. Read articles and books about the problem. And then go for a walk, or take a shower. You will suddenly start getting good solutions pop in your mind.
Planning. Learn what you need to know. Ask other people about their experiences. Take notes when new ideas pop-up. Give yourself time but try to advance your plan little bit every day.
Now that you know the formula to be creative, don’t waste any time, go ahead and do something amazing with it!
