There’s no argument anymore. Neuroscience confirms that
highly creative people think and act differently than the average person.
Their brains are literally hardwired in a unique way. But that gift
can often strain relationships.
If you love a highly creative person, you probably experience
moments when it seems like they live in a completely different world
than you. Truth is, they do. But trying to change them isn’t nearly as
effective as trying to understand them.
It all begins by seeing the world through their lens and
remembering these 20 things:
1. They have a mind that never slows down.
The creative mind is a non-stop machine fuelled by
intense curiosity. There is no pause button and no way to power it down.
This can be exhausting at times but it is also the source of some crazy fun
activities and conversations.
2. They challenge the status quo.
Two questions drive every creative person more
than any others: What if? Why not? They question what everyone else takes at
face value. While uncomfortable for those around them, it’s this ability
that enables creative to redefine what’s possible.
3. They embrace their genius even if others don’t.
Creative individuals would rather be authentic than
popular. Staying true to who they are, without compromise, is how they
define success even if means being misunderstood or marginalized.
4. They have difficulty staying on task.
Highly creative people are energized by taking big
mental leaps and starting new things. Existing projects can turn into
boring slogs when the promise of something new and exciting grabs their
attention.
5. They create in cycles.
Creativity has a rhythm that flows between periods of
high, sometimes manic, activity and slow times that can feel like slumps. Each
period is necessary and can’t be skipped just like the natural seasons are
interdependent and necessary.
6. They need time to feed their souls.
No one can drive cross-country on a single take of gas.
In the same way, creative people need to frequently renew their source of
inspiration and drive. Often, this requires solitude for periods of time.
7. They need space to create.
Having the right environment is essential to peak
creativity. It may be a studio, a coffee shop, or a quiet corner of the house.
Wherever it is, allow them to set the boundaries and respect them.
8. They focus intensely.
Highly creative people tune the entire world out when
they’re focused on work. They cannot multi-task effectively and it can take
twenty minutes to re-focus after being interrupted, even if the interruption
was only twenty seconds.
9. They feel deeply.
Creativity is about human expression and communicating
deeply. It’s impossible to give what you don’t have, and you can only take
someone as far as you have gone yourself. A writer once told me that an artist
must scream at the page if they want a whisper to be heard. In the same
way, a creative person must feel deep if they are to communicate deeply.
10. They live on the edge of joy and depression.
Because they feel deeply, highly creative people often can
quickly shift from joy to sadness or even depression. Their sensitive heart,
while the source of their brilliance, is also the source of their suffering.
11. They think and speak in stories.
Facts will never move the human heart like storytelling can.
Highly creative people, especially artists, know this and weave stories into
everything they do. It takes longer for them to explain something, explaining
isn’t the point. The experience is.
12. They battle Resistance every day.
Steven Pressfield, author of The War of Art, writes:
“Most of us have two lives. The life we live, and the
unlived life within us. Between the two stands Resistance.”
Highly creative people wake up every morning, fully aware of
the need to grow and push themselves. But there is always the fear,
Resistance as Pressfield calls it, that they don’t have what it takes. No matter
how successful the person, that fear never goes away. They simply learn to deal
with it, or not.
13. They take their work personally.
Creative work is a raw expression of the person who created
it. Often, they aren’t able to separate themselves from it, so every critique
is seen either as a validation or condemnation of their self-worth.
14. They have a hard time believing in themselves.
Even the seemingly self-confident creative person often
wonders, Am I good enough? They constantly compare their work with
others and fail to see their own brilliance, which may be obvious to everyone
else.
15. They are deeply intuitive.
Science still fails to explain the How and Why of
creativity. Yet, creative individuals know instinctively how to flow in it
time and again. They will tell you that it can’t be understood; only
experienced first hand.
16. They often use procrastination as a tool.
Creative people are notorious procrastinators because many
do their best work under pressure. They will subconsciously, and sometimes purposefully,
delay their work until the last minute simply to experience the rush
of the challenge.
17. They are addicted to creative flow.
Recent discoveries in neuroscience reveal that “the
flow state” might be the most addictive experience on earth. The mental and
emotional payoff is why highly creative people will suffer through the highs
and lows of creativity. It’s the staying power. In a real sense, they are
addicted to the thrill of creating.
18. They have difficulty finishing projects.
The initial stage of the creative process is fast moving and
charged with excitement. Often, they will abandon projects that are too
familiar in order to experience the initial flow that comes at the beginning.
19. They connect dots better than others.
True creativity, Steve Jobs once said, is little more than
connecting the dots. It’s seeing patterns before they become obvious to
everyone else.
20. They will never grow up.
Creative people long to see through the eyes of a
child and never lose a sense of wonder. For them, life is about
mystery, adventure, and growing young. Everything else is simply existing, and
not true living.
