... NOT being creative.

In other words, why is it that  creatively ambitious and productive behavior is considered out of the ordinary, while settling for uncreative thinking and activity is considered the norm -- acceptable even?

My theory that I proselytize over and over is: If you're human, your innate calling is to express yourself creatively in some way and when you're not, you suffer. We all suffer. It's just that "being creative" is attributed to a small kitty of people in our communities.

Good news: creativity is being increasingly heralded as the greatest attribute in businesses and teams and among leaders. Bad news: in times of hardship and recessions (like now), creativity gets thrown in the backseat while we fumble to survive.  Stress and creativity do not support each other well.

So how do you most want to express yourself? The answers to this question might be the starting point to get you thinking, acting, feeling more creative. It could be the fruitful question that gets you moving away from repressed stress and toward a freer way of moving in the world that feels like YOU. And THAT is creativity.

This post was inspired by a quote by the psychologist Abraham Maslow:

The key question isn’t “What fosters

creativity?” but it is why in God’s name isn’t

everyone creative? Where was the human

potential lost? How was it crippled? I think

therefore a good question might be not why do

people create? But why do people not create or

innovate? We have got to abandon that sense of

amazement in the face of creativity, as if it were

a miracle if anybody created anything.

—Abraham Maslow