Are you Creative?
Author: Amyn Lalji

What makes a person Great? Is it really something that is in one's genes or is it something that one achieves over a period by going through ups and downs of life. Many people agree that great individuals whether they have the genes of greatness embedded in their DNA or they nurture it, all of them have one thing in common, their ability to look at things and situations differently. To look at something differently is what we call in a layman's language as Creativity. Creativity is nothing but looking at situations and things from a totally different perspective. Unlike greatness, it is something that can be mastered by anyone, provided one knows how it really works.

Years of research on creativity show that creative individuals tend to have many characteristics that differentiate them from others in the realm of creativity. Most of the research studies indicate that creative people are not necessarily geniuses (as we define and understand the term), but they are usually bright in seeing and capturing multiple perspectives of those thoughts that are conventional, and based on this, they keep creating number of ideas and options endlessly. Even though not all the ideas seem to make sense or could be termed as good ideas, but the sheer number of developing ideas is what makes them creative as compared to the rest of the lot. Creative individuals (do this idea juggling, even when many of them seem ridiculous to others) because they develop a strong belief in their own selves. They are confident and have the ability to go on and on with their ideas whilst others would stop at a point when they hit a wall or seem to arrive near an expected result. Due to their strong belief in their own abilities and their own self, creative individuals learn to express themselves both emotionally and intellectually. One of the most astounding aspects of creative individuals is their paradoxical nature. On one hand they are quite imaginative, and think or talk about conditions and notions that are unrealistic, but on the other they develop realistic approaches to whatever they think or do. This paradoxical nature of creative people is what makes them different from the rest of the lot. However, I personally believe that in spite of all these attributes that differentiate a creative individual from the majority, they are too constraining in defining a truly creative person. Creativity is not an end in itself but a means towards an end. It is what makes you a better person and steers you towards what is important in your life as an individual. So creativity is nothing, it is "the culminating point of beauty, transformation, play and the act of being present."

Think over it!







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Creativity is the central topic of Amyn Lalji's new book "Bumped into the Wall - A Tool for Unblocking your Creativity and Releasing Your Creative Spirit" published in 2005. You can download an e-copy of his book at www.youperform.com. Amyn Lalji is a Creativity and Leadership Coach. He helps individuals and organisations unblock their creative spirit and create fulfilling lives.

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