Too much experience within a field may restrict creativity because you know so well how things should be done that you are unable to escape to come up with new ideas." - Edward de Bono"
"An unreasonable faith is something that doesn't exist." ~ David Byrne
If enough people believe you can do it, you will figure it out. Did you more dentists have the first name Dennis?
(featuring notes from Zen & The Art of Making a Living by Laurence Boldt)
Each stage has it's own reward. In the beginning, there's an enthusiastic joy of the idea. We then find ourselves in that state of flow where we become absorbed in the creation. Finally, there's the explosive joy of completion.
Where our love for the vision of it sets us in motion. We begin to collect the technical, material, intellectual, and human resources required to manifest it. It's knowing we can can proceed with confidence and faith... trusting that 'Love makes us fit for any work' (George Herbert).
In short, your interest is piqued.
There is a difference between being interested by something and being interested in something. This is where your level of commitment is tested. You can be interested by an attractive women. But to win her over, you have to be interested in her. You can be interested by writing, but to write day in and day out, you have to be interested in it. Our investment into it determined by our level of interest.
It's when we set our own needs aside and give ourselves fully to it. When we gives ourselves selflessly to it.
The best test of saturation is your willingness to do the work and become consumed in the discovery phase. I'll admit, this is where I often get stuck. I can go down rabbit holes of discovery that I ultimately get lost in.
These reveal themselves in unfinished projects and plenty of pent up potential. Over time, that potential fades ☹.
Saturation: This is the second phase of the creative process. We might call this stage “great absorption” or “magnificent obsession.”
It's the one that separates the men from the boys. It's when we discover there is a world of difference between being interested by something and being interested in something.
While the idea hooked you, your willingness to stick with it, even when you're not sure of what you're doing, persists.
This is the test of saturation.
"In the first stage, the creative idea comes to you; in the last stage, it takes on its own life; in the middle, the saturation stage, it takes your life. It temporarily embodies in you. Because of your love for this vision, you freely give yourself over to it. Think of a creative idea as a living entity that exists on another plane of existence. This entity wants to live on the physical plane—the problem is, it doesn't have a physical body; so it will borrow yours while you make one for it. The entity will tell you how to construct its new body and will work through you to do it."
Expect the pain of labor to follow suit. We like to think that creatives enjoy every minute of it, but the truth is there are days when it will feel like work. If you wait until you feel inspired, you'll never make it.
This is why the lives of creative artists sometimes take on a tragic quality.
Until we have set the idea free, we can find ourselves suspended between two worlds (the idea realm of the creative vision and the physical world of manifestation).
Saturation becomes an obsession and we will find ourselves easily able to neglect other areas of our life (like health and relationships).
It's when the creative idea consumes the life of the creator.
Intensity is the essence of saturation.
Sometimes the work comes out all at once. Other times, it inches forward.
Often it (the idea, the vision) demands that we level up to convey the vision.
"The man who wrote part one was not the same man who wrote part two."
In the final stage, the work becomes a thing in itself, whole and complete. A tremendous explosive relief often accompanies the completion of a creative work. The thing has it's own life now and is done with you (though something of you is in it).
There may be a sense of loss. If we hold too tightly to that which now has its own life, if after the high voltage of saturation we find our energy dropping to a more mundane level, if we no longer feel useful, or if we are struck at how far the creation seems to stand from the original vision, we may feel a sense of loss or let down.
On the other hand, we might experience great joy on completion. One may feel as though a great burden has been lifted from his shoulders. He may feel free to pursue other creative endeavors that were not possible while he was saturated in the previous creative work.
The joy of the completion is in the total release of saturated energy.
"My definition of the creative process is the impulse I get when I am creating something that is part of me, that I must “get out” of me. It is the feeling I get when I’m connected to a source greater than myself when my ego gets out of the way — and it’s an experience, a verb more than a noun. It’s the shivers I get when I am moved by something profound or by something that makes me expand my perspective in this world." ~
"The human spirit lives on creativity and dies in conformity and routine." - Vilayat Inayat Khan
Heidi Grant Halvorson suggests that we should avoid a “Be Good” mindset — one where we are constantly attempting to prove our superiority to the world. Instead, we should embrace a “Get Better” mindset — where we always perceive ourselves as having more to learn. When we embrace a Get Better mindset, we welcome risk and are less afraid of failure, both key to personal development.
Creativity and a shared consciousness.
Brian Eno argues against the notion of individual genius and instead proposes the idea of "scenius" - the collective, communal nature of creativity and intelligence. He contends that while we tend to celebrate individual "geniuses" in art history, these individuals actually emerged from and were influenced by a lively, interactive cultural scene. According to Eno, the creative potential of communities and cooperation has been overlooked and underutilized.
Eno goes on to assert that the current societal expectation to "earn a living" and immediately get a job after schooling restricts people from fully developing their unique talents and pursuing creative vocations. He advises young artists and students not to automatically seek traditional jobs, but rather to try to retain the freedom to spend time doing what they find meaningful. Eno recognizes that economic realities make this difficult for many.
Ultimately, Eno's key points are:
In summary, Eno critiques the notion of lone genius and advocates for cooperative intelligence. He believes societal pressures push people into unfulfilling work rather than enabling them to fully develop and express their creativity collaboratively. Rethinking these systems could unlock greater human potential.