Scott Jeffrey » humility

Relinquishing Control of the Creative Process

Scott Jeffrey — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 12:30:47 +0000

The more you try to be creative, the more creativity will elude you. Trying to capture the creative impulse is like grabbing water in your hand—the tighter your hold, the less water you retain.

The human ego has a constant drive to control its environment. Secretly believing that it is the source of the universe, the ego willfully looks to change everything. From the ego’s perspective, it is the source of creative inspiration.

Consciousness and psychological research, however, has demonstrated that the ego actually blocks creative expression. The more humility you possess, the more you are able to get out of your own way. As the ego’s hold is minimized, your creative potential is realized.

Instead of attempting to control the creative process, let go trying to change anything.

As a Student, your job is to explore the problem from every angle. But then, the Wanderer must step in. In the state of the Wanderer, the creative genius surrenders to the problem to something beyond himself and awaits the Muse’s answer.

When confronted with a difficult problem, seek to understand the nature of the problem. But then, simply allow the problem to be there. Your creative output can soar.

The Single Commonality of All Creative Geniuses

Scott Jeffrey — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 14:58:44 +0000

Creative geniuses intuit the impersonal nature of thoughts, ideas and creativity. Masterfully, they don’t take credit for their work; instead they credit a “higher power” as the source of their inspiration.

William Blake called it “Poetic Genius.” Puccini said his greatest opera Madame Butterfly was “dictated to me by God.” Both Brahms and Beethoven appealed directly to the “Creator Himself.”

Like Aristotle before him, Rudyard Kipling looked to his “Personal Daemon” for inspiration. And, in recounting his experience with the creative process, Mozart said, “What has been thus produced I do not easily forget, and this is perhaps the best gift I have my Divine Maker to thank for.”

A true genius does not wrestle between the polarities of false modesty and overt narcissism. If your thoughts aren’t personal, can you take credit for them as “mine”?

Humility is the trademark of creative genius: available to all, accepted by the treasured few.

Exercise: Close your eyes and tell your mind to stop thinking for 30 seconds. Notice how your mind will continue thinking, despite your best efforts. Next, close your eyes and simply observe the thoughts that come to mind for 60 seconds. Notice the random nature of the thought flow. This exercise will help detach you from the notion that thoughts are yours, paving the way to greater humility. This new awareness can increase your alignment with higher creativity.

5 MORE Ways to Become Creative at Work

Scott Jeffrey — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 11:00:56 +0000

Building on yesterday’s post, here are five more ways to align to creativity:

1) Clean the Mental Slate

Belief systems and “paradigm blindness” blocks our ability to see things in new ways. Be willing to let go of how things are generally perceived and view the problem from a clean slate.

2) Facilitate Open Dialogue

Quantum physicist David Bohm introduced the idea of dialoguing where a group of people willingly let go of their perceived notions and seek to find shared meaning. Lead your meeting with a sense of openness and collaboration in search of shared meaning instead of a debate where members try to persuade each other.

3) Maintain a Positive Attitude

If you start with the assumption that there is a solution and you have the inner resources to uncover it, you’ll increase your chances of aligning to the answer.

4) Come From a Place of Humility

Humility is a universal quality of the genius. A true genius rarely takes credit for the creative work he produces. Most geniuses look to some form of a “Higher Power” as the Source of their creative efforts. See yourself as a mere conduit for the creative impulse rather than its originator.

5) Be Patient

The Muse often appears at the most unlikely time and place. Stay ready. Stay open. And be patient. The creative impulse is not a personal phenomenon. You’re tapping into a universal field of consciousness that transcends the understanding of the human mind. When the conditions are appropriate, the solution will present itself.

Creativity is our natural state when we remove the barriers to its manifestation. Keep this in mind and have an inspired day.