Build Your Creative Confidence

Are you creative?

Raised in a very rational society many people respond no, I’m not the creative type. That’s because during childhood we are taught that most questions have only one right answer (2+2=4). If people tell us that our drawing is not as perfect as the real object we get discouraged and stop drawing. However, to be creative we should stick with the process of looking things in a different perspective, with no fear of judgment or failure. We need to build and rebuild our confidence and recycle our ideas constantly.

An essential key to this process is curiosity. Knowledge is your toolbox and also your best friend. To be creative we need to ask questions and pay attention to what is around us. My best advice is to power off your cell phone, disconnect from the virtual world and live the real life a little bit. Don’t forget your notebook! Go to your favorite restaurant, gallery or grocery store and act as if you were there for the first time. Think about things that could be improved and write it down. The best ideas come from things that are there, but nobody noticed. The big crowd is more interested in their own digital world that they don’t see their surroundings. They are too busy to pay attention to it.

During this tour you will probably find an insight. A global truth that nobody saw before. Insights are used in successful advertisement campaigns, innovation of products, Internet memes, videos and comedian jokes. How do you know if you found an insight? Tell your friends and see their reaction. If they agree and recognize themselves in the situation you describe, congratulations! You found it!

Disconnect from virtual world and experience the real life like first time is a great exercise that creative people need to practice. The more you follow try it the best you’re going to be in recognizing interesting situations to explore. Good look in your first creative tour and let me know what you found.