Creativity

Creativity, according to Wikipedia, is “a mental and social process involving the generation of new ideas or concepts, or new associations of the creative mind between existing ideas or concepts. Creativity is fueled by the process of either conscious or unconscious insight. An alternative conception of creativeness is that it is simply the act of making something new.”

My guess is most of us think of creative people in terms of artists, writers, musicians and the like. And with good reason.  These people help us to see the world differently, to frame life in a different lens than we’ve used before.  And often they create new things altogether.

I’ve often wished I was a better doodler.  While in school I found that my drawings during lectures did little to cure any boredom.  In fact, they created quite the opposite reaction - I usually became angry that I couldn’t generate anything more exciting, beautiful, or at a minimum, creative.

Though I’m not much of a doodler, I still love to express my creative impulse.  Which is why I like writing.  It’s a chance to create something new that hasn’t existed before.

But creativity isn’t limited to traditional artistic mediums.  I admire individuals who figure out new ways to take on familiar situations in all parts of life.  That’s why I love this video so much, as it shows some guys doing their part to take surfing urban.  It’s creativity in everday life.  And that’s something I’ll always respect.

Surfing in Munich from Nat Friedman on Vimeo.