Take a Leap of Faith Into Creativity

 Hello world, Kemi Writes here!

The section about "Attention and Creativity" in chapter 1 this week, was caught my eye the most. It truly opened my eyes on how certain sacrifices are needed to learn and create. Learning is where it begins to get to moving mountains in cultural domains and societal institutions. Time, effort, and commitment is what is needed before even getting to moving mountains and Big C creativity. This section reminded me of the fear called fear of missing out (FOMO), and it reminded me of a time where I was trying to learn something better, and I saw my friends were out at a party. I felt like I was missing out on that experience with my friends, and it took me a few days to get over that feeling. Trying to achieve creativity in a domain is kind of like a bittersweet moment because on one end, you're excited about learning and creating in the domain that is satisfying to you, but on the other end, you may grieve the other possibility of a night out with your friends or you may be seen as "selfish" because you are deeply engaged with the domain, as Csikszentmihalyi mentioned in this section. It just reminds me of the quote, "every choice we make is a risk, and every risk we take is a choice". 

Creativity opens the door to many possibilities, but it is still a risk one has to be willing to take because it is a choice that comes with its own set of risks/consequences, just like any other choice in life. I think that's why taking that leap of faith into the unknown of giving your attention to creativity pays off no matter what risk or consequences present themselves. There are rewards that are enriching and invigorating that comes from creativity. 

"The point is, a great deal of our limited supply of attention is committed to the tasks of surviving from one day to the next" (Csikszentmihalyi, pg.8).

This quote stuck with me from the reading this week. Many of us stay stuck in survival mode because we feel like we have to, but also because this is what is most comfortable to people, including myself. Csikzentmihalyi said, "If too few opportunities for curiosity are available, if too many obstacles are placed in the way of risk and exploration, the motivation to engage in creative behavior is easily extinguished" (pg.11). This just reminds me of the times I was a young girl letting caterpillars crawl on my fingers, hanging upside down on trees, riding my bike down a big hill while falling at the end, and swimming until the sun began to set. I did not think about consequences that would come from taking the risks and making those choices. I was just a curious and playful little girl then. Taking risks and being curious is actually one of the requirements for creativity to become, and that can't be done in survival mode. I think that survival mode can be rooted in the fear of being seen, and I think that fear stems from inner child wounds.

"A person cannot be creative in a domain to which he or she is not exposed."

The fear of being seen was something I struggled with and I believe it does stem from my inner child wounds of not being lovingly accepted or received, which I think is a huge problem in our society as well. I found the problem finding/problem solving activity we did this week to be very insightful for me because it brought the idea, "Inner Child Bubbles" to my awareness. This came to me before we did the activity, but I was doubting it at first. It did turn into an exciting idea to me, and I noticed how writing about it  during the activity in class filled me up with energy and excitement. All of the problems I mentioned were all similar to each other which I found interesting because I tried to write things relating to one overall problem. I don't remember who said it, but I remember that something was said about being called to be the person to create a solution for yourself and others, and that really stuck with me. I feel like I am being called to create a solution to something I have struggled with and others have as well. I wrote down something Dr. Gupta said and it was, "Turning rumination into innovation, you can still obsess.", and that gave me a perspective shift on my fears and inner child healing process. Create from it rather than stay in limbo with it. I am excited to see how Inner Child Bubbles unfolds throughout our classes and activities. Dancing may be included in Inner Child Bubbles, so stay tuned!

In the meantime... Be curious, take risks, and stay playful! (a message to me and you, truly)

XOXO,

Kemi Writes💗💭💃