The Surprising Connection Between Creativity and Career Fulfillment

I am not creative, or so I told myself for most of my life.? I draw like a 6-year-old (and that is insulting to many 6-year-olds).? My singing can be described as a caterwaul.? My dad had a harmonica that he taught himself to play.? It didn’t rub off on me.? I think you’re getting the picture.???

My perceived lack of creativity never really bothered me.? I appreciated it in other people, but it felt like it belonged to a different world that had no connection to my own. The world I lived in was ruled by spreadsheets, meetings, deadlines, and performance reviews.?

I am wagering that many of you reading this might feel the same way.? Creativity just doesn't factor into work. ?

But what if that isn’t true?? And more provocative still, what if creativity is the solution to whatever it is that is keeping you up at night??

The Magic of a Great Outfit?

Let me back up for a second and tell you about when I first realized that I was thinking about creativity was all wrong.? I can trace it back to a singular conversation.? Years ago, I was having a conversation with Jennifer Lee .? Jen is the author of the Right Brained Business Plan, but more than that, she is an otherworldly sprite whose endless creativity I both admired and was a little intimidated by.? At one point in our conversation, I told her that I have never been creative.? She paused, cocked her head quizzically and said, “what do you mean you’re not creative?? Look at how you dress.”???

It never occurred to me that something as simple as picking out clothes could be an act of creativity.? I wanted to minimize it, but I knew there was truth in it.? I started looking at other parts of my life and realized that I might just be creative after all…maybe even in my work life.?

The Solution to What’s Keeping You Up at Night?

When my clients inevitably hit a rough patch, they often begin to ask bigger questions.?? Why am I not further along?? Is this worth the sacrifices? Am I wasting my talents here?? What am I meant to be doing??

In these moments, they have lost their connection to their creativity.? I can literally see it in their body language and hear it in their voice.? The energy is flat, dejected, resigned.? But when they are clicked into their creativity, there is a visible aliveness that you can’t ignore.? What ignites that spark is different for each person.? For one of my clients, he creates PowerPoints that are like pieces of art.? Another client can take everyone’s jumble of ideas and create an elegantly simple project plan that makes you want to sigh with relief.? Another can walk into the most boring meetings and, by the end, have everyone energized and motivated.??

This is what creativity looks like in the workplace.? As opposed to extrinsic rewards like recognition, compensation and title, creativity is intrinsically motivated.? You create because you want to.? The reward is how you feel when you're engaged in it. You do it to learn, to challenge yourself or maybe just because you like it.???

The author Elizabeth Gilbert sums it up beautifully in this quote from her book Big Magic.???

…when I refer to “creative living”…I’m talking about living a life that is driven more strongly by curiosity than by fear…A creative life is an amplified life.? It’s a bigger life, a happier life, an expanded life, and a hell of a lot more interesting life. Living in this manner – continually and stubbornly bringing forth the jewels that are hidden within you – is a fine art, in and of itself.???

Reflection?

Imagine that your manager walked up to you and asked you to do something.? Now imagine that you can’t believe your luck that she asked you to take this on.? What did they ask you to do?????

Experiment

Review your calendar for the past week.? Write down every time you felt energized and excited.? What about those moments lit you up – what were you doing – sharing ideas, asking questions, making connections?? What else about those experiences felt alive – the people in the room, the subject matter, the brainstorming?? ?

For the next week, try to re-create that each day, even if it is just for 15 minutes.? Give yourself a permission slip to engage in your own creativity even if it is not your top priority or doesn’t lead to something tangible.? Let the intrinsic reward be enough.?