What is Creativity Anyway?

I find myself in a creative field, though it has taken me some time to come around to this idea. Not unlike a lot of small business owners, I straddle (at least) two worlds.

First, there’s content marketing. The stuff I write for clients is intended primarily to sell products and services. Then there’s the artistry of the writing itself. What I write isn’t traditional marketing (if there is such a thing). In fact, I quickly moved away from calling myself a “copywriter” because I see writing copy as an entirely different kind of animal and I honestly want no part of it.

Both content marketing and writing are creative endeavors and yet, calling myself “a creative” has never felt that comfortable. I find that observation fascinating and it has prompted that dusty little philosopher in me to think about what creativity is. And there’s no better place to explore this kind of thought than in an article. So, here I go.

What is creativity?

What prompted the above contemplations about creativity, is a book I recently picked up while on a yoga retreat in Costa Rica. I know you’re expecting me to name a book by Gandhi or some other spiritual guru, but no, the book I’m reading is Creative Quest by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, who is a guru of sorts in his own right.

If you’re not familiar with the name (I wasn’t when I spotted the book on NPR’s book concierge list of the best books of 2018), Questlove is a DJ, music and television producer, and the drummer/bandleader of The Roots. You may have also seen him on NBC’s The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.

Clearly, Questlove has thought through what creativity means. This is one of the big questions he asks in the book and although most of the musical references (and there are a ton of them) go over my head, I’m really enjoying witnessing this self-exploration of an exceptionally creative mind.

Questlove starts his book like this:

“Decades into my career, with many albums and songs under my belt, I still don’t know if I am truly creative. Most days I spend more time absorbing the creative work around me than actually creating myself. At times I feel like I’m a way better student than I am a teacher or a maker.”

When I first read these words, I was immediately hooked. I too am a way better student than teacher or maker. Sometimes I wish this weren’t the case because people look to me as the expert and knowing that can make me feel like a fraud (hello imposter syndrome my old friend). But when I look at my professional life more objectively, I can see that this aspect of self, both enables me to do good work as a ghostwriter and hinders my ability to work most efficiently on certain projects.

I often say, I can find something of interest about almost any topic. This natural curiosity keeps me moving forward during the long hard grind of writing a book. But it also makes my job as a filter (filterer? Is that a word?) of information challenging. Yes, there are mountains of information available, but a good book (or article or song) must cut through all the noise and snatch your attention with exactly the information that resonates with you. That’s a tall order.

And, here’s the thing: what I just described doesn’t sound like creativity to me. It sounds like curation. It’s sounds like problem solving. But creativity? I’m not sure.

So, what is creativity anyway?

I suppose I think of creativity as an art form. I think of it as building something from scratch and perhaps as building that something for its own sake. According to this definition, content marketing isn’t creative, while writing may or may not be. Writing fiction or poetry is certainly creative, but the kind of non-fiction writing I do as part of my day job is not creative.

It’s not as simple as if you get paid to produce it, then it’s not creative and if you don’t get paid to produce it, then it’s creative. But it’s close. This is just the kind of narrow definition Questlove rejects and I give him a lot of credit for expanding my definition of creativity.

After reading this book, I doubt the concept can be captured in a simple sentence or definition. But Questlove does offer up a few definitions to chew on:

• “Creativity is the personality that makes it possible that something new and somehow valuable can be formed.”
• “Creativity is not about letting everything in—it’s about refusing to keep things out.”
• “Being creative is the proof that we can leave an imprint on our surroundings, that we can make a mark on time.”

These definitions are on one level simpler and on another level deeper than the definition I had in my head. When I say that I don’t feel like the label “creative” fits my work, I don’t mean to suggest I don’t think of myself as a creative person. I do think I have the kind of personality that makes it possible for something new and valuable to be formed, for instance. So, is my work properly described as creative?

Is ghostwriting creative?

This is an interesting question with two sides: am I as the ghostwriter exercising creativity when I write a book for a client? And is my client exercising creativity when I write a book for that client?

Yes, this question occasionally keeps me up at night. But then I take a step back and wonder how much the exercise of creativity matters. Suppose you pick up a business book written by one of my clients and benefit a great deal from reading the book. Then later, you find out that I had a hand in writing it. Does that new knowledge reduce the value you received? Not in the least, it seems to me. And if we throw in the very real possibility that this book and its contents would have never seen the light of day without a ghostwriter, it seems that who’s exercising the creativity matters even less.   

There are those who would disagree. I recently and for the first time had a brush with a touch of hostility toward the kind of work I do at a party. “Excuse me? You write books for other people? Is that ethical?” The person asking these questions comes from an academic background. So, I understand (to some extent) where the hostility is coming from. When the value of your work just is the value of the exercise of your creative mind, it is fraudulent to put forth work that is not your own. In academia, a lot of weight is given to who wrote what.

This is one of the ways in which I find the business world to be much more egalitarian than the world of academia. In business, the value is in the content itself. The owner and creator of valuable information is rewarded for sharing the information, as it should be. And in the end, it’s up to the owner or creator and her consumer to decide what that reward looks like. As long as this remains the case, there will be a place for my kind of creativity.

I’m a problem solver.

I’m a filterer of information.

I’m a curator of ideas.

I’m a collaborative creator.

Here’s the answer that helps me sleep at night: as a ghostwriter, I work closely with my client to produce a book that he or she wouldn’t have created on his or her own. The collaboration itself is creative. Through my work, I am making it possible for something new and valuable to see the light of day. I am helping my client to leave her mark on time and even though my name is not on the book, I’m also leaving my mark.

Questlove puts it best when he says, “Art doesn’t have to be something you do only behind closed doors, for personal spiritual gain. But it also isn’t simply a product-based process that’s at the mercy of the market. I live and work at the intersection of art and commerce.”

So, when I think about creativity in this light, I’m as grateful to my clients as they are to me. I’m grateful that I get to earn my living chasing ideas I wouldn’t have otherwise discovered. I’m grateful that I get to exercise my creativity in a cooperative endeavor that has the potential to increase value in the world.

How to Awaken Your Creative Self

Not only do I resist the label “creative,” I resist telling others how to become creative, as if there’s some kind of code to live by. But I do think everyone has a creative spark and everyone has the power to awaken a kind of authentic energy within.

Don’t believe me? Try hanging out with some tiny humans around the age of 3 or 4, for an afternoon. Kids can barely contain their creative spark. It’s a beautiful thing!

Here are a few ways to reconnect to that authentic, inner energy:

1. Allow unexpected influences to shift your ideas.

“That’s one thing about being creative. Don’t be too set in your own ways. Be suggestible from time to time. Allow unexpected influences to shift your ideas. You can always come back to your own convictions if they’re real. But be a tourist in other perspectives.”

This is one of the reasons I enjoy networking. It’s a chance to connect with strangers and to expand my perspective by hearing about how they think about their work. I recently signed up for a conference in D.C. The theme for the conference applies to me insofar as it’s designed for female entrepreneurs, but otherwise, it’s not at all specific to the work I do. I’m simply hoping to learn something new and meet some people outside of my bubble. Who knows what new sparks will be ignited?  

2. Pay attention.

“Pay attention to seeds...Big ideas grow from those little things. Writers tend to be people who are sensitive to words. Artists are sensitive to color and line. If you want to encourage your own creativity, try to pay attention to the creative acts of others.”

This is where natural curiosity comes in handy. You can encourage your own creativity by, as Questlove says, paying attention to the creative acts of others. But perhaps more surprisingly, you can also learn about creativity by paying attention to acts that you wouldn’t necessarily think of as creative. For example, watching a skilled electrician wire a ceiling fan can be fascinating. You’d be surprised (or maybe you wouldn’t be) how many little problems come up with you’re doing electrical work. Each little problem requires a creative solution.

You can look for creative links and find them everywhere if you pay attention. Allowing your mind to make these connections keeps you in a creative frame of mind. In short, we’re all having ideas all the time (as long as our brains are functioning, anyway) the trick is to key in on the ones worth putting on display for others.

3. Practice taking yourself out of the immediate moment.

“It’s hard to pinpoint an epiphany, and it always seems artificial from the outside...This is the mental strategy, the Jedi mind trick, the Zen exercise. You have to be both consumed by the moment and also a million miles away.”

Questlove talks about doing mini-meditations. Whenever he feels stuck on a problem, he takes himself out of the immediate moment to gain the space to come up with the solution. I use this kind of trick when I’m writing to avoid writer’s block. But I also take myself out of the moment as a sort of regular exercise to rest my brain during my work day.

The ability to step back is important regardless of the type of work you’re doing. Seeing the world from a perspective other than your own gives you the space to recognize the humanity in others, even when you’re having a crappy day. I’d even venture to say, the ability to put your own problems and challenges in perspective is the key to happiness.

Well, I’m not sure I’ve solved any big philosophical questions here, but I do think I understand how my thinking about the concept of creativity has evolved. I am more comfortable calling myself “a creative” than I was when I started. So that’s progress.

If you’re in a creative field and you’ve had similar doubts and questions, I recommend picking up Creative Quest by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson. And if you’ve never had such doubts or questions, you may benefit even more from giving it a read. There are worse things to spend time on than thinking about creativity.

Have a creative book idea? Let's talk about a creative collaboration. Message me on LinkedIn or email me at [email protected].?