Yayoi Kusama — Creativity

Mark Twain — Courage

Ask yourself what you are afraid of? What fears control your actions? What fears are holding you back? Are you afraid of snakes? Heights? Success? Math? A blank piece of paper? Silence? A blank canvas? The neighbor's dog?

In 1972 I was traveling through the western United States and decided to visit a mentor from my childhood who was living in British Columbia, Canada at the time. Ernie was a lumberjack turned minister and missionary.  He had been the camp director of a Bible camp that I had attended every summer from the age of ten until high school.  He was physically a very strong man.  He could grab a pole with both hands and raise his legs in the air until they were parallel with the floor much like a flag.

I spent a couple of weeks with him in the Canadian Rockies.  One time he took a group of us on a two-day canoe ride on a large lake.  I saw from a distance a grizzly bear fishing for salmon.  On our way home we encountered fog and lost our way.  After going in a circle a couple of times, Ernie stopped the canoes and asked us to bow our heads in prayer.  Despite his strength, Ernie knew that he could not let fear conquer him so he turned to God, the one source of strength that he knew.  

Creative leaders must learn to shake off the chains of fear. Fear can prevent us from taking risks, trying new ideas, exploring new ways of thinking. Each of us must find the courage to do what we desire to do despite our fears.

Anwar el Sadat - Fear

Many years ago I read these words in In Search of An Identity, the autobiography of Anwar el Sadat, President of Egypt from 1970 to 1981, and since then I have been sharing his words with my audiences in my motivational speeches on leadership.

Fear is a powerful tool for destroying the soul of a person and the spirit of a creative artist. Rulers have used it for centuries and so have parents. "You better behave or the bogeyman will get you."

Ask yourself what you are afraid of? What fears control your actions? What fears are holding you back? Are you afraid of snakes? Heights? Success? Math? A blank piece of paper? Silence? A blank canvas? The neighbor's dog?

In 1972 I was traveling through the western United States and decided to visit a mentor from my childhood who was living in British Columbia, Canada at the time. Ernie was a lumberjack turned minister and missionary.  He had been the camp director of a Bible camp that I had attended every summer from the age of ten until high school.  He was physically a very strong man.  He could grab a pole with both hands and raise his legs in the air until they were parallel with the floor much like a flag.

I spent a couple of weeks with him in the Canadian Rockies.  One time he took a group of us on a two-day canoe ride on a large lake.  I saw from a distance a grizzly bear fishing for salmon.  On our way home we encountered fog and lost our way.  After going in a circle a couple of times, Ernie stopped the canoes and asked us to bow our heads in prayer.  Despite his strength, Ernie knew that he could not let fear conquer him so he turned to God, the one source of strength that he knew.  

Creative leaders must learn to shake off the chains of fear. Fear can prevent us from taking risks, trying new ideas, exploring new ways of thinking. Each of us must find the courage to do what we desire to do despite our fears.

Carol Emshwiller — Change the World

Sometimes as creative leaders, we hope we can change the world — to make it a better place for everyone. Unfortunately, our vision of what we want the world to be and what it actually is rarely match. And even the most powerful people can not change the world to fit their vision. We can have an impact on the lives of some people and can alter the small corner of the universe where we eat and sleep. Maybe as Emshwiller suggests, we need to lower our sights. If I touch one heart, changed one life, I have made a powerful difference.

If I want to influence the world that I inhabit, I must first change myself. As creative leaders, we must work on becoming who we need to become before we can change those around us. It is very difficult to change someone else. Husbands and wives understand this. Those who learn to accept their spouses for who they are will be happily married. Those who spend all their time trying to change the behavior of those they love, often end up bitter and angry.

Change is something that we enjoy when we are the ones who initiate it. If someone else tries to change us, we put our foot down and refuse. As creative leaders, our art, writing and music can touch people's lives and inspire them when they are ready to hear and see. We all plant seeds and yet, we may never hear if the seeds grow and bear fruit. So we must hope that we have inspired a few.

What do you want or need to change in yourself?  What steps are you taking to change your behavior?  What are you doing to transform yourself into a better writer or artist? How will you be different tomorrow than you are today?  It is never to late to change your habits, your hopes and your dreams. Start today.

William Baziotes — The Process of Creation

Evolution is the way a poem happens for me. I don't know what the poem is about until I'm finished writing. The poem evolves as I write. I know there are writers who outline everything they do. They know what they are going to write every step of the way. For me, it does not work. I like not knowing. The excitement is in the writing. The same thing happens when I write a story or a novel. Only at the end do I know what I was writing about.  And even then I might not be sure.

When I travel I am the same way. I want to discover new places. My wife and I once were on a trip with another couple. They had everything planned down to the minute and became upset if we deviated from the plan because it put them behind schedule. I can't travel that way. The joy is in the discovery.

Art for me is also about discovery.  When I draw a mask, I never know what a mask will look like until I am finished.  The joy is in the process of creation. The joy is in not knowing where you are going. 

Zentangle 2016

I have been studying Zentangle, a meditative art form, for the last four years.  A basic principle of Zentangle art is that you don't plan your work.  The fun is in the exploration — of discovering where you should go.

One of the things I have learned over the years is that creative leaders have many different ways of working. What works for one person does not work for another. How do you work? Do you map out your story in advance of writing it? Do you know what your painting will look like before you start painting it? Are you confined by the expectations of yourself or others?

Leo Buscaglia - The Healing Power of Hugs

After a speech a number of years ago, a manager came up to me and said she had a story to tell me about the healing power of hugs.

The manager, who was an administrator in health care, said that she had a long-term employee who began to come in late and even miss days of work. Being a good manager, she took note of this.

One day the manager saw the employee coming down the hallway. She said the employee seemed lost to the world — about ready to give up on life. Instinctively, the manager gave the woman a hug. The woman just stood there not knowing what to do or say. Every day after that the manager would give the woman a hug whenever she saw her.

After a couple of months the employee opened up and explained to the manager why she was so depressed. Her daughter had recently moved out of the home to attend college. Her son had moved out two years earlier and she was alone. And she said that it was the tenth anniversary of her husband’s death. She felt she had nothing left to live for.

For a while taking care of her patients kept her going. She knew her patients needed her so she would come to work. But she reached the point where her patients were not motivation enough. She decided to take her own life.

She came into work with the intention of gathering up her belongings and driving back home and taking her own life. That was the day the manager gave the woman her first hug. That hug saved her life and every hug after that helped to draw her out of a depression.

Hugging was not something I grew up doing. I was raised German Mennonite on a farm in central Illinois. As a family, we did not hug. My wife is of Mexican-American descent and she taught my family and me the importance of hugging. When I got into health care, nurses reinforced the importance of touch and hugging. So for the last 20 years of my parents’ lives I hugged them.

As writers and artists, we often work in isolation and yet we have this desire and need for human touch.  We should surround ourselves with supportive friends with whom we can cry  and who will give us a hug when we need it the most.  Healthy friendships are a necessary part of the creative process.

As creative leaders, we need to take care of our own emotional and mental heath so we have the strength to create more works of art.  Be sure to give your friends and family a hug each and every day.

Prakashan B.V.

Happiness does not come from buying a new house or an expensive car.  The thrill of buying something new is very short-lived. Happiness can not be found in the world outside ourselves.  Happiness is an inside job.  Each of us is responsible for our own happiness.

The same can be said for those of us who are creative leaders.  The happiness created by the acceptance of our work by a publisher or an art gallery is only temporary.  If we are not happy on the inside, we will soon return to our negative feelings of failure and frustration.

There is always going to be someone who is richer than you — more successful than you. Likewise, there is always someone who is poorer than you — less successful that you. No amount of money or success will free us from our fears and doubts.  No amount of money will eliminate the pain in our hearts. If you win the lottery tomorrow, you will still be the same person you are today.  The money will not make you happy if you are not already happy.

Happiness comes from loving and caring for those around us — from sharing of ourselves with the people in our lives. Happiness comes from creating what we want to create, not what the market wants to buy. Happiness comes from making the most with what you have and not coveting the success of your neighbor.

Paulo Coelho

I remember when I first started writing I would ask the question that many people who first find the creative path ask: Do I have talent? And I hoped that some wise teacher would say that I was a talented writer and that I should devote myself to writing. Now, having trod this path for years, I know that no one can affirm or deny my talent. It is what it is. We all have creative gifts. We can either put our talent to good use or squander it.  We can either walk the creative path or become lost in chaos of creation.

There is a deeper and more important question within the question. When we ask do we have talent, the hidden question is: Will I be rich, famous and successful? And the answer for many of us on the creative path is no. Most creative leaders will work in obscurity and receive only a pittance for their labors. If money and fame is your desire, there are easier paths to walk. To walk the creative path is do it because you love it. The choice is yours.

Harley King

Are you on fire?  Are you burning with passion? Are you passionate about life? Some people walk through the world of existence lost in a fog. They have no idea what they want to do with their lives or what they want to accomplish.  They are simply trying to make it through the day so they can spend another night in their dirty beds.

Creative leaders must find their passion to be successful.  When I graduated from college, I wanted to be a writer, but did not know what I wanted to write about.  There was nothing I was passionate about.  Nothing that drove me to put pen to paper and spend hours writing. If you want to be successful, you must burn with passion.

When I began speaking many years later, I did have a passion.  I had a message I wanted to deliver.  I had a desire to make a difference.  I was on fire and I touched the hearts of others. If you put yourself on fire with passion, people will come to watch you burn.  People will be engaged and inspired.  If you are not passionate about what you do, people will not pay attention.

What is your passion?  What drives you to rise before dawn and create? What are you passionate about?  Passion helps you burn through the negativity and hostility that the world heaps upon your creative work.  Passion helps you to keep going even when everyone is telling you to quit.

Harley King

All human beings face suffering and pain in their lives.  Some of us are better at coping with our disappointments than others.  And for many of us time is the only healer. And in some cases even time does not heal — the pain still lingers.

Some are able to transform their pain and suffering into works of art.  Others remain trapped in an endlessly cycle of sorrow and disappointment.  As creative leaders we must find ways to mold our suffering into creative works that inspire others.  Pain can be a source of great beauty and hope.  Suffering can give birth to joy and happiness.

Kahlil Gibran wrote, “Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars.” 

We often dream of a world without pain, suffering and disappointment.  The pain inspires action and change.  Some of world's greatest creative leaders have used their pain and suffering to make changes in their lives and in the world.  

Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “We must learn to regard people less in the light of what they do or omit to do, and more in the light of what they suffer.”

If we knew more about the pain and suffering of others, maybe we would be kinder and gentler towards them.  We often are so caught up in our own pain that we fail to see the suffering of others.  By embracing the suffering of others, we will be able to transform our own pain for the good of human beings.  Reach out today and hug someone who is suffering.

Harley King

Sometimes we as creative leaders are our own worst critics.  We often don't appreciate the talent we have been given or the skill we have mastered.  We have a difficult time accepting praise from others.  Sometimes we don't even want to let others see our work.  We are afraid of what they may say.

We need to learn not to beat ourselves up over every minor mistake or perceived mistake.  Mistakes actually are good things because they often lead to new creative ideas.  Don't let your mistakes knock you down.  Find the opportunity in the mistake.  

The Japanese have a concept called kintsugi which is the art of repairing broken pottery with lacquer mixed with gold, silver or platinum.  The artist treats the breakage and repair as part of the history of the object, not as something to be thrown out or hidden.  The artist embraces the flaws and imperfections. 

As creative leaders, we need to stop trying to be perfect and, instead, embrace our flaws and imperfections.  We need to incorporate our flaws into our work.  We need to find the beauty within the ugly.  We need to enjoy what our flaws have to teach us.

Harley King

We are all faced with important and not so important decisions.  Sometimes we make decisions quickly with little or no forethought.  And sometimes we spend days, weeks and even months trying to make up our minds.  Often once we have made our decision we begin to have second thoughts.  Did we make the right decision?  Maybe we should have chosen the other direction.  We begin to vacillate and question ourselves.  We doubt ourselves.

As creative leaders, we must learn to trust our instincts.  We need to train our hearts to listen to the little voice inside.  This voice is often overshadowed by its big brother — analysis.  And yes, there is a time and place for analysis, but not after the decision has been made.  You need to believe in your ability to make the right decision.  You need to accept the decisions that you make.

While we may make bad decisions, we should never regret the decisions that we make.  We should not dwell in the past.  Learn from your mistakes.  And if possible, change your decision.  If you find that new job that you accepted was not as promoted, you can always find another one.  Don't live regretting bad decisions.  Change them.  And learn to trust that soft inner voice that knows the right answer.

Five Ways to Make Better Decisions

1. Research and analyze the various options prior to making a decision.  Make a list of pros and cons.
2. Find a quiet place, relax, and meditate on the decision.
3. Never make a decision when tired.  Sleep on the decision and make it in the morning when you are fresh.
4. Cultivate your ability to hear that soft voice inside your heart.
5. Accept that you made the right decision.  Don't doubt yourself.  Don't regret your decision.

May you trust yourself enough 

to accept the decisions you make.

Suzanne Valadon

The Blue Room
(1923)

"I paint with the stubbornness I need for living, and I've found that all painters who love their art do the same."

— Suzanne Valadon

French Painter

1865 - 1938

Commentary:
To be a creative artist, you need to be persistent because many obstacles will get in your way including your own need for perfection.  The creative journey is only for the stubborn.  How long are you willing to work at your painting?  Your writing?  Your acting?  Or do you give into family pressure?  Societal pressure?  Doubts?  Fears?

What are you willing to sacrifice for your creative work?  What are you willing to give up?  Life is never easy and the same is true for the creative leader.  There are many days when you will take one step forward and three steps backwards.  Do you have the stubbornness to keep going even when you see very little light at the end of the tunnel?

Biography:
Suzanne Valadon was the daughter of an unmarried laundress.  When she was 15, she joined the circus, but was forced to quit a year later after falling off a trapeze.  She eventually became a model for artists including Renoir and Toulouse-Lautrec where she studied their artistic techniques.  She is best known for painting female nudes but also painted landscapes, florals and still life.  She sometimes worked as long as 13 years on a painting before showing it in public.

Suzanne Valadon was the model for these paintings by Renoir:

   

Bill Moyers

"Poets live the lives all of us live with one big difference.  They have the power to make the experience of life both magical and real.  The life they reveal is our own."

— Bill Moyers

American Journalist

1934 -  

Commentary

While Bill Moyers is talking about poets here, I think his statement applies to all creative and artistic leaders.  Creative people are normal people with the challenges, opportunities, successes and failures that all people face.  The difference is that creative leaders see the world through magical lenses and are able to show others what those lenses reveal.  The power of magical lenses rests in what the lenses reveal about the world and those who inhabit it.

What do your magical lenses reveal about the world?  What do you see that others cannot?  What is your unique vision of how things should be?  What doors can you open for others?  What gifts are you giving the world?  What insights are you sharing with others?

Creative Practice

Follow your vision and reveal the world as seen through your magic lenses.  Paint that world.  Write about that world.  Compose the music of that world.  

Biography

Bill Moyers was born in Hugo, OK and grew up in Texas.  His father, a laborer, was John Henry Moyers and his mother was Ruby.  He began his career in journalism as a cub reporter at the age of sixteen.  When he was twenty, Senator Lyndon B. Johnson hired him as a summer intern.  He graduated in 1956 from the University of Texas with a degree in Journalism and worked for radio and TV stations owned by Lady Bird Johnson.  In 1959 he earned a Masters Degree in Divinity from the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.  He served as a Baptist minister in Weir, Texas.

During the 1960 Presidential election, Moyers served as an aide to LBJ and also served in both the Kennedy and Johnson administrations.  He was the White House Press Secretary from 1965 - 1967.  After his experience in politics, Moyer worked for PBS, CBS and NBC.  In 1986, he and his wife started their own company and produced documentaries such as Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth.  

Moyers has written several books of non-fiction including The Language of Life: A Festival of Poets, transcripts of his conversations with 34 poets. 

Video:

Here is the trailer for the Language of Life video.

Here is the trailer for Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth.

Leontyne Price

"I am here and you will know that I am the best and you will hear me."

— Leontyne Price

American Soprano

1927 -

Self-confidence is a key trait of creative leaders.  We need to believe in ourselves and the work we do.  We need to be confident that we will be successful.  But we also need to be humble.  Self-confidence is a great characteristic to have, but if one is not careful the self-confidence can turn into arrogance.  Self-confidence coupled with humility makes for a better leader.  Many times if one digs deep enough one finds that the arrogant person actually lacks self-confidence.  He covers up the lack of confidence by acting tough.  If one is truly self-confident in one's ability and skills, one has no need to be arrogant.  One is instead humbled by the gift he has been given.

Alexander Graham Bell

"A man, as a general rule, owes very little to what he is born with — a man is what he makes of himself."

— Alexander Graham Bell

Scotish Scientist/Inventor

1847 - 1922

Most of us come into this world with nothing but the love of our parents and some do not have even that.  There is nothing written on our birth certificates about us being writers, doctors, farmers, artists or lawyers.  All of that comes much later.   Each of us makes himself into what he becomes.  Some do become farmers, lawyers, doctors, poets, preachers, actors, artists and creative leaders.  But who we become is in our hands.  We choose the direction our lives are to take.  Have you become the person you want to be?  

Edward Hopper

Self-Portrait

"No amount of skillful invention can replace the essential element of imagination."

— Edward Hopper

American Artist

1882 - 1967

Skill will take a creative leader only so far.  Imagination is required to make the great leaps that dramatically reshapes the world.  Imagination requires being able to let go of the old and embrace the new —  to leap from one place to another.  What makes you different from others around you is your ability to imagine the world differently — to see what others don't or won't see.  Embrace your imagination and give thanks daily for the gifts that it bestows upon you.  Imagination helps you to connect the dots where most people do not even see the slightest connection.  Imagination is a sacred gift given to each and everyone.  Few know how to use its powers to the best of their ability.  Many are scared by what they see and withdraw from the clutches of imagination.  Let your imagination shine.

Summer Evening, 1947 

Gary Zukav

"Changing the world  begins with the very personal process of changing yourself.  The only place you can begin is where you are, and the only time you can begin is always now."

— Gary Zukav

American Writer/Speaker

1942 -

Painting and writing is about re-creating and re-structuring the world the way we would like it to be.  The creative process is about changing ourselves and in the process of changing ourselves we change the world.  How have you changed in the past year?  How have you grown and developed as a person and as a creative leader?  What choices have you made in the last year to change your life?  Do you understand yourself better today than you did a year ago?  What have you learned about yourself?  What are your plans for next year?  What do you want to be doing a year from now?

Here is Gary Zukav discussing change.

John Keats

"I am certain of nothing but the holiness of the Heart's affections and the truth of imagination."

— John Keats

English Poet

1795 - 1821

One of the most powerful forces available to creative leaders is their imagination.  Your imagination will open up new worlds and provide you answers to many of the challenges you face in your creative work.  You must learn to cultivate your imagination.  You must nurture it and feed it.  Imagination grows through exposure to various ideas and various experiences.  


Steve Jobs, after dropping out of college, audited a course on calligraphy because he was interested in the subject.  What he learned in that single course gave rise more than a decade later to the multiple fonts available on the Mac computer.  And since Windows adopted much of its style and look from Mac, the computer world was given an array of fonts from which to choose.  How much different life would have been if computer users could not change fonts.


What are you doing to expand your imagination?  What ideas are you exposing yourself to?  How are you growing your imagination.  If you don't use it, you may lose it.  Feed your imagination today.

Samuel Butler

"Life is like music, it must be composed by ear, feeling and instinct, not by rule."

— Samuel Butler

English Novelist

1835 - 1902

Do you create by following rules?  Or do you create by ear, feeling and instinct?  I believe the best artists, writers and musicians create by their gut — ear, feeling and instinct.  The best creative leaders know the rules but also know when and where to break the rules or throw them out the window.  When the rules are telling you one thing and your gut is telling you another, follow your gut.  You will be the better artist for it.