Creativity Re-Explored

I have had a change of thought about creativity. While somewhere at the essence of my being I still feel really uncomfortable when people describe something I’ve done as “creative,” I have decided to embrace all compliments and fake it until I make it.

What started all of this was doing yet another activity in a career planning workbook. It was the old fashioned SWOT (Strength Weakness Opportunity Threat) analysis which I did to death in business school. I think that is why I hadn’t embraced the concept earlier. In grad school I developed a theory that the only reason they use this tool is because they are easy to create, not based on their actual utility. Basically they look like this.

Since I am not immune to the lure of negativity, I started in the weakness quadrant, and the first item on my list was “weird brain“. Then I stopped and thought about it, and I wrote “weird brain” at the top of my strengths section as well. If people think my common-sense-to-me answers are creative, who am I to question their opinion?

Look at me giving myself credit! What a world of difference it made to my overall mindset!

In terms of careers, I still am staying away from those occupations where traditional logical thinking is highly prized – the “obvious” follow up question never dawns on me, even after I finish a project! Problem solving type roles, however, might be a good fit. Okay, so this creativity feeling really isn’t helping so much in the area where it came up, but I love my overall embracing of the idea.

I am not trying to stick my square peg of originality in a round hole of traditional creative outlets. I understand that I will put my own spin on things without even trying. How great is that that it is effortless?!?!?!?

I love that my blog defies standard classification, even though it means the SEO results will be less. Um, it’s a blog about me. How well will it rank anyway? Letting it go….

My rag rug, still unfinished but closer, is a pleasant combination of colors with no real pattern because it didn’t dawn on me when I was sewing the strips together that it mattered. I love it!

In my final dance competition I looked so happy and joyous even though I completely threw technique out the window, unknowingly. I swore until the day I saw the video that I was spot on with keeping my toes constantly dragging across the floor and tight spins. Strange that the video would lie like that!  What is most amazing about it is that I can look at the video and love what I see and not simply pick it apart for technique. 

It is still early days for embracing my unique talents, but I love what it is opening up to me so far!

Do you consider yourself to be a creative person? or Has anyone ever found a SWOT analysis to be useful?