CONCLUSION: ON CREATIVITY Some people believe that creativity is like magic, that it is a mysterious force that reveals itself to the lucky few. This couldn't be further from the truth. Creativity comes to those who have nurtured the traits that encourage inspiration. Creativity isn't a step-by-step procedure like learning a technique--it's more organic. Sometimes you have a clear idea of the concept you want to express, but often you will discover it as you're working and refine the idea through successive revisions. The creative process is reciprocal: You act to create but you also react to what you're creating. Your work will help you discover new things as you think through the problem. That is the process of idea making. Topics can be approached in an infinite number of ways, and your tastes, skills and experiences will help you decide how to best communicate your thoughts. The final step in the creative process is deciding which idea to pursue. Creating a hundred ideas isn't as hard as choosing one to spend time developing and letting go of the other ninety-nine. The key to the answer is in the question. You have to figure out which idea best fulfills the goals you want to accomplish. 1| Curiosity. Creative people wonder what makes some- thing work and why. Why people act the way they do. Why the world is this way and not that way. Curious people innately seek out new experiences that add to their knowledge, giving them the raw material to create ideas. 2 | Having fun. Creative people also have fun. They play. They use objects as they weren't intended and make up games just for their pleasure. They joke around, break the rules and draw outside the lines. Playfulness encourages the mind to find connections between things that seem dissimilar. This blending of ideas is the engine of creativ- ity, and it's powered by fun. 3 | Optimism. Creative people are optimistic. They aren't critical because criticism kills emerging ideas as well as all the fun. They never say "no" to an idea, they just play around until they find a better one. They enjoy the energy of discovery and the prospect of new ideas. Get out your sketchbooks and start creating! 4 | Courage. Creative people are courageous. They dare to question the status quo. They risk rejection from people who are afraid to see things in a new way. They risk embarrassment by championing an idea that may not ultimately work. They do something when it is easier to do nothing. Understanding the traits of creative people also tells us what to do if we can't seem to find any ideas. If the problem is that you keep repeating the same idea, nurture your creativity and seek out new experiences to expand your knowledge. If you've studied your topic and can't find a new idea, play around with it and see how some of those ideas might connect with something entirely different. If you still can't find what you're looking for, wait. Put it out of your mind for a while. If you've explored the idea well enough, you will have a lot of "hooks" out that will snag on any new experience that brushes by and you will be blessed with an "Aha!" moment.