The Creative Identity Crisis
A successful CEO had led companies and pioneered industry standards. She was well-respected for thinking outside the box as well as mentoring other women. So why did she freeze when I asked about her creative interests?
"I'm not creative," she said firmly. "I'm a systems person. My ex-husband was the creative one, he painted. I just implemented ideas."
I was puzzled so I asked, "So you envisioned what didn't exist?"
That’s creating something new.
The Great Divide
Somewhere along the way, education divided the humanities and arts from business, assigning creativity to "artists" and business to "practical people." We put imagination in one box, execution in another. Many people spend years thinking they are one or the other.
However, many successful people built their careers on creative ways of doing something. Howard Schultz, Starbucks CEO, didn't just open coffee shops, he created an entire culture around the product. Sara Blakely, Spanx founder, didn't just make underwear, she reimagined how women want to feel in their clothes. James Dyson, the industrial designer and inventor, didn't just fix vacuums. He rethought how air moves.
Were they business people or artists? The question misses the point.
What Stress and Boredom Can Reveal
Finding our creative selves doesn’t need to be a grand announcement or project. Shifting focus sometimes simply means valuing something that seems unimportant.
Someone once told me that he had trouble paying attention in meetings. When his attention wandered, he started doodling, which helped him focus. Realizing that he thought better in pictures, he built a few power point presentations with his doodles. Co-workers loved them so his doodles ultimately launched a creative new kind of teamwork.
Another executive discovered writing in a journal during stressful times became more than just venting. Phrases became poetry: "I wasn't trying to be creative. I was trying to explain what was happening to me. Words just flowed better as poems."
Creativity doesn’t necessarily flow when it starts with a goal for a final product. And seeing yourself as a creative person isn't really about getting to a final product, although that can be a satisfying outcome. It's more about starting right where you are, paying attention to the parts of your creative self that already exist and may already be in motion.
Beyond Labels
What if you stopped asking "What could I make to become creative?" and started asking "How does my creativity show up?"
It might be in your strategic thinking or your problem-solving abilities. You might notice it in your ability to see connections that others miss. Or it could be related to your gift for bringing out the best in people. Sometimes it can be a return to something that you loved as a child, like playing a musical instrument.
The creative identity crisis ends when you realise it was never a crisis, just a misunderstanding about what creativity looks like.
Do you still think you're not creative? Together we can explore the possibilities.
References:
Howard Schultz - https://www.britannica.com/biography/Howard-Schultz
Sara Blakely - https://www.forbes.com/profile/sara-blakely/
James Dyson - https://www.dyson.com/community/about-james-dyson.html
Ready to go further?
These resources offer valuable perspectives, but nothing replaces a thoughtful conversation about your specific situation.
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Photo courtesy of Alejandra Rodríguez.