“Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will spend its whole life thinking it is stupid.” – Einstein
The creative process is fulfilling and exciting, but it’s not always easy. Creativity is the best friend of progress and innovation, but challenging the status quo can be scary, difficult and peppered with doubt. It can also be extremely rewarding.
Creative minds have been behind every important discovery or invention, from fire and the wheel to aeroplanes and computers. Thank goodness for these, and other, creative people who faced and conquered the many challenges which they undoubtedly encountered along the way.
Probably one of the biggest of these is fear.
Fear can be paralysing and debilitating. It short-circuits desires and impulses and causes worry and reservation. When these emotions are at the forefront of your mind, it’s almost impossible for creativity to flourish.
Fear of failure sometimes results in an overwhelming need for perfection, and this is the arch enemy of creativity. Being scared of making mistakes can be paralysing, preventing us from moving forward until we have all the “right” answers and the “best” plans.
Fear also makes us worry about appearing “weird” or “odd” to other people. Yet throughout history, there are examples of highly creative people with “unusual” personal behaviours. Charles Dickens used to fend off imaginary street urchins with his umbrella during his walks. Einstein picked up cigarette butts of the street and used the leftover tobacco to fill his pipe.
Fear of being criticised can also be a barrier to creativity. Creative people face always risk facing negative criticism about their work as many people view creative ideas as inappropriate, because they don’t yet understand them.
“Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will spend its whole life thinking it is stupid.”
– Einstein
The best way to overcome fear is to acknowledge you’re scared, but carry on anyway. Just start. Set your sites on your goal and know that getting there may not be easy, but it will be worth it, and you can do it.