Creative Conflict
Be a non-conformist and embrace your creativity!
Picasso said, “We are all born artists. The key is to remain an artist as we grow up.”
While there needs to be some conformity in the way we learn the alphabet, extending conformity to the creative writing process stifles the artist in each of us.
It could be argued that we are at our most creative when we are around three or four years old. We can entertain ourselves with anything that comes to hand or even nothing at all. At this age we are adept at creating imaginary friends, villains and superheroes on demand. As we begin our schooling and progress through the grades, more and more we are required to conform to a certain standard. Even the tests we take that determine many of our future educational opportunities are known as standardized tests.
When we conclude our formal education, be it high school, college or university, we go out into what is referred to as the “real world”. In this “real world”, the superstars are the creative, unique and out-of-the-box thinkers who defy standards, normality and conformity. Unfortunately, for too many of us, rekindling artistic expression and creativity that have been suppressed for so long, is too difficult.
Even those involved in the creative arts looking for books, music and movies to bring to the world, and are supposedly looking for something different will immediately ask: “What is it like?” While they claim to be searching for something original, they attempt to fit it into a box where they can compare it to something that is already known and has already been produced.
We all desire to be accepted, embraced and understood by those around us. The creative process which fosters artistic expression requires people to be different from those around them. This is hard enough to do on your own without fighting an entire educational system.
At times it is necessary to conform to the norm or standard expectations, but whenever possible, allow yourself and those around you to draw outside of the lines. You can play a melody on a piano with just one finger. Teach a hundred people to play that exact same melody in the same way on their own pianos, and what you have is a louder version of one person playing a melody with one finger. If, on the other hand, you allow each of the 100 people to find their own instrument and their own way of expressing themselves, you can enjoy a symphony.
As you go through your day today, remember that while conformity is necessary at times, artistry, creativity and expression should be allowed to bloom whenever and wherever possible.
Today’s the day!
Express Employment (Franchise) - Labour Market Comment
By Jim Stovall
One of the biggest challenges in a formal education is the struggle between creativity and conformity. Classroom educational experiences, by design, breed conformity. We are taught to write, think and process information the same way, and while conformity is good for teaching basic skills, it stifles creativity. Picasso said, “We are all born artists. The key is to remain an artist as we grow up.”
While there needs to be some conformity in the way we learn the alphabet, extending conformity to the creative writing process stifles the artist in each of us.
It could be argued that we are at our most creative when we are around three or four years old. We can entertain ourselves with anything that comes to hand or even nothing at all. At this age we are adept at creating imaginary friends, villains and superheroes on demand. As we begin our schooling and progress through the grades, more and more we are required to conform to a certain standard. Even the tests we take that determine many of our future educational opportunities are known as standardized tests.
When we conclude our formal education, be it high school, college or university, we go out into what is referred to as the “real world”. In this “real world”, the superstars are the creative, unique and out-of-the-box thinkers who defy standards, normality and conformity. Unfortunately, for too many of us, rekindling artistic expression and creativity that have been suppressed for so long, is too difficult.
Even those involved in the creative arts looking for books, music and movies to bring to the world, and are supposedly looking for something different will immediately ask: “What is it like?” While they claim to be searching for something original, they attempt to fit it into a box where they can compare it to something that is already known and has already been produced.
We all desire to be accepted, embraced and understood by those around us. The creative process which fosters artistic expression requires people to be different from those around them. This is hard enough to do on your own without fighting an entire educational system.
At times it is necessary to conform to the norm or standard expectations, but whenever possible, allow yourself and those around you to draw outside of the lines. You can play a melody on a piano with just one finger. Teach a hundred people to play that exact same melody in the same way on their own pianos, and what you have is a louder version of one person playing a melody with one finger. If, on the other hand, you allow each of the 100 people to find their own instrument and their own way of expressing themselves, you can enjoy a symphony.
As you go through your day today, remember that while conformity is necessary at times, artistry, creativity and expression should be allowed to bloom whenever and wherever possible.
Today’s the day!
Express Employment (Franchise) - Labour Market Comment
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