Excerpted from The Creative Habit by Twyla TharpAfter so many years, I've learned that being creative is a full-time job with its own daily patterns. That's why writers, for example, like to establish routines for themselves. The most productive ones get started early in the morning, when the world is quiet, the phones aren't ringing, and their minds are rested, alert, and not yet polluted by other people's words. They might set a goal for themselves -- write fifteen hundred words, or stay at their desk until noon -- but the real secret is that they do this every day. In other words, they are disciplined. Over time, as the daily routines become second nature, discipline morphs into habit.
It's the same for any creative individual, whether it's a painter finding his way each morning to the easel, or a medical researcher returning daily to the laboratory. The routine is as much a part of the creative process as the lightning bolt of inspiration, maybe more. And this routine is available to everyone.
Creativity is a habit, and the best creativity is a result of good work habits.
I don't know about the full-time job thing, but I do agree with the idea of practicing your creativity. Exercising that part of yourself every day in one way or another. I think that creating things develops self worth and appreciation for the beauty that surrounds us. Being creative is energizing and it can help if you are suffering from depression or if you are feeling like you have lost the part of yourself that makes you you.
And another that I think is great:
"All children are artists, the problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up." ~Pablo Picasso
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What a good idea to allow readers to showcase their creativity! Thanks!
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