Discussion Post I submitted for my Atlantic University TP5150 Course –July 22, 2020
As I mentioned in my introduction to this class, my creativity comes in storytelling, writing, photography, and more recently, videography and website development. Since some of my business was built on producing a creative “products” typically under deadline, a substantial first step is to get motivated actually to start the project. It’s challenging to be creative under pressure, yet it comes with the territory.
Robert Weisberg notes that if a person “can carry out some thought process in pursuit of a goal, and if that thought process results in a novel product, then the person is creative” (2006, p. 61). My creative novelty comes more in the form of how I chose to tell a story with words and images within a communications piece (e.g., brochure). I’m in awe of other designers whose “novelty” stems from their use of different shapes, colors, fonts, layout design, and even the paper they select.
Like any skillset, my proficiency in a particular medium flowed easier over time with more practice; the first step Bunny Paine-Clemes’ identifies as part of the Ten-Step Process of Creative Synergy, which she defines as “Immerse yourself in the formulas of your craft” (2015, p. 53). While my “apprenticeship” was much shorter than the typical 10-years – I didn’t have that much time or I’d have gone broke – there was undoubtedly an element of “preparation to find the formulas for expression” (2015, p.53). When I recently learned videography, my earlier work was very mechanical, and I tended to follow precisely how a particular instructor suggested. As I became more comfortable with the concepts and the tools, I’ve can pour more of myself into the process. And now, I’m learning aerial photography, so in addition to having to learn how to operate a camera using a remote control, I have to ensure I don’t crash the drone!
With nearly every project I’ve undertaken, there comes a point where I hit a wall. It’s natural for anyone in my field. I’ve learned over time to walk away and let it simmer for a while. Paine-Clemes describes this as the 7th step, “Take a Break,” where the person allows the problem to “incubate” or marinate. She notes that the incubation process “is touted in most theories of the creative process” (2015, p. 64). As Weisberg notes, it’s precisely when you’re not thinking about the problem or problem that an “Aha! experience” occurs. He defines this as “the sudden appearance in consciousness of a creative idea or solution to a problem when one had not been thinking about the matter consciously” (2015, p. 386).
I had such an experience just this month. I was asked to give a talk a few weeks back at this upcoming Sunday’s Spiritualist Church, where I attend regularly. I was reluctant since, while my background is in communications, I prefer to be in the background, helping others shine instead of taking center stage myself. I entertained various topics and thought that Carl Jung’s idea of “Individuation” and how our true self emerges at approximately 40 years of age as we work through a “mid-life crisis” would be interesting, mainly since I covered it last semester as part of TP6005. However, it didn’t feel broad enough. I wracked my brain for a while about how to embellish the topic. One morning when I was in the shower not even thinking about the talk, I had an “aha experience.” I’m currently reading Maureen St. Germain’s Waking up in 5D. I suddenly saw a link and parallel between an individual’s “mid-life crisis” and what the world’s currently experiencing with all this turmoil as it evolves from 3D to 5D. And what a “mid-life crisis” we’re having!
What I experienced is what Poincare described as part of his Theory of Unconscious Processes in Creative Thinking. In his description of the theory, Weisberg notes that “Poincare made a connection between two concepts and again that connection seemed to be brought about outside of his conscious thought” (2006, p. 393). This was certainly the case for me since, as on its face, Jung’s individuation theory has little to do with St. Germain’s Waking up in 5D. There is also an element of Paine-Clemes 8th Step, “Watch for synchronicities to help you.” And, like the idea of individuation, synchronicities is also a Jungian concept, which he describes as “a meaningful coincidence” (2015, p. 65). Another synchronicity!
References
Paine-Clemes, B. (2015), Creative synergy: using art, science, and philosophy to self-actualize your life,” Virginia Beach, VA: 4th Dimension Press
Weisberg, R. (2006), Creativity: understanding innovation in problem solving, science, invention, and the arts, Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.