Creative+Motivation


 * What is Creativity and How Can We Understand it? **

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﻿According to wikipedia, creativity refers to the phenomenon whereby a person creates something new (a product, a solution, a work of art etc.) that has some kind of value. What counts as "new" may be in reference to the individual creator, or to the society or domain within which the novelty occurs. What counts as "valuable" is similarly defined in a variety of ways. =====

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﻿Scholarly interest in creativity ranges widely: the relationship between creativity and general intelligence; the mental and neurological processes associated with creative activity; personality type and creative ability; creativity and mental health; creativity in education; and ways of fostering creativity through training and technology. =====

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Creativity and creative acts are therefore studied across several disciplines, for instance: Creativity and psychology, education, philosophy, technology theology, linguistics, sociology and business studies. =====

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What is Creativity and How Can We Understand it? As I teach in the field of Applied Arts in Technology. While researching on motivational techniques in the classroom for our group Wiki, I became enormously interested in the area of creativity and students' motivational levels to perform well. I came across some interesting reads on creativity by English Professor, author, speaker and researcher, Sir Ken Robinson. =====

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Sir Ken Robinson: The Element is the place where passion and skill meet. People find The Element when they engage in the thing that they love that they are also especially good at doing. This leads to more than just a sense of personal satisfaction. Being in The Element insulates people against unpredictable changes and leads to a more flexible and productive society. The new paradigm of The Element has a profound impact on education, corporations, organizations, and, especially individuals. It is available to every person who knows how to find it. The Element is an enlightening tour through this new paradigm. Illustrated by stories, many based on exclusive interviews, of celebrities, entrepreneurs, scientists, and other highly accomplished people who have found The Element, it is as entertaining as it is profound. =====

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There is a paradox. Most children think they’re highly creative: most adults think they’re not. What happens to them as they grow up? Throughout the world, companies and organizations are trying to compete in a world of economic and technological change that is moving faster than ever. They urgently need people who are creative, innovative and flexible. Too often they can’t find them. Why not, and what should be done about it? Out of Our Minds addresses three vital questions for everyone who has a serious interest in creativity and innovation. =====
 * =====Why is it essential to promote creativity? =====
 * =====Organizations everywhere are concerned as never before with promoting creativity and innovation. Why is this so important? =====
 * =====What’s the problem? Why do so many adults think they’re not very creative (and not very intelligent)? =====
 * =====How do we lose the confidence to be creative? =====
 * =====What should be done? Is everyone creative or just a select few? Can creativity be developed? If so, how? =====

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This groundbreaking and inspirational book argues that organizations everywhere are trying to fix a problem that originates in schools and universities. Many people leave education with no idea what their real creative abilities are. In a powerful and original way, he says why this is and what organizations and individuals can do immediately to recover their creative talents. He argues too for radical changes in how we should think about our own intelligence and creativity- and in how we should educate our children and each other to meet the extraordinary challenges of living and working in the 21st century. =====

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 Creative motivation is about how a person is motivated, either intrinsically or extrinsically to come up with novel, unique and original ideas (Prabhu et al.; 2008, Young Sung & Nam Choi, 2009). Personality is believed to be a strong influencing factor on creativity, with the type of motivation acting as a moderator or mediator between the two factors (Young Sung & Nam Choi). How individuals achieve the results of producing these ideas will depend on how they are motivated and the type of motivation will also allow for a strong or weak effect of personality on creativity (Prabhu et al.; Young Sung & Nam Choi). =====

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I also went online to ask some Google questions. I was overwhelmed with responses from blogs, forums, reports, studies, online discussions, websites and resources regarding what motivates creative people? Creative people occupy many different professions and range from mathematicians to scientists to musicians to digital artists to ceramic and fine artists, to name a few. I focused on digital and fine artists. =====

****Google Question: What Motivate you to Create? ****
//<span style="color: #808000; font-family: Calibri,Verdana,Helvetica,Arial; font-size: 10pt;">Lots of things inspire me, but motivate me... sometimes it is hard to be motivated, its too cold in my studio, I feel like staying home on the PC computer instead, I want another cup of coffee with friends first before I go and paint.I can find a million other things to do which distract me and demotivates me. But, what makes me get into my studio with so many warm clothes I can hardly move, with my IPod loaded up with songs to keep my moving so I don't freeze in front of the useless heater is something beyond me, it is just like breathing, you just do it, because you love it. It’s the feeling I get when I put brush to canvas and don't realise my tongue is stuck out because I have become so engrossed. It is like meditation, the more you do it, the more your mind craves to be in that state again. //

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//<span style="color: #008000; font-family: Calibri,Verdana,Helvetica,Arial; font-size: 11pt;"> I’m not motivated by money at all, since I don’t sell my work. I just have the urge to make things, and I make them. My motivation is the feeling I get when I am creating something. It is very hard to describe, but absolutely wonderful to feel! ;) //=====

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//<span style="color: #800000; font-family: Calibri,Verdana,Helvetica,Arial; font-size: 11pt;"> There is something so different about expressing yourself through art. I do it for the thrill of it. Drawing and painting is cool to do but I am no where near as proficient at other arts as my Guitar! ;) //=====

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//<span style="color: #800000; font-family: Calibri,Verdana,Helvetica,Arial; font-size: 11pt;"> Ever since that first bar chord I get so jazzed by the sound, the feel, the vibration of my guitar. And when it all happens virtually on it’s own….that is nirvana! I know I could write an essay on guitar playing and how great it is to play….but words cannot adequately describe that feeling of spontaneous creation that occ //=====

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//<span style="color: #800000; font-family: Calibri,Verdana,Helvetica,Arial; font-size: 11pt;"> Restlessness or a desire to capture or excape the moment….conflicting reasons I guess. I always get a little lost when creating, but when I get “finished” it makes perfect sense. I am getting the itch again… //=====

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//<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: Calibri,Verdana,Helvetica,Arial; font-size: 11pt;"> OK... it's the issue we all face as artist no matter the medium. Emotions withstanding, what is the number one factor that helps fuel the creative fire inside you? Let's all try to be as concise and to the point as we can be. I feel if we know what triggers our creative sparks, we can channel it and look for it in order to help us acheive the highest quality of art that gives us an outlet of expresssion as well as beauty to the world. //=====

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//<span style="color: #800080; font-family: Calibri,Verdana,Helvetica,Arial; font-size: 10pt;"> I feel joy in creating works of art. My imagination is alive in me when I do! I also experience peace, and relaxation when I express myself freely. //=====

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//<span style="color: #808080; font-family: Calibri,Verdana,Helvetica,Arial; font-size: 10pt;"> Most of the time is because I don´t have a clue of how to say it (thoughts, feelings or ideas) with words. //=====

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//<span style="color: #808000; font-family: Calibri,Verdana,Helvetica,Arial; font-size: 10pt;"> I know what I said yesterday, but maybe our teacher’s were right in advising us not to worry about the money. In fact we may be better off or at least more creative and true to our real needs as artists not to work for money. //=====

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//<span style="font-family: Calibri,Verdana,Helvetica,Arial; font-size: 10pt;"> After I posted yesterday I was watching the PBS News Hour and guess what. They had a segment on exactly what motivates creativity and how we earn a living. The segment showed evidence that we humans free up our minds and problem solve much more efficiently and more creatively when we are motivated by the interest in the activity rather than the interest of being paid. In fact according to the research we are far less motivated by money. //=====

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//<span style="color: #000080; font-family: Calibri,Verdana,Helvetica,Arial; font-size: 10pt;"> As long as I can remember the fact that artists are more motivated by the nature of creating art for arts sake dominates any discussion on the subject. Combined with the fact that most artists want to maintain control and autonomy over their creative process. //=====

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//<span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: Calibri,Verdana,Helvetica,Arial; font-size: 10pt;"> Ten years ago I took the same route as the Open Source people and quit worrying about making a living. I earn my keep with my day job. When I really think about it I am more satisfied with my creative activity having removed the need to sell artwork. The freedom I have gained allows me to explore and experiment with new ideas, technologies and materials I might otherwise forgo if my creative processes were connected to my income. //=====