metacool Thought of the Day

"To create is to potentially embarrass oneself in front of others. It is about the courage to be oneself and to be seen as oneself. Putting ink to a page, or pressing one's fingers against clay, or typing a line of computer code, or blowing glass and realizing mistake. Or success. With everyone watching. But most importantly, you.

So it dawned upon me how important it is to be creative. Because it means you have within you infinite capacity to experiment. You are unafraid to go somewhere new because you are creating a new thought process about your own creativity. You know that if you stop and no longer challenge yourself, you cease to be creative. You become still, silent, and the bow no longer connect with the strings and music is not made. And you do not exist. You show you do not have the courage to exist.

Creativity is courage. The world needs more fearless people that can influence all disciplines to challenge their very existence. Creativity is reflection aimed not at yourself, but at the world around you."

-  John Maeda 

Comments

[lizsong]

Thank you for posting this.

I especially resonate with the statement that "creativity is courage." That is spot-on. I also think love is courage. So, could creativity=love? Or perhaps, creativity is birth from love. ...

I would also add that creativity is not only a reflection aimed at the world around me, but that it's also a reflection of the world within me fused with - or influenced by - the world around me in history and in the present.

[Diego Rodriguez]

Yeah, it's a great thought. John Maeda rocks.