I grew up with an artist for a mother and a craftsman for a father. Creativity was always a significant part of our lives growing up and as a result I’ve always been interested in the nature of creativity, why some people are “creative” while others are not (or at least believe they are not), and how we can foster creativity in ourselves and others.
Being an academic I enjoy doing my homework, being a librarian I enjoy reading. So I spent several years reading and researching on the subject of creativity. The result of this reach has been the “12 Pillars of Creativity” I have found that embracing these pillars in my own life has indeed boosted my own creative output and my “feeling” of creativity and of being a creative person. They are research-based and easily used to help boost our own creativity and the creativity of others.
The 12 Pillars of Creativity
- Divergent & Convergent Thinking (exercising the idea muscle)
- Purpose
- Physical & Mental Health
- Area Skill, Body of Knowledge, and Practice
- Prototyping, Failure, Feedback, and a Tolerance for Failure
- Routine
- An Appropriate Physical Space
- Mental Space a.k.a. Incubation Time
- Curiosity and a Tolerance for Ambiguity
- Motivation and Ambition (especially internal)
- Autonomy or the Opportunities for Making Choices
- Self Confidence, Self-Acceptance, and a Supporting Belief System
Why are they so important?
One of the valuable ways that looking at these supporting elements of our creativity is to identify our strengths and weaknesses. Each area is an opportunity to take a critical look and reflect. While we do not need to be perfect in each area when the question of “what’s holding me back?” comes to our minds we can step by step walk through the different supporting elements to identify what truly is holding us back.
These pillars also give us a framework and vocabulary for discussing creativity. I’ll be using the framework to discuss my own journey of embracing creativity on this blog.
Want More Detail?
I’m putting together a free email course where you will receive an email once a week for 12 weeks with a quick lesson on each of the 12 pillars of creativity including a recommended practice to help bolster the strength of each pillar so it can better support your own creative practice. If you’re interested you can sign up by clicking on this link.