June 2018 | The creativity lie
It all started with a forgery. A lie. “Mozart” wrote a letter published in a newspaper expounding that his music entered his mind complete, perfect, finished, as if bestowed by a higher power. And people believed it. We continue to believe it centuries later, despite the myth being debunked. An acclaimed movie was made glorifying the myth, giving further credence to something called the inspiration theory of creativity.
Sometimes I confidently self-identify as a creative person. Other times, not so much. What I forget – or maybe wish wasn’t true – is that stoking the creative fire, keeping my creativity alight, takes effort, takes time, takes investment. Creativity is inspired, sure, but that’s not its only source. Creativity must be nurtured. Sometimes I’d much rather loaf, or read a book (or five), or bake a cake, or invest my time in any number of micro-accomplishments.
(Tangent here: Micro-accomplishments are the best and the worst use of my time. I live for micro-accomplishments. One, two, three hours max, and I’ve started and finished a project and have something to show for it. It feels so good. Baked a cake? Check. Weeded the garden? Done. Wrote three letters? Yup. Any of those give me a sense of accomplishment, success. Unfortunately, every single one of those takes time away from investing in long-term accomplishments. What is a life full of micro-accomplishments? It’s a little life full of little things. Those micro-accomplishments make me feel like I’m doing something important, but when I use my time to get something small done, I’m not using my time to plan my next two-week trip, nor am I outlining a book idea or decluttering the house (and my mind). Feels good in the moment (even causes good in the moment), wastes time in the long term. /tangent)
So, Mozart. Creativity. The creative process. Yes! That’s why I’m here pontificating on the inanity of micro-accomplishments. Greatly misleading is the belief that creativity is born and is carried on the wing of magic, unattainable to those who were not blessed with its touch. Sure, people have tendencies toward different skills, and yes, not everyone, even with 10,000 hours’ practice, can churn out brilliant concertos or magical oil paintings, create a work of art with a flourish of a brush or the stroke of a pen. People have predilections. But even the most precocious of prodigies practices. Refines. Perfects their skills. Writes, rewrites, researches, receives critiques, and rewrites again. Even Mozart.
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MOZART WORKED HARD TOO
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CLEAN YOUR NASTY LAPTOP
Others’ dirt – revolting. My own? I can live with it (to a degree; I do not wallow in filth). Have I cleaned my laptop lately? My phone? No, not really. Sometimes I wipe my laptop screen with a cleansing wipe (and pat myself on the back for taking such good care of my computer). Sometimes I wipe my phone screen on my jeans (because that’s an effective cleaning method). But I haven’t given either of these things I touch all day every day – after I’ve touched who knows how many door handles – a thorough cleansing recently. Gross.
Here’s how to clean your laptop without damaging it. Get it clean. Keep it clean.
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THE ERROR MESSAGE DUMPSTER
Oh, error messages, you’re so cute. You try to be helpful, but you often infuriate or confuse (or both. Overachiever!).
A good error message tells users how to solve a problem (it’s helpful); supports the voice of the product and the tone of the error (it could be friendly, straightforward, or playful, depending on the situation), but it should always be warm; is specific (here’s what happened; here’s what you can do about it; and clear.
To recap:
Helpful +
Warm +
Specific +
Useful +
Clear
=
The error message of your dreams
When your smartphone is nearby – by your side or in your pocket, EVEN If it’s turned to silent – your ability to focus, concentrate, and complete tasks drops. Maybe the new rage in home building will be smartphone rooms, a room with signal-jamming walls where you can drop off your phone and think. I should patent that.
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SMARTPHONE AWAY, SMARTS PRESENT
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MICROCOPY THAT'S JUST RIGHT
A well-placed line of copy that makes you smile is delightful. Twenty well-placed lines of humorous copy will deflate that smile. Here are some do’s and don’ts for using humor in your microcopy.
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RISKY DECISION MAKING
Next time you have a risky decision to make, ask yourself whether it’s reversible or irreversible. That’s allegedly Jeff Bezos’ trick for deciding how to move forward with an idea. That how is important because that how dictates the way you proceed – do you make a quick decision without a lot of research and contemplation? Or do you thoroughly research the decision, exploring different outcomes and mapping out every component you need to make it work? The answer: it depends. If you proceed with an idea, can you reverse it easily without a lot of negative impact? If yes, go for it. If no, map it out. Explore. Ideate. Ask lots of questions. Outcome still favorable? Go for it.