[.ca] Creativity: Flow and the Psychology of Discovery and ... (ISBN 0060928204)

Enhancing Creativity by Learning About it:
Csikszentmihalyi is in the "flow" in writing this book on creativity as he elucidates his subject in an inspirational way. He approaches his topic from a systems paradigm. Individuals create, but they do so within the context of a system. He also describes the "child like" wonder of creative contributors. He reminds readers that symbols in the office of past successes such as diplomas, awards, photos, reinforce the idea that valid contributors have been made before and can be made again. Regardless of one's arena, something about the process of creativity can be learned from the pages of this book.

Demystifies Creativity, Humans beware...:
Dostoevsky said, man needs "Mystery, Miracle, and Authority." This book demystifies the concept of creativity. Humans want to put labels on people who put out the best ideas, but, what these people do differently than other people can mostly be attributed to habit. Based off of the universally accepted Hierarchy of Needs by Maslow the author says in order to get to the highest level (self-actualization) where real creativity takes place it is important to not have your limited attention-span concerned with other things. Here's a brief but effective example: You're looking for your keys. You're looking for your keys anywhere you can POSSIBLY imagine. Underneath the cushions, in your jean pockets, in drawers, EVERYWHERE, you CAN'T find them and all you can think about is finding them. Bingo. The author argues that this type of psychic thievery is what prevents us from being creative. Since we need to take care of a baser need, we have no time to find ways to solve more enhanced problems. This book, in the author's opinion, should be taken as a sequal to the "cult" hit FLOW. Unforunately FLOW I think became too much of a hit to be taken as seriously as it should have been. Although a chapter is devoted to FLOW and the concepts, it is necessary to know the nature of work before advancing into a scheduled routine. I recommend reading FLOW before tackling this work. I must emphasize just how amazing Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi is. He will truly be regarded as one of the greatest minds of this time and most certainly the greatest psychologist of the time. His profound knowledge in so many areas is just incredible as well as backing up everything he says with examples AND action.

Demystifying Creativity:
AN INTERESTING, IMPORTANT SUBJECT When you think about it, creativity is a key driver for personal fulfillment and world events- yet most people's understanding consists merely of stereotypes, assumptions, and clichés. There is a lot to know about creativity: what it is (and how it differs from talent and brilliance), conditions that encourage its emergence, creative people's complex personality traits, and what a creative experience looks and feels like. I would not rate 'Creativity' as high as Csikszentmihalyi's 'Flow'- which is an even more important concept to understand- yet it is certainly an informative, well-written, and recommended book. BOOK IN A NUTSHELL Research in psychology has traditionally learned about healthy individuals by focusing on pathological cases; this study examines the other end of the continuum- looking at extraordinary people to find out what might be missing from our lives. Trends in the personal histories and habits are taken from interviews with 91 leading contributors (Noble Prize winners, world renown artists, etc.) who have created or dominated their fields. Mainstream creative people (e.g. most creative person in an office or community) and uncreative people are not really discussed in the book- although the insights gained from the interviews may be applicable. Part 3 was not as strong as the rest of the book: the in-depth illustrations of the creative process were somewhat redundant, and some sections (Ch. 12 & 13) seemed to drift into assumptions of political philosophies.

Creativity which has the power to change the world:
A few caveats to those who are generally interested in creativity studies: Csikszentmihalyi's analysis and discussion of creativity does not directly relate to those who are personally creative. People who enjoy engaging in creative activities are not demoted, in his terms, but are simply not a part of the study. It is unfortunate that his language makes it seem this way; he distinguishes between the two by saying that Creativity has the power to shape a domain or the world, while creativity applies to those who enjoy coming up with new recipes, who are engaged in research that may not change a domain, but may "tweak" it, etc. What he is trying to discover are the underlying principles and traits of creativity in those whose work has made a significant change. Think Albert Einstein, Eleanor Roosevelt, Mark Strand: people who are either widely known for their influence, or who have been influential within their area or domain. This book provides an interesting view into the minds and work habits of Creative individuals, and concludes by offering general advice to those who wish to make their own lives and work more creative. It is a useful book, but one which requires a great deal of supplemental reading, in order to truly engage in creativity studies.

CREATIVITY -- Read 7 or more:
Creativity is what we need more of in the 21st Century. It is hard to break out of the rut of habitual, conventional thinking. That is why I recommend reading and re-reading and working through the exercises in at least 7 creativity books per year. Csikszentmihalyi is certainly an author to include in a creativity project, so I recommend this book. And don't forget to keep doing your DeBono creative thinking exercises !!