Creativity and your state of well-being - part 2 of a series

Suppose we look at creativity as outflow and experiencing sensations as inflow or consumption.

We could then see writing as creation and reading as experiencing sensations or receiving information. Looking at the world this way separates activities into producing or consuming.

This is not to say that one is intrinsically better than another, but it does bring up the possibility that there should be a balance between inflowing and outflowing whether it is information, affection, or even help.

Take a look at the people you know who produce things for others and enjoy receiving things from others. Compare them to those who do not want to help others and only want help from others with no exchange. Which is the healthier group?

One might even take the position that someone is as healthy as they can help others or accept help from others.

But back to the matter of creativity. If you can freely create or stop creating in any area of endeavor, you are probably happier than most people. If you are forbidden to create or are continually forced to create, it will eventually drive you around the bend or into escape literature or gaming.

If you can find a way to create effects that others can experience easily, you will find few barriers to your continued creation of effects.

If you persist in creating effects that others find offensive or irritating, you will find that barriers are being erected at every turn. The other people in your environment are now creating against you and your progress in life will be come more difficult as time goes by.

In the limiting case, others will find a way to put you where you cannot create any more.

This suggests that creativity is best practiced in harmony with others. You create and you encourage others to create.

Perhaps you create and they experience the sensations or pleasure from your creation, and then you let them create and you experience the pleasure of their creation. Let the flows even out with no one dominating the outflow or the inflow.

If you look back at your past you will probably find that your happiest memories were about times when you and others were in good communication and there was a give and take of creative activity.

Now some may object and say that their greatest pleasure moments were when they were enjoying a great meal or other life giving sensations. Was any creative activity involved? Let's discuss this further in the next installment.

Photo credit link: beggar

Comments

[Mouse]

I've never failed to give to someone who has touched my soul, and the guy in that picture made me smile so much with his create approach and funny expression I'd have given him $10!

[mattbg]

David, good to see you included the point about receiving being as important as giving. I think a lot of people intuitively know this, but its emphasis is sometimes left out of these types of discussions for one reason or another.

But, I completely agree that a friendship where you are always giving -- particularly if it's only because you only get pleasure from giving and ignore the other person's need to give thereby denying them the same pleasure (which could be construed as selfish from one perspective) -- is not much of a friendship.