Education
Last summer, I discovered a book one day that piqued my curiosity while browsing in the OverDrive app: Zig Zag: The Surprising Path to Greater Creativity by Keith Sawyer.I’m always interested in learning more about the creative process and gleaning insight into our creative processes as musicians, thinkers, educators, and creators, and when I found out that Keith Sawyer was not only a scientific expert on creativity but also a jazz pianist, I couldn’t wait to start reading.In the book, Sawyer outlines 8 stages of the creative process but explains that there are multiple ways of entering and engaging in creativity. Rather than following a clear and direct path forward, starting here and ending there, the path to greater creativity has more zigs and zags; it’s unpredictable, erratic, and yes, surprising.To comprehend this, it’s important to understand how Sawyer defines creativity. He writes, “Creativity is not a trait or a property or a gift. It’s a set of behaviors.”And the thing about behaviors is that they can be learned. Creativity isn’t some elusive natural gift that some people have and some people don’t have. It’s a mindset and a lifelong practice.Creativity is experimenting and evaluating and repurposing. It’s curiosity and wonder. It’s dedication and deliberate practice. It’s observing and reflecting and acting.As Sawyer summarized, “The wonderful beauty of the creative life is that no authentic, thoughtful experience, no new glimmer of knowledge, is ever wasted.”There’s so much I could say about Keith Sawyer’s book, but today, I want to give you a big picture of what this book is about by sharing three of my three biggest takeaways.For show notes, click here.Resources mentioned:Please note: some of these links are affiliate links, which means if you decide to purchase through any of them, I will earn a small commission. This helps support the podcast and allows me to continue creating free content. Thank you for your support!OverDrive app for checking out free eBooks and audiobooks from your local libraryZig Zag: The Surprising Path to Greater Creativity by Keith SawyerThe Art of Short Story - a writing masterclass by Joyce Carol Oates