Some astute observation from Linus Karlsson and Paul Malmstrom, co-founders/Chief Creative Officers, Mother ad agency, New York, at creative-online.com:
“Our observation is that many successful creative people grew up as nerds—but somehow got out of it and turned into semi-generalist, helicopter people. Also, many are able to strike a perfect balance between true humbleness and frightening egomania. Lastly, exceptional creatives are not sure if they hate or love what they're doing, and every day is a battle to justify existence and worth."
Especially when I work in Hollywood, I meet some people who have not been able to strike a perfect balance between humbleness and frightening egomania. Often, it’s the decision-makers who tend toward the latter and the writers who tend toward the former.
Karlsson and Malmstrom go on:
"Our secret has always been that there's no secret. The brain wants to have fun. If you keep thinking about that every day, you're always going to be interesting and relevant. The brain hates boring and expected. Creativity stems from going about things the wrong way. Irritation is also interesting as a source for inspiration. Why do certain things irritate you? Don't know, but go there. It's more interesting.”
(for tips and techniques on how to be more creative, sign up now for my free monthly Brainstorm e-bulletin. Just send an email request to [email protected])
