5 Reasons to be Radically Creative in a World That Wants Us to be Normal

“Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in square holes because the people who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.” ~ Steve Jobs

A recent phone conversation with my mom went like this:

“So, I have an idea for my next book!” I exclaimed.

“Oh, yes, you told me about it! The one where the kitchen would be the narrator. I like that idea!” she said.

“No, that idea died,” I laughed.

“Oh, then, is it the story about the reluctant guru? That would be fun,” she said.

“Oh, no, not that one either,” I laughed. “Gosh, I forgot about that one! No, this is a brand-new idea.”

I heard my mom’s gentle chuckle through the line as she settled in to listen. I smiled in response to her chuckle. But there was a time in my life where a chuckle like this would’ve stopped me cold.

Sometimes it wasn’t a chuckle, but a slight frown, followed by a few well-meaning words or logical advice about not getting too excited until I had something more concrete. These cautions might have been because people found my ideas strange. Or, they might have wondered when I would find something and stick with it already.

But whatever it was, these chuckles and words of advice often had the power to make me drop an idea altogether.

To be clear, I don’t believe that this was anyone’s intention, but my projection. I believe now that the chuckles come more from others’ enjoyment of listening to an out-of-the-box idea, not ridicule of it. And their frowns and spoken concerns probably come more from personal fears rather than a judgment of my path.

These days, how others respond to my random ideas might be one of my greatest curiosities, but it is no longer my greatest concern.

I no longer believe, like our society teaches, that all creativity must lead to something tangible. I don’t believe creativity must always produce fruits or it’s a waste of time. I know my ideas do not need even to be made manifest to bring me happiness and joy for as long as they stay with me.

And I believe we are here not to tap our creativity sparingly, but to indulge in it radically. Here are five reasons:

To Stave of Depression

The first time I was diagnosed with depression, I had gone to the doctor with what I believed was a serious problem: I had recently gone to the bookstore and couldn’t find anything to take home. Not a single book interested me, I told the doctor, and that’s not like me.

I am lucky that the doctor did not dismiss my story as silly, but saw through to what I was really saying: I didn’t know what had happened to my curiosity. Without curiosity, there was no creativity in my life, either. And without creativity, I was led closer and closer to the deceptively compassionate refuge of depression.

Now, all these years later, depression is still a possibility for me. But I notice the early signals and make corrections. (If I really need to test myself, I head to the nearest bookstore and watch what happens.)

I’m not giving a prescription for anyone else’s mental health challenges. I simply know that I need radical, unapologetic creativity in my life — not as a matter of professional accomplishment, but as a matter of emotional and mental health. If I don’t regularly shape my energy and ideas into something, they will stagnate inside me.

To Tip Social Paradigms

Society would like to keep the status quo. It would be quite happy if we all stayed in our small family, neighborhood, and political thought bubbles.

Because then, our movements and actions would be expected. Our lives and choices would fit into existing charts and models. Our future could be predicted. We would certainly not cause trouble for anyone. But we would not change the world, either.

To be radically creative forces us right out of our comfort zones. There, we gain an understanding of the larger world, making us wiser and more intelligent. We learn more about one another, making us more empathetic and thoughtful. Creative work itself, regardless of the outcome, makes us strong and dangerous contenders against “business as usual.”

To See the World Through Fresh, Youthful Eyes

You might remember a toy called the Etch-a-Sketch, which allowed children to create a picture on the screen with lines they drew using two knobs. After they were done, they would shake the toy upside down to erase the image.

Buddhists create intricate sand mandalas only to sweep it all away when they’re done. Children build sandcastles by the sea only to watch a wave come to knock it down. This world is a playground for learning and possibility, not perfection and repetition.

Imagine a world where adults were given space and encouragement to create like a child, with little attachment to bringing each effort to its complete and satisfactory fruition.

To gain Insight Into Ourselves and Our Gifts

To be radically creative demands that we dig deep into our own possibilities and potential. We try something; we watch what happens. We challenge, question, and surprise ourselves. In this way, our creative work is like a mirror, giving us valuable insight into the person we are.

This is important self-work. Our natural talents come so easily to us we rarely see them as the gifts they are until someone else points them out to us.

Whether we seek greater self-knowledge or seek to change the world through our gifts — or both — radical creation can give us insight into ourselves in ways we may not access any other way.

To Resist Normalization

Adults who have been hurt and who have failed at things are not naïve about the pain this world can cause. We have “wizened up.” And sometimes, we’ve grown risk-averse. We’ve tightened our circles and narrowed our paths.

What we’re forgetting is that we are still here. We have survived our losses. Overcome our failures. And when there wasn’t a ready-made path to support us, we built one ourselves. And we have the wisdom to boot.

So, rather than seeing our personal history in terms of failures, try seeing it like a child would — as a series of new beginnings. From that freshness and renewal of mind, we can find the inner courage to reengage with risk once again.

To be radically creative requires we release our desire for outer approval. No single act of creation can or will define the totality of who we are, merely what spoke through us in a particular moment in time.

It’s best not to seek comfort from society’s fickle opinion, but in our role as creators.

Radical creation means defying normal. It means seeing beyond the way things have always been to the way they could be. Like Charlie in “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory,” we burst out from the ceiling and dream and imagine beyond boundaries and limits.

Radical creation is not for the faint of heart but for the bravest of heart, the heart that can never be defined as normal.

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