Strike Creativity

I can’t tell you how many times people have asked me, “what’s the number one thing I can do to be more creative?”

My answer is always the same…

“Schedule it.”

As Chuck Close said, “Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get to work.”

Little known fact here: you don't have to be creative to create. It turns out, there is a big difference between being creative and engaging in the creative process.

You don’t have to be eccentric, scattered, and messy. You don’t have to be moody, smoke cigarettes, and get tattoos. All you have to do is stop waiting around and schedule your work.

All my best work happens this way, not through luck of the draw but through persistence and planning. And that’s because good work is more mechanics than muse.

So don’t wait for creativity to visit by accident. Be creative on purpose.

Don’t hope for creativity to strike. Strike creativity.