Resources on Creativity

A collection of articles, books, and podcasts we have
selected for this month’s theme: Creativity.

1. The Source of Creativity

This TED Radio Hour episode explores whether we’re born creative, if we can learn it, if our culture and school systems truly foster it, and what we can do to increase our artistic expression.

“I thought well maybe my best work wasn’t about me. Maybe my best work was when I started to ripen the voices of other people or put myself in someone else’s shoes or saw the world through their eyes. That kind of empathy is eventually what broke this writer’s block.”
– Sting

2. Fostering Creativity at Work

Gallup conducted a recent study of 16,500 employees on creativity in the workplace. It revealed the key factors in cultivating employee creativity are:

1. expectations to be creative at work
2. time to be creative
3. freedom to take the risks necessary to be creative

Read all about the results and what they mean here.

3. The Art of Gathering

This book argues that the gatherings in our lives are lackluster and unproductive–which they don’t have to be. We rely too much on routine and the conventions of gatherings when we should focus on distinctiveness and the people involved. At a time when coming together is more important than ever, Parker sets forth a human-centered approach to gathering that will help everyone create meaningful, memorable experiences, large and small, for work and for play.

4. Microdosing in the Name of Creativity

To be clear, we’re not telling you to go take drugs (!). We ARE saying you should read about them. This article from VICE Health shares the results of preliminary studies on the affects of microdosing mushrooms. The article also goes on to discuss drug research with the objective of inducing hibernation in humans and the impact of teen cannabis use on their ability to learn.

5. The Hard Truth About Innovative Cultures

Innovative companies seem to attract talent because they come across as places where it’s ok to fail, risk-taking is encouraged, and work life is just fun. But it’s not easy to live up to these expectations or to create a sustainable culture of creativity. This article explains what it really takes.

6. The Health Benefits of Creativity

This article explains the science of how art, writing, music, theater, and dance can improve your mental and physical well-being.