Cultivating Creativity — Inputs and Outputs
Our mind is just like a computer working with inputs and outputs. We perceive information in the real world, process it and form an output like taking an action.
This gives us two ways of using our minds:
- High input & low output
- Low input & high output
Both form two sides of the same coin. One allows us to take in new information whilst the other allows for refinement of what we already know.
This can be leveraged for creativity to allow us to create work that is detailed and authentic to ourselves, making us stand out from the crowd.
The key is to focus on shifting from the first way of using our minds to the second. Everyone has to start somewhere, leading us to consume information from outside sources as we build up our mental model. Initially, this puts our foot through the door but leaves us with a very limited view of what we consumed. We hold biases obtained from our sources and struggle to understand the information on a deep foundational level. There is way too much noise for our minds to focus.
This brings us to the second way of using our minds where we begin closing ourselves off from outside information that may distract us and begin processing what we know on a deeper level. Rather than point to the source for an explanation, we figure out the underlying reasoning and are able to explain it independantly to others — we’re no longer regurgitations of someone’s wisdom.
That is where true creativity lies for it is here that we integrate our inputs intimately with our mental landscape and produce outputs which have been carefully filtered through our own unique minds. We form an authentic view of the knowledge, making it ours.
There’s a reason why we look up to individuals like musicians, aritists or even certain personalities — they know things on such a sophisticated level that others don’t. Knowledge and insights take time to cultivate. They have spent vasts amounts of time looping over their thoughts, putting their knowledge through so many iterations to the point it’s unrecognisable.
To make full use of this second way of processing, we need to shift to a different way of thinking. Limit your consumption of new content (you likely already know all the basics) and begin thinking about it deeply, play about with the knowledge, begin to make it yours. Remove distractions and give your mind time to integrate it with your mental landscape. Stare at a wall or go on walks without music and think about these things. Outputs over inputs. Create with what you already know and work on refining it.
The little diagram I’ve created shows what our minds look like majority of the time. We suffocate ourselves with constant new external information when we lack the internal refined information. The outputs we do create end up being shallow and do not reflect our authenticity.
Strive to limit your inputs, let your internal information take the majority of your mindspace and see your outputs unleash creativity like you’ve never seen before. Whilst before you may have struggled to create anything without it seeming like a copy of someone elses work, you’ll now have so many ideas you‘ll feel compelled to share them with the world.
Hope you learnt something new :)
Let me know what you think in the comments or share your experiences
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