How have your views toward creativity and Creativity changed this semester? Discuss an uncomfortable moment/assignment for you because you had to expand your creativity.
Throughout the course of the semester, my idea of creativity has changed completely. I used to think that I was not a creative person; I dabbled in many arts and crafts like sewing, crocheting, jewelry making, sketching, but never considered myself creative because I never considered the items I created to be...well, creative. Now that I say that, that way of thinking does not make any sense! It really doesn't. I've discovered that I was confusing creativity with talent. I understand as talent being something somewhat innate, a gift if you will, that needs little to no maintenance but can definitely improve with practice.
Through my creativity project, I definitely enhanced my creativity. The project that inspired this whole idea is not quite finished; it is a multi-colored, multi-strand necklace made with small really small colored beads, which made the project itself quite overwhelming. At the start, I was very motivated to work on it, but after about 3 hours of 'beading' and only have a small portion done, I was discouraged. But it did spawn a lot of other ideas in the process. Not only have I made time to make jewelry, but I’ve also made sure that I allowed myself opportunities to be creative. I’ve finished several other jewelry items, checked out books from the local library and learned new crochet stitches, make it a regular habit to analyze jewelry that I see in stores and in catalogs and create my own variations, taught my sister how to crochet, and continue to work on unfinished projects and start new ones. This process helped me to understand that it is important to flex your creativity muscles whenever possible in order to keep them strong and imaginative.
I've realized that being creative is something that I've always enjoyed, but told myself I just didn't have the time for it. After taking this course, I recognize that lack of time was no longer an acceptable excuse; if it is important to me I should make time for it, just like I do for everything else. I understand now that creativity is: a an "out of the box" way of thinking, fluid and flexible, non-traditional, challenging, expressive, aesthetic, abstract, meaningful, motivating, unique, energizing, draining, and purposeful.
