Creativity

Creativity arises from unique combinations of knowledge, reasoning, imaginations, experiences, and perceptions. To be creative is to go beyond the obvious, exploring new perspectives and finding unexpected solutions.

It is the ability to generate new, original, and/or useful ideas — at least for the person who conceives them at that moment.

Even if the idea has already been conceived and developed by someone else before, if it's new to the person creating it now — meaning they have no prior knowledge of it — they are still engaging their creativity.

As mentioned in the description of this blog, what truly matters here is not so much the content of the idea (or of any experience) — whether it is good or not, whether it is absolutely original or not — but rather the experience of the process itself — in this case, the creative process.

Creativity is everywhere

Creativity manifests itself in a wide range of fields — such as the arts, philosophy, science, everyday problem-solving, inventions, and practical solutions that address a problem or improve a situation — and even in the way we communicate. It can be applied both in crafting arguments in the pursuit of truth, as in philosophy, and in the creation of purely persuasive discourse.

It can be used for both constructive and destructive purposes.

Creativity can be expressed in a drawing, a melody, a text — whether argumentative or literary, such as a line of poetry — in the development of a device, a method, or in the formulation of a scientific hypothesis, among many other forms.

Technique

Although technique is essential for giving form to what one wishes to create, the creative act goes beyond it — it involves a series of other elements that precede, accompany, and transcend its execution.

Stages Involved in the Creative Process

Birth of the Idea

The creative process involves a rich and diverse combination of senses and emotions. The emergence of ideas resembles, in some ways, the phenomenon of having something "on the tip of the tongue" — though it differs in many others.

In that case, we rely on clues to recover a memory — "casting out bait" to bring it to the surface — whereas in the creative process, we draw upon reasoning attempts, imaginations, and perceptions, seeking to extract something new from the mind. In the end, while a memory may emerge in the first case, a new idea may arise in the second.

In the first case, the information seems to already exist, even if it's just out of conscious reach. In the second, the sensation is different — there is a certain emptiness before the idea emerges. Still, it's sometimes possible to sense that something new is taking shape, even before it fully comes to light.

Curation

However, creativity is not limited to generating new ideas. There are other essential stages, one of which is a kind of curation, in which we evaluate whether the idea that emerged is truly good and promising — whether it’s worth investing time and effort into developing.

It’s as if I need to recognize certain qualities in it — such as, for example, aesthetic sense in art: a harmony, a balance, or some quality that fits perfectly with what I am trying to create.

"Is it beautiful? Or is it ugly in the way I want it to be? Is it flowing well? Does it provoke what I want to provoke?"

This is also crucial for evaluating the ideas of others. Sometimes, the person hasn't fully mastered the technique, or the idea is in its early stages, but even so, it is possible to recognize its potential.

However, this process requires a certain openness — highly disruptive ideas can be difficult to evaluate or invest in while they are still in their early stages.

Analyze and Test

After this recognition, I analyze and test the idea from different perspectives to check if the initial perception — that the idea is potentially good — still holds.

In theoretical texts, for example, the focus primarily falls on the strength of the arguments. I assess whether they are insightful, whether the sentences are well-constructed, coherent with the premises, and consistent with the evidence, whether they clearly and precisely convey what I wish to express, whether the reasoning is logical and cohesive, and whether it integrates harmoniously with the other elements, forming a consistent whole.

In descriptive texts, like the ones I aim to create here, I also observe these aspects, in addition to evaluating whether the way I describe the experiences conveys, with the greatest possible precision, what I perceive to occur phenomenologically.

In certain situations, the value of an argument lies not in its apparent conformity with reality, but in its persuasive strength.

In these cases, aesthetic and emotional value, as in the creation of a catchy phrase, can be decisive — and in recognizing them, the same steps described above are followed.

Reactions to the Emergence of an Idea

In the process of an idea's emergence, as already mentioned, it is sometimes necessary to focus, reason, and reflect so that it can emerge, and then examine it to see if there is truly something in it that seems valuable.

Then, a sense of certainty and recognition of its value may arise — accompanied by surprise, because although I often actively search for an idea, it always emerges in an unexpected way, surprising me and then generating a sense of satisfaction that manifests as an exciting joy.

When the solution found was particularly difficult to achieve, it may be accompanied by a sense of pride that manifests as a kind of "angry joy" or "joyful anger," similar to the feeling that often emerges after a hard-earned accomplishment.

Sometimes, it comes with an exclamation: "That's it!" — like a small moment of eureka.

These reactions do not always follow clearly in every creative production situation. In some cases, there is more of a simultaneity between the emergence of ideas, their execution, and the recognition of their quality. 

This can occur within a creative cycle, where one idea gives rise to another, and the processes of execution and recognition gradually interconnect and feed into each other.

Thus, there is not always time for each of these reactions to manifest so distinctly. This may only happen at the end of the entire process. What exists here is more like a flow where ideas and actions are connected.

The Unconscious Part of the Process

When I'm immersed in something — like writing a text — it seems that my mind continues to work even when I'm not deliberately focused on it and very aware of my internal work. 

If I pay attention, I can even observe that I'm somehow always returning to the topic in an internal dialogue that occurs alongside the activities I'm doing at the moment, like, for example, taking a shower. In fact, it seems that I'm neither fully in the shower nor fully immersed in the idea.

Sometimes, something I hear or see triggers a connection with that project, or even without being in an ongoing project, without deliberately searching for a new idea, I recognize something there that, by affecting me in some way, gives birth to an idea.

Suddenly, an idea appears, and the reactions mentioned above follow. Along with it comes the fear of losing it. In these moments, I need to write it down as quickly as possible — it could be an example, an analogy, an argument, etc., something that, if I don’t capture it right away, might slip away.

A profusion of ideas may emerge, sometimes one triggering another, unfolding into several more, and if I don't write them down, they proliferate so much that I may end up forgetting many of them.

Before the Idea

However, everything begins before the idea. It starts with being open. Open to whatever emerges, to seeing the world in a different way, to asking different questions.

It may come from an attempt to solve a problem — whether practical, emotional, or creative. It is this state of curiosity, of wonder — which philosophy calls thauma — that prepares the ground.

To generate ideas — intentionally, when no specific problem is actually pressing me or demanding creativity — I can also resort to brainstorming, exploring unusual combinations, reimagining familiar elements in new contexts, or setting constraints that challenge my usual thinking patterns. These strategies help activate creative thinking even in the absence of an immediate need.

Development, Refining, and Conclusion

After the recognition stage and the initial tests, the next step is the development and refinement of the idea. This is one of the moments I enjoy the most, because I’m no longer starting from scratch — there’s already something in front of me that can be worked on calmly.

I can then dedicate myself to polishing, smoothing rough edges, and combining it with other ideas. It’s a meticulous process of refinement, making it more "well-rounded." At this stage, other ideas emerge to complement it, and with them comes the recognition of its quality for the project. 

And so the idea gains depth, takes shape, until I feel that the text, the drawing, the melody, the device, or the method — whatever it may be — is ready, bringing the creative process to a satisfying conclusion. However, it can always be revisited and refined.

This feeling of conclusion also relates to various senses (aesthetic, the sense that it is complete, that everything fits together properly, etc.).

Some more elaborate ideas go through this entire process; others, more immediate ones that solve pressing issues, not as much. Still, they are expressions of creativity.

Maturation

Often, ideas need a period of maturation. Stepping away from them and returning with a refreshed mind can help. Allowing the mind to work unconsciously, in the background, is part of the process (as mentioned above).

Creative Influences

In many cases, it’s possible to perceive the influences that were used in the creation. For example, sometimes, I may not be fully aware of which ones I’m incorporating when I’m creating a cartoon character (something I used to enjoy doing).

However, later on, I can recognize in the drawing traits, ways of drawing certain body parts, etc., that I drew from to create it. It’s like the "genetics" of the character.

For example, eyes that resemble those of characters from the animated series The Simpsons, a line style more similar to Charles Schulz’s, and so on.

In the case of drawing, for me, the idea can come from many things, even from pareidolia. But that’s for another post.

Notes

Note 1: The idea to write about this topic came from a friend who had seen that I started a blog, and at the time, I mentioned to her that I was writing a text on ‘surprise,’ but had just lost the entire text because I hadn’t saved it.

Another day, she asked me if I had managed to finish the text about 'creativity,' and I told her that, in fact, the text was about ‘surprise.’ However, by her mentioning the topic incorrectly, she gave me the idea to write about it.

Note 2: Interestingly, this week, while writing about this topic, I was able to observe it happening and experience it in the very act of writing this text.

While I was taking a shower, walking, washing dishes, etc., ideas about it would come to the surface: phrases, topics, examples, etc. In this text, a profusion of ideas came to me as I was writing.

I thought: I can write about this! I can add this! I can phrase it this way, cite this example, make this analogy! I can talk about what I’m perceiving right now as the ideas for this text on creativity emerge, etc.

So, I was able to confirm the stages and reactions I was describing here as they presented themselves to my awareness, in addition to noticing others. 

Moreover, I was always concerned about quickly jotting down the ideas and perceptions that came to me in order to compose this text, so as not to risk losing them. 

Note 3: Descriptions related to micro muscle activities, breathing changes, and other physiological aspects have already been covered in the posts that focus specifically on each component of creativity — such as imagination, innerdialogue, surprise, and so on.

Note 4: Perhaps here, I may have fallen short in the refining stage (although it is the part I enjoy the most, as I mentioned earlier). However, I hope to improve it over time.

Check out these posts to understand the phenomenological approach used in providing these descriptions of experience: 1) What is Phenomenology; 2) Naturalization of Phenomenology; 3) Micro-Phenomenology; 4) Intersubjective Validation; 5) Embodied Cognition; 6) 4E