6 ms·

Nope. The most effective habit of highly creative people is persistence, the ability to work and work and work while resisting burn-out. The best graphic desig

by sudont 16y ago

Nope. The most effective habit of highly creative people is persistence, the ability to work and work and work while resisting burn-out. The best graphic designers I’ve ever met would put in 8-10 hour days, then go home and work on their personal projects. It was effective, they all had at least 3 AIGA awards and about 10 HOW awards, each.

klbarry 16y ago
Too true. This is also the same for every successful entrepreneur I've ever heard of, read about, or ever known.
evac 16y ago
If we're talking about habit of highly successful people, I would agree it's persistence. But if we're talking specifically about highly creative and innovative people, then we may have to measure them with a slightly different set of metrics, for which solitude may be a more relevant habit than persistence. Though I can't say whether solitude is THE number one habit, I would agree it's one of the best habits to have for generating insights and ideas.
- sudont 16y ago
  Not so much, I’m talking about pure poundage of production: code, pots, designs, sculpture. Iteration is the only way to make something better. Anecdote: One semester, a professor decided to split his ceramics class up into two sections and see which would create better pots. One half would be graded on their final pot, which would be judged in terms of creativity and technical skill. The other half would be judged in terms of poundage of “acceptable” pots. 50 lbs would be a “C” 65 would be an “B” and 90 would be an “A.” At the end of the semester, the best pots out of the entire class were picked from the huge number of iterations that the poundage group created. --Source unknown.
  - AndrewMoffat 16y ago
    > I’m talking about pure poundage of production Creativity does not equal pure poundage of production.
    - gjm11 16y ago
      No one said it does. The point of that anecdote, though, was to suggest that "pure poundage" is (perhaps counterintuitively) a really important factor in producing good things.
    - stonemetal 16y ago
      No but experience(poundage of production) and no fear of being judged on talent(anything not bad accepted) allows for grater experimentation which directly relates to creativity.
  - pprov 16y ago
    That anecdote is from a book called Art and Fear, by David Bayles and Ted Orlando. It's a short, excellent study on the exact thrust of this thread: i.e, the collision of talent and persistence and how a successful artist harnesses both of them. On talent they say, "By definition, whatever [talent] you have is exactly what you need to produce your best work. There is probably no clearer waste of psychic energy than worrying about how much talent you have -- and probably no worry more common." Which to me sums up the topic nicely.
- eavc 16y ago
  I just want to point out our confusingly similar user-names. Looking through your comments, it seems we are both interested in psychology and are non-technical. This may or may not be problematic, but I figured I'd let you know as I just noticed. (sorry for the threadjack, no other way to contact you)
  - evac 16y ago
    True, interesting coincidences! Since I just recently joined HN, I haven't had much opportunity to bump into non-programmers (and programmers) who are also interested in psychology. Though this is a bit off-topic, I'm glad that posting the article (The No. 1 Habit of Highly Creative People) could bring around all sorts of people. Nice to meet you!
- adriand 16y ago
  Interesting that solitude has now largely been made obsolete by mobile devices. Moments where you might have previously spent mulling things over (such as sitting on the bus or waiting for your wife to select an item in a clothing store - true, not exactly a walk on the beach but as close as it gets for many urban dwellers on an average day) are now spent texting, checking Twitter/Facebook, etc.
katovatzschyn 16y ago
I think persistence is paramount, but the most general habit is simply "creation." One needs to be creating something, perhaps not always, perhaps not always well, but creating something none the less. It's a self selecting habit to unite a group by, but for some reason, to some, not an obvious one.
AndrewMoffat 16y ago
That sounds like "the no.1 habit of highly productive creative people", not "the no.1 habit of highly creative people."
- abalashov 16y ago
  Bingo. I am generally far more creative than I am productive. :)
- abalashov 16y ago
  Bingo. I am generally far more creative than I am productive. :)
deleted 16y ago
[deleted]
michaelty 16y ago
"Everyone can be taught to sculpt: Michelangelo would have had to be taught how not to. So it is with the great programmers". Alan Perlis
AndrewMoffat 16y ago
On a side note, it seems like people value persistence more than creativity because it's more attainable by everyone. We can't all be creative freaks like Tesla, Van Gogh, or Einstein, but we can all work really really hard at what we do. Telling someone to "be more creative" doesn't have the same effect as "be more persistent"...you either have it or you don't with creativity. It's almost like the naturally creative are cheating somehow, and there's a quiet resentment towards them by those of us who are non-creative-but-persistent, as if we want to forget that natural creativity gives a distinct advantage that can't be duplicated by persistence alone. I think a couple of the posts in this thread exemplify this attitude.
- Semiapies 16y ago
  Everyone's "creative" in the lazy sense of "having ideas". Everyone has an armful of ideas. Talk to people, and you can hear them. I have literal piled notebooks full of ideas (at least, before I switched to text editors). The ones I haven't yet done anything with? They don't matter, because nothing has been created. The people who actually manage more than going on about how they're "creative" are the people who pursue craft and accomplish their ideas, and that requires dedication and effort. This conflicts with the mythology of creation as some airy, quasi-magical activity that only Special People do, but it's one of those hard truths: things you want take work. And no, persistence is not "more attainable by everyone". It's not about plugging away mindlessly, it's about passion and dedication and improvement. These are hard things!
  - hbt 16y ago
    I think the OP meant "creative" as seeing a shortcut e.g instead of spending 10 hours trying to solve a problem, a "creative" person could do it in two using a different approach. In this case, persistence is inefficient. You can see it happening with workaholics who will take the "hard/long" path and feel like heroes after 72 hours of work. Persistence and dedication can be real time suckers. Especially if giving up means failing. The beauty of laziness and postponing things is you let your mind process the information in the background. Unless the task is frustrating/urgent, I'd rather wait for an "humm, interesting" moment.
pgroves 16y ago
>Nope. The most effective habit of highly creative people is persistence, the ability to work and work and work while resisting burn-out. But if that persistence is applied to 8 hours a day of meetings and 3 hours of email, it wouldn't lead to anything impressive. The days/months/years of persistence must go toward "creating" not just "working." The author made the case that most creativity happens when you're alone with your thoughts.
prknight 16y ago
Persistence may guarantee a certain quantity of output and that may allow for a higher statistical chance of 'wins', but it's not a must-have habit to be highly creative. Compare the histories and creative methodologies of Edison (known for persistence) versus Tesla (mad, but more creative scientist) - I'd rather be Tesla creative than Edison creative. What a lot of creative people that appear incredibly persistent have in common are lifestyles that are driven by curiosity. Leonardo Da Vinci is perhaps the most creative genius to have walked the planet but it wasn't the habit of persistence that set him apart - it was his curiosity. He produced like crazy but he was famously known as a flake in the day (for not finishing stuff). He didn't care about output - he was driven by his questions, his curiosity. Curiosity driven people don't stop because they intrinsically need to find the answers, they can't help it - it's a form of persistence. I'd rather have a insatiably curious person working on developing ideas than a persistent workaholic.
te_chris 16y ago
Your attitude is symptomatic of most people who, in lieu of being actually creative and making cool stuff, don't, but believe that if they just keep trying they'll get there. Sometimes this is true, but genius works in mysterious ways. Also using designers as an example is a bit disingenuous as well. I know this is a massive value judgement, but I don't generally consider designers artists. they're too bound by their medium generally to be considered properly creative and artistic. they're more technicians - solving interesting problems, but never with the surprising abstraction that makes great art great.
- rimantas 16y ago
  they're too bound by their medium Sculptors have no chance then :(
  - te_chris 16y ago
    Medium was the wrong word, in hindsight...I think I really mean't discipline.
albertcardona 16y ago
The most effective habit of highly creative people is persistence, the ability to work and work and work while resisting burn-out. Solitude has a lot to do with persistence. When working hard, one is alone. By definition, nobody can be you and fulfill your vision.
swannodette 16y ago
Don't confuse success with creativity.

by sudont 16y ago

klbarry 16y ago

Too true. This is also the same for every successful entrepreneur I've ever heard of, read about, or ever known.

evac 16y ago

If we're talking about habit of highly successful people, I would agree it's persistence. But if we're talking specifically about highly creative and innovative people, then we may have to measure them with a slightly different set of metrics, for which solitude may be a more relevant habit than persistence. Though I can't say whether solitude is THE number one habit, I would agree it's one of the best habits to have for generating insights and ideas.

sudont 16y ago
Not so much, I’m talking about pure poundage of production: code, pots, designs, sculpture. Iteration is the only way to make something better. Anecdote: One semester, a professor decided to split his ceramics class up into two sections and see which would create better pots. One half would be graded on their final pot, which would be judged in terms of creativity and technical skill. The other half would be judged in terms of poundage of “acceptable” pots. 50 lbs would be a “C” 65 would be an “B” and 90 would be an “A.” At the end of the semester, the best pots out of the entire class were picked from the huge number of iterations that the poundage group created. --Source unknown.
- AndrewMoffat 16y ago
  > I’m talking about pure poundage of production Creativity does not equal pure poundage of production.
  - gjm11 16y ago
    No one said it does. The point of that anecdote, though, was to suggest that "pure poundage" is (perhaps counterintuitively) a really important factor in producing good things.
  - stonemetal 16y ago
    No but experience(poundage of production) and no fear of being judged on talent(anything not bad accepted) allows for grater experimentation which directly relates to creativity.
- pprov 16y ago
  That anecdote is from a book called Art and Fear, by David Bayles and Ted Orlando. It's a short, excellent study on the exact thrust of this thread: i.e, the collision of talent and persistence and how a successful artist harnesses both of them. On talent they say, "By definition, whatever [talent] you have is exactly what you need to produce your best work. There is probably no clearer waste of psychic energy than worrying about how much talent you have -- and probably no worry more common." Which to me sums up the topic nicely.
eavc 16y ago
I just want to point out our confusingly similar user-names. Looking through your comments, it seems we are both interested in psychology and are non-technical. This may or may not be problematic, but I figured I'd let you know as I just noticed. (sorry for the threadjack, no other way to contact you)
- evac 16y ago
  True, interesting coincidences! Since I just recently joined HN, I haven't had much opportunity to bump into non-programmers (and programmers) who are also interested in psychology. Though this is a bit off-topic, I'm glad that posting the article (The No. 1 Habit of Highly Creative People) could bring around all sorts of people. Nice to meet you!
adriand 16y ago
Interesting that solitude has now largely been made obsolete by mobile devices. Moments where you might have previously spent mulling things over (such as sitting on the bus or waiting for your wife to select an item in a clothing store - true, not exactly a walk on the beach but as close as it gets for many urban dwellers on an average day) are now spent texting, checking Twitter/Facebook, etc.

katovatzschyn 16y ago

I think persistence is paramount, but the most general habit is simply "creation." One needs to be creating something, perhaps not always, perhaps not always well, but creating something none the less. It's a self selecting habit to unite a group by, but for some reason, to some, not an obvious one.

AndrewMoffat 16y ago

That sounds like "the no.1 habit of highly productive creative people", not "the no.1 habit of highly creative people."

abalashov 16y ago
Bingo. I am generally far more creative than I am productive. :)
abalashov 16y ago
Bingo. I am generally far more creative than I am productive. :)

deleted 16y ago

[deleted]

michaelty 16y ago

"Everyone can be taught to sculpt: Michelangelo would have had to be taught how not to. So it is with the great programmers". Alan Perlis

AndrewMoffat 16y ago

On a side note, it seems like people value persistence more than creativity because it's more attainable by everyone. We can't all be creative freaks like Tesla, Van Gogh, or Einstein, but we can all work really really hard at what we do. Telling someone to "be more creative" doesn't have the same effect as "be more persistent"...you either have it or you don't with creativity. It's almost like the naturally creative are cheating somehow, and there's a quiet resentment towards them by those of us who are non-creative-but-persistent, as if we want to forget that natural creativity gives a distinct advantage that can't be duplicated by persistence alone. I think a couple of the posts in this thread exemplify this attitude.

Semiapies 16y ago
Everyone's "creative" in the lazy sense of "having ideas". Everyone has an armful of ideas. Talk to people, and you can hear them. I have literal piled notebooks full of ideas (at least, before I switched to text editors). The ones I haven't yet done anything with? They don't matter, because nothing has been created. The people who actually manage more than going on about how they're "creative" are the people who pursue craft and accomplish their ideas, and that requires dedication and effort. This conflicts with the mythology of creation as some airy, quasi-magical activity that only Special People do, but it's one of those hard truths: things you want take work. And no, persistence is not "more attainable by everyone". It's not about plugging away mindlessly, it's about passion and dedication and improvement. These are hard things!
- hbt 16y ago
  I think the OP meant "creative" as seeing a shortcut e.g instead of spending 10 hours trying to solve a problem, a "creative" person could do it in two using a different approach. In this case, persistence is inefficient. You can see it happening with workaholics who will take the "hard/long" path and feel like heroes after 72 hours of work. Persistence and dedication can be real time suckers. Especially if giving up means failing. The beauty of laziness and postponing things is you let your mind process the information in the background. Unless the task is frustrating/urgent, I'd rather wait for an "humm, interesting" moment.

pgroves 16y ago

>Nope. The most effective habit of highly creative people is persistence, the ability to work and work and work while resisting burn-out. But if that persistence is applied to 8 hours a day of meetings and 3 hours of email, it wouldn't lead to anything impressive. The days/months/years of persistence must go toward "creating" not just "working." The author made the case that most creativity happens when you're alone with your thoughts.

prknight 16y ago

Persistence may guarantee a certain quantity of output and that may allow for a higher statistical chance of 'wins', but it's not a must-have habit to be highly creative. Compare the histories and creative methodologies of Edison (known for persistence) versus Tesla (mad, but more creative scientist) - I'd rather be Tesla creative than Edison creative. What a lot of creative people that appear incredibly persistent have in common are lifestyles that are driven by curiosity. Leonardo Da Vinci is perhaps the most creative genius to have walked the planet but it wasn't the habit of persistence that set him apart - it was his curiosity. He produced like crazy but he was famously known as a flake in the day (for not finishing stuff). He didn't care about output - he was driven by his questions, his curiosity. Curiosity driven people don't stop because they intrinsically need to find the answers, they can't help it - it's a form of persistence. I'd rather have a insatiably curious person working on developing ideas than a persistent workaholic.

te_chris 16y ago

Your attitude is symptomatic of most people who, in lieu of being actually creative and making cool stuff, don't, but believe that if they just keep trying they'll get there. Sometimes this is true, but genius works in mysterious ways. Also using designers as an example is a bit disingenuous as well. I know this is a massive value judgement, but I don't generally consider designers artists. they're too bound by their medium generally to be considered properly creative and artistic. they're more technicians - solving interesting problems, but never with the surprising abstraction that makes great art great.

rimantas 16y ago
they're too bound by their medium Sculptors have no chance then :(
- te_chris 16y ago
  Medium was the wrong word, in hindsight...I think I really mean't discipline.

albertcardona 16y ago

The most effective habit of highly creative people is persistence, the ability to work and work and work while resisting burn-out. Solitude has a lot to do with persistence. When working hard, one is alone. By definition, nobody can be you and fulfill your vision.

swannodette 16y ago

Don't confuse success with creativity.