“Hard Work, Attention to Detail,” and Paralyzing Fear: the Ups + ...

Ballard says that having prominent, successful creative people with mental health issues that manifest in ways that are clearly unpleasant—and a society that allows them to be so—is a crucial yet diminishing thing for other people who are suffering. The problem with that, I offer, is that we end up romanticizing the idea of the “tortured genius” in... See more

For Maisel, one of the fundamental reasons people in creative roles are more likely to be affected by anxiety is because they’re constantly being forced to make choices. “Choosing provokes anxiety,” he says. “Most professions don’t demand that you have to make one choice after another, which provokes anxiety. Going into the unknown—even if we’re ad... See more

Here’s the problem: Our schools, our workplaces, our society are built atop that bad metaphor. Activities and habits that we’ve been taught to associate with creativity and efficiency often stunt our thinking, and so much that we’ve been taught to dismiss — activities that look like leisure, play or rest — are crucial to thinking (and living!) well

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