of inspiration: a striving to transmit, express, or actualize a new idea, insight, or vision.

Those who derive enjoyment from the act of creating and feel in control of their creative process tend to show greater creativity than those who are focused exclusively on the outcome of their work.

In fact, the extent to which children fell in love with their dreams was a better predictor of both personally meaningful and publicly recognized creative achievement than things like scholastic performance.

many of the things we do “just for fun,” like gaming, actually are crucial to our life happiness, resiliency, work performance, and creativity.31

Creative people seem to be particularly good at operating within a broad spectrum of personality traits and behaviors. They are both introverted and extraverted, depending on the situation and environment, and learn to harness both mindfulness and mind wandering in their creative process.

Creative people are particularly good at exercising flexibility in activating and deactivating these brain networks that in most people tend to be at odds with each other. In doing so, they’re able to juggle seemingly contradictory modes of thought—cognitive and emotional, deliberate, and spontaneous.43 Even on a neurological level, creativity is m

Turning our attention away from the external world and tuning in to the world within—dreams, fantasies, stories, personal narratives, and feelings—not only builds a sense of meaning and hope, as Lennon’s anthem suggests, but also allows us to tap into our deepest wellsprings of creativity.

Far from being an indicator of negative personality traits or mental illness, the capacity for solitude may be a sign of emotional maturity and healthy psychological development.

control of their passions. They are not following their passions; they are one with their passions.