Stepping into more creative ways of being

In order to be creative you have to know how to prepare to be creative.

If art is the bridge between what you see in your mind and what the world sees, then skill is how you build that bridge.

It’s vital to establish some rituals—automatic but decisive patterns of behavior—at the beginning of the creative process, when you are most at peril of turning back, chickening out, giving up, or going the wrong way.

The only criterion is this: Make it easy on yourself. Find a working environment where the prospect of wrestling with your muse doesn’t scare you, doesn’t shut you down. It should make you want to be there, and once you find it, stick with it. To get the creative habit, you need a working environment that’s habit-forming.

My daily routines are transactional. Everything that happens in my day is a transaction between the external world and my internal world. Everything is raw material. Everything is relevant. Everything is usable. Everything feeds into my creativity. But without proper preparation, I cannot see it, retain it, and use it. Without the time and effort

We call it a belief system because it's more than a collection of values. It's how we see the world and what is missing.

1. Make stuff you use every day—it makes for a better life.

2. Make it better—do less if you need to.

3. Nothing is finished—everything can be rethought.

4. Think small—make one small part of the world as it should be.

5. Slow down—put in the time &