Renowned painter Pablo Picasso famously said “There are painters who transform the sun to a yellow spot, but there are others who with the help of their art and their intelligence, transform a yellow spot into sun”. Think about that for a minute..Does that not sum up the very essence of creativity?

Creativity is an important attribute to bring to your studies. And this is applicable whether you’re studying, engineering, law, nursing or even accounting. Yes, accounting, and no we don’t mean “creative accounting”-  that stuff can get you in trouble! But in order to understand how important creativity is, we need to first understand what is meant by it.  

Creativity is not just the realm of creative disciplines, such as arts, music and design - it is important in all disciplines from science to medicine to engineering to business. So what is creativity? Creativity has received numerous definitions over the years, many by really creative people ( including our good friend Picasso) and some by not so creative people. But what many education experts view is so important about creativity and learning is that it is really is a frame of mind.  It’s a set of attitudes that people apply when they encounter difficulties. Creativity becomes most important when difficult decisions need to be made or challenging problems need to be solved. Just think of some the challenges that those who work in disciplines not traditionally viewed as creative might face everyday – engineers trying to build a bridge in difficult terrain, doctors and nurses facing difficult medical problems in patients, even mechanics trying to fix a rare classic car without access to its original spare parts. All these problems require creative solutions.

Creativity allows you to face any challenge with openness, humour and a strong sense of the possible rather than the impossible. It teaches us to be open minded, to not fear difficulty and change and to adapt to dynamic environments. Who doesn’t want that in this and age. So find ways to let your creativity flourish. Be curious and engage in creative activities – read a book for fun, go see a play, listen to music. Let your imagination wander, day dream, meditate, be still, allow yourself to be bored and see what you come up with.. And while you might not view yourself as a creative person, it is a skill you can learn. You just need to practice. Why not start now? Transform your yellow spot into a sun.