I had the great pleasure of sitting down and chatting with Blaine Hogan, author of Untitled: Thoughts On The Creative Process which releases July 27th. We discuss creativity, being a dad and the process of creativity.

To see part 2 of this interview continue on here

Anything resonate with you in this interview?
What is the goal of your creative work?

*kyle

To follow Blaine on twitter go here
To read Blaine’s blog go here
To email blaine click here

We live in a world that is loud. Distractions here, noise there, how can any possibly focus?
It’s easy to make a lot of noise with your talk but what about the noise you make with your actions?

A lot of conversation centers around the idea of cutting through the noise.
The question is asked, how can I stand out on…
Twitter
Facebook
Google+
Email
etc…

But the simple truth is, people pay attention to noise that is not static but moving.

When the words we use (or letters we type) are not backed up with action all we are is just a bunch of white noise.

What kind of noise are you making?

*kyle

This is absolutely worth downloading. Thad Cockrell presents Leagues

This is absolutely worth downloading.

*kyle

Today I am excited to share with you my summer playlist. Yes that is right, it is summer and I have a playlist. Or maybe my friend Sam asked me to share a summer playlist because he has been making them himself and was interested in what I would have on mine. So I happily obliged and made a list of songs that are getting me through the summer heat.

So here is my summer playlist:

I would love to hear what is on your summer playlist?

*kyle

I guess you can call that “a moment”

*kyle

I am excited to be apart of a blog series headed up by Darrell Vesterfelt on Personal Creative Process. To read more about this series and to see others that are involved check out this page here.

It is easy to think that you are not creative. You know your art and you know how you got to the end result of your art. “To be described as creative would simply be absurd” you mutter to yourself. As some have said in the past, art is not so much expressing oneself, as it is discovering oneself. And so the personal creative process is filled with a lot of discovery and a lot of doubt, but the key word in it all is discovery.

The journey of discovery that I have been on over the last three or so years has been one that has involved a lot of searching for answers. It seems that art sometimes is like a code of numbers that are waiting to be cracked to unlock the mysteries that are within. I know good art. I see it everyday, I listen to it everyday, and I talk about it everyday. But to discover it, to create it,, that process seems locked away in a safe that Danny Ocean could not crack. So how do you discover the creative process? You start doing something.

I love what Ralph Waldo Emerson says:

The greatest discoveries are those that shed light unto ourselves.

I am convinced that the more I learn about myself the more that I start to discover creativity. It is a process that I am still working on but have started to pay attention to the way I am wired and the way that I operate to produce more creativity. This has become important for me. Mainly because for the longest time I was more interested in what others did then what I was doing. I would spend hours reading, listening, or researching others creative process so that I could then go and be more creative but never spent more then five minutes cultivating my own creative process. The art of discovering creativity is examining oneself to see what will return.

Today I want to share with you three things that I am learning about my creative process:

1. Go With My Gut

The best part about this one is that I really don’t  have a gut, in fact I have lost most of it. But that is not the gut I am talking about, I am referring more to that instinct that you have inside of you. The voice that tells you to move in this direction or to stop all together. If you are anything like me, you have discovered that nine times out of ten that voice is correct. Go with your gut is a great way to start to move forward in your creative process and will start to free you from the burden of making “the right decision.” Honestly, there really is no right decision, only what you decide is right and then  move forward with.

2. Learn More About Yourself

One of the best things I did was to take the Strength Finders Test. This allowed me to really see what I was good at and how I could be even better. I had an idea of where my gifting was, but until I took this test I really did not have a name for it nor did I have a definition to accompany it. Now that I know that I am gifted in connecting, communicating and activating, this has allowed me to focus a bit more on these skills and cultivate more creativity. I have also taken the time to listen to others when they talk about me. This is not a conceited type of thing, but more of a chance to grow and learn. Occasionally I will ask friends, “what draws you to me?” Ya it is a bit weird asking that, but I am glad I do, because the answers are often not what I expect. Learning more about yourself is key in discovering your creative process.

3. Watch Yourself Not Others

It is easy to pay attention to those that we want to be like but often miss who we are all together. One of the biggest things that freed me up in my own personal creative process was to start evaluating what I am doing and not worry about what others are doing. I mentioned it before, but I would spend more time watching others and never paying attention to what I was doing. I would buy resources that others recommended, tried to follow their creative process, and even took notes like they would. It wasn’t until I started to realize that this was just not cutting it and that my ways are okay that I started to free up my creativity and started to move forward with my creative process.

These are just a couple of ways I discovered my creative process. I would love to hear how you have discovered your creative process. I am sure that you are rich with helpful tips.

Share with the community: How have you discovered your creative process?

*kyle

Be sure to check out all the other fine folks that are participating in this extravaganza of creative process blog carnival. Read more here 

Sunday provides us a day to relax, reflect, and refuel. On Sunday’s I like to sit back and ask a couple of questions. Maybe it sounds a little like those awkward games you play with people you do not know so that you can get to know each other better.

Lets just call it Question(s) for You.

1) If You could have any breed of dog, what would it be? (mine would be this)

2) What would you rather have television, music or internet? (Note: cannot watch television or listen to music on the internet)

3) Would you rather sweat or shiver?

Answer them all or just one….these are Questions for You.

*Kyle