The Groove Issue 67 - The Stories You Loved The Most
Welcome to the 67th issue of The Groove.
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Wishing you a Happy New Year and all the best for 2022!
THE STORIES YOU LOVED THE MOST
I want to start this issue by thanking you profusely for being a reader and supporter of The Groove. I love being able to connect with you, because you are my kind of person: interested in growth, hooked on learning new things, looking for self-actualization and devoted to consistent development.
While many writers have moved their content to paid platforms, The Groove will always be free.
This year, I wrote 51 stories on creativity, innovation and how to generate ideas that improve what you do, allow you to self-reflect on certain areas of your business or practice and provide a different point of view from where you stand right now. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that looking at things from a different vantage point is critical for ideas of value to surface and materialize.
Just so you have an idea on what goes into each issue: at least 4 hours are allocated to the selection and research of each topic, and then at least 2 more go into writing and editing. And I do that week after week.
I always look at history, because by bringing these passages and snippets to the present, I already know that I am sharing with you ideas that last. I also look at science, psychology, and peer-reviewed studies because I like to find data and proof to back up a point that history has already validated.
This is a similar methodology I used when I wrote my upcoming book “How Creativity Rules The World: The Art and Business of Turning Your Ideas Into Gold” (HarperCollins) where in the span of two years, I put in more than 1200 hours of research and 700 of writing, re-writing and editing. (On top of researching and writing The Groove!)
In a world where everything changes so fast, I am obsessed with timelessness and with highlighting habits and attitudes that the most creative minds in the world have used with success in the past: because you can replicate them in the present with adjustments to your own circumstances and your industry.
Looking back at 2021, below are your favorite stories of this year. These are the ones you found most valuable, shared with others, and wrote back to me with personal anecdotes and excitement to apply what’s written in them in your life.
The Top 12
From left top clockwise: Georgia O’Keefe, Keith Haring, Pablo Picasso, Henri Rousseau and Frida Kahlo are some of the muses you were inspired by in 2021 no matter your area of expertise.
1. The Rewards of Being a Contrarian: The willingness to disagree, dissent or challenge the status quo, when done for the purpose of generating value in any setting, carries the seed of creativity and innovation with potentially enormous rewards.
2. The Case for Optimism: Many artists and entrepreneurs like to see the future as better than the present, no matter how good they have it today. This doesn’t mean they aren’t mindful and appreciative of their circumstances, but it does point at the quality of being an optimist.
3. Why We Resist Change (and NFTs): Leadership and creativity are all about change. But we are creatures of habit, and we tend to get comfortable with what we know.
4. Create More Than You Consume: Successful artists and entrepreneurs share almost every one of these traits: they are resourceful, agile, solution-oriented and above all, they create abundantly with passion and purpose far more than what they consume.
5. Your Imagination, Your Most Powerful Sense: We would be nowhere without human imagination. Think about it: all the developments, creations, and advances in every field, from art to technology to science, were first born in people’s minds.
6. The Art of Late Starts: Have you ever thought about changing careers, reinventing yourself, or opening your own business but not doing it because it is “too late”? Nobody is really judging you, except yourself.
7. The Link Between Creativity and Happiness: There is an unfairly perpetuated myth that creativity - in any form of art or in business - has to spring from tortured souls after experiencing a lot of suffering. That simply isn’t true.
8. How To Overcome Your Most Common Creative Fears: Many people keep themselves from pursuing their greatest ideas and their most creative contributions because of four types of fears: fear of the unknown, fear of being judged, fear of taking the first step, and fear of losing control.
9. Five Steps To Follow In Your Creative Process: In 1940, advertising executive James Webb Young published a guide called “A Technique for Producing Ideas” where he summarized the creative process in five steps. I thought it would be interesting to see how these five steps materialized in the practice of Frank Lloyd Wright, one of the greatest and most innovative people in history.
10. Why Developing Your Intuition is Crucial for Your Creativity: Every successful artist and entrepreneur uses their intuition to their advantage, whether consciously or unconsciously.
11. The Infallible Link Between Surprise and Creativity: Not everything that is creative is surprising. But if you can add elements of surprise to products or services that bring value, solve a problem, or engage people in an original way, you have the potential to create something truly memorable that stays in people’s minds.
12. Why Creativity Loves Constraints: when there are no limitations on the creative process, complacency sets in, and people don’t come up with their most ingenious ideas.
I was interviewed by Rob Kosberg in his podcast and we talked about the power of creativity in art and business and how you can create magic in your life if you so desire. Listen here.
Thank you for reading this far. Looking forward to hearing from you anytime.
There are no affiliate links in this email. Everything that I recommend is done freely.
THE CURATED GROOVE
A selection of interesting articles in business, art and creativity along with some other things worth mentioning:
The LEGO Group chief product and marketing officer talks about the importance of unlocking and developing creativity no matter what you do.
Starting an innovative business can be done just fine if you're over 60.
A man paid $30 for a drawing that could be worth millions.
Epidemics: A Force for Life-Changing Innovation
How “The Matrix” shows up in our real life.
Why Creativity Is Essential In Leadership—And How To Cultivate It