Creativity is nothing but a mind that’s set free and to playwright and theatre producer, Jeffery Madoff, this couldn’t be any truer. We are made with a natural desire to express ourselves, and as Jeff points out, we must nurture that need as if it were a basic necessity.

Having worked with veteran artists himself, he highlights how many people tend to believe that they are “not creative” or lack that ingenious spark of an artist. Jeff tells us that everyone is born creative, and only when we let go of our doubts do we learn how to make the most out of our ideas.

“A lot of people, especially adults, will say ‘I’m not creative”, He says, “They’ll disqualify themselves from all kinds of things, and I think that when we start out in life as infants, we all have creativity and we all have that desire to express but it gets squashed out of a lot of people.”

Jeff states that creativity is often misattributed to what he calls “the myth of the lightning bolt” where it comes in sudden flashes of inspired outbursts. To him, creativity isn’t sudden, rather it is constant, which is why he emphasizes the importance of stimulus in nurturing creativity. He shares with us three things that can help one stimulate and improve their creativity.

• You are born creative. From the moment you gain your senses, the human body’s natural instinct is to discover, experience, and identify. Curiosity is the first among the many characteristics you gain and much like seeking food and shelter, the body seeks stimulus and finds the most creative ways to take an ordinary object and deconstruct it to fill that need for something new.
• Expression is subject to criticism. It’s only natural that people have different tastes, and the realization that not everyone will understand what you put out is usually what discourages people to be creative in the first place. It’s cruel to see your work be judged, but that judgement is exactly what art requires. To refine your craft, you need the insight of veterans, equals, and commonfolk alike.
• Create an environment where it is safe to express. Surrounding yourself with like-minded people will only result in like-minded work. The stimulus provided by artists of diverse backgrounds provokes freshness and freedom. To Jeff, it is important that you feed your curiosity with things and ideas that you wouldn’t normally encounter with people who are equally eager to see and absorb whatever you put out.
• Jeff reminds us that unimaginativeness is only a state of mind. If the mere act of living is the greatest form of stimulus, how could it be possible for someone to not be creative? Once you break that barricade of self-doubt, you will find that you are far more expressive than you give yourself credit for.

More from Jeff:

• Instagram – @jeff_madoff
• LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/today/author/b-jeffrey-madoff-5baa8074
• Website – https://madoffproductions.com/
• Twitter – https://twitter.com/jeff_madoff