Being Creative - John Cleese

[medierra]

Great video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VShmtsLhkQg

It was really cool watching this because so much of what he says resonates with my own experience but wasn't something that I had ever thought much about. When you apply creativity to problem solving though, there also has to be an undercurrent of analytical thinking to help weed out the bad results. It is a difficult balance to achieve. I do my best creative thinking late at night when my analytical mind is tired and not paying too much attention but still awake enough to keep my creative mind from getting out of control. Of course, there are still times when I wake up in the morning, look at my work from the previous night and think "wtf is this crap?"

[hay82]

That was pretty interesting and it makes a lot of sense to me. It often feels like there's something one needs to be rid of to get to the creative part of oneself. Or perhaps to let go.

At university I had a small one day course in creativity and mostly it was trying to make your thoughts to go outside their normal paths. I can't remember much of it as I haven't done anything to use it, but I remember it was silly games and never saying no to someone else's idea. One thing I recall was having to put forward a crazy idea and then the next person had to build on that and correct the idea and finally bringing the idea to life.

[matthewfarmery]

got to admit that was really good, and lets not forgot, he also helped to write some of the Monty Python sketches

Cleese and Chapman actually wrote together—in the same room; Cleese claims that their writing partnership involved his sitting with pen and paper, doing most of the work, while Chapman sat back, not speaking for long periods, then suddenly coming out with an idea that often elevated the sketch to a different level. A classic example of this is the "Dead Parrot" sketch, envisaged by Cleese as a satire on poor customer service, which was originally to have involved a broken toaster and later a broken car (this version was actually performed and broadcast on the pre-Python special

didn't realise he part worte it, got to say it's the best sketch of them all
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vuW6tQ0218

so the guy really knows his onions when it comes to creativity, another person that also knows his onions and wrotes one of the funniest Two Ronnies sketch is of course Ronnie Barker, as he wrote Four Candles
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCbvCRkl_4U

makes me laugh everytime I see it, bloody genius, only the ending he didn;t really like, but still classic

but anyway, creativity is a rare thing these days, gaming is a good example, as publishers aren't bothered with creativity, nor is the film industry as well, I guess we have lost a of of geniuses over the years and the world is far poorer because of it

[eisprinzessin]

He is such a great speaker - I noticed this for the first time, when I saw him narrating Operation Lemur: Mission to Madagascar.

On topic - I liked how he pointed out, that you have to switch between open and closed modes. But yeah, he said many cool things ... just when do we integrate them into our life?

[ASYLUM101]

REMOVED!
WTF

Damnit, I didn't get to see it.

[eisprinzessin]

YouTube to your rescue ... updated OP, too

[Opal Monkey]

Wow, that is amazingly interesting. Think I'll bookmark that in a very obvious place and make a point of rewatching it every now and then.

Originally Posted by medierra

[...] I do my best creative thinking late at night when my analytical mind is tired and not paying too much attention but still awake enough to keep my creative mind from getting out of control. Of course, there are still times when I wake up in the morning, look at my work from the previous night and think "wtf is this crap?"

Haha, I find the same thing. Even the end result of sometimes wondering wtf I could have been thinking


I'm sure something that varies significantly from person to person, and thus was not something mentioned in that speech, is music. Music can be a hugely beneficial aid in getting to a humorous, open mode when no one else is around. It all depends on finding music that resonates with you in the moment, be it upbeat, somber, classical, overpowering, etc...

It's something that can be focused on when you're trying to relax and get to the right state, and can be tuned out in an instant once you have a thought that's more interesting. And in those moments when you just can't find anything that resonates, listening to random genres is worth a try (i.e. trying out various internet radio stations). A good example was awhile ago when I randomly found out there's actually "J-Reggae". It's nothing new (it's been around my entire life?!), it was just new to me. At the time it was just what I needed to enjoy the moment and look at things from other angles.

I'm guessing there are some people that don't like any kind of music though. If that's actually possible? Those people can kindly ignore my ramblings.

Thanks for posting this, medierra. And thanks for the link-edit, eisprinzessin!

[zidders]

Medierra..

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. You just helped me so very, very much. I've struggled with writers block-serious writers block-for almost three years now. I can comment on forums till the cows come home but real writing? I've struggled so hard to do it and haven't been able to in so long, i'd given up. This vid...so much of it resonated. It made me look at the way i've been thinking and my attitude over the last few years and the effect it's had on my creativity. This morning, I managed to write three whole chapters of the story i've been trying to write for the past five years.

I could hug you, thank you so much.

[pts]

Really interesting speech. Thanks for sharing!

[Roros]

I meant to go see him when he was on tour here in Norway, but I sorta forgot about it for a few days and when I remembered it was sold out

Great speech, it's always super interesting to hear when others point out things about your psyche that you feel is correct and makes sense, but have never quite thought about concretely.