Seth Godin's "Brainwashed"

Linked is Seth Godin's "Brainwashed", an essay on creativity and how we've been conditioned to restrict it.

Acknowledge the Lizard


Godin argues that the "lizard brain - the prehistoric brainstem that all of us must contend with" is a key figure in the restriction of our creativity.  It's timid, afraid of criticism, and as a result resists our artistic instincts.  It was complicit in our brainwashing as youth.  And so, in order to effectively ignore it and embrace our creative spirit, we must first acknowledge its existence and understand its pattern of behavior.  Only then can we overcome it.

Ship


The ability to finish things is an incredibly important one to have.  Those who create but don't ship are merely wasting time.  Of course, people value those who can get work done reliably.  Shipping can often be difficult in part because of the lizard brain - that prehistoric philistine inside us.  Shipping is scary; it encourages criticism and opens the door for failure.  But only by shipping can we share with the world our art and abilities.


Both of the above points are, I agree, crucial to effectively embracing our artistic abilities.  This blog is itself an example of shipping; by publishing our thoughts and opinions on the internet, we are shipping our ideas and styles to the world.  By creating creative content and publishing it here, we are in one stroke acknowledging and ignoring the lizard brain inside us.  Both exercises are important for growing as students and artists, in that they encourage taking a chance; they encourage having the courage to step outside the lines and try new things.  And that, after all, is how great ideas are born.