Okay, I didn't write this, but it was so good I had to pass it on:
7 Creativity Lessons I
Learned from Basketball
by Christine Kane
Okay. I know.
I'm not supposed to do sports. After all, we
creative types
are more about reveling in the smell of
crayons, the angle of moonlight
on the river, and the beauty of the ocean at
sunrise.
Not the obnoxious sound of the buzzer, or
screaming at the coach to use
a time-out, or
shouting in glee
as a three-pointer swishes through the hoop.
And yet, I'm in love with the Carolina
Tarheels. And it's not because
I know basketball or what a screen is. It's
because I love the process,
the stories, the passion - and yes, the
similarities between basketball
and being creative.
Here are seven unexpected Creativity lessons
I've Learned from Basketball...
1 - Systems and Habits. Not Feelings and
Reactions.
In his book
Playing for Keeps: Michael Jordan and the
World He Made
, David Halberstam devotes two chapters to
Dean Smith's Carolina basketball
program. He describes the team's daily
practices with pure awe.
First because of how quiet they are. And he
writes, "The next thing
was how brilliantly and carefully organized it
was, with a schedule posted
each day that outlined how each minute of
practice would be used."
In other words, no one is waiting to decide
whether or not they "feel
like it." The system was in place before the
practice began. There
was a schedule.
The creative-types I coach are always amazed
at their
productivity levels
when we create a schedule for their weekly
practices. They no longer spend
their time reacting to their days with emotion
and drama.
2 - Get a Coach.
Here's where athletes get it right. They get
coaches. From the start,
they have coaches and mentors. Lots of them.
No athlete in his right mind
doesn't have a coach.
Yes, it'd be nice if the coaching model were
built into the creative life.
But this is where we can
BE the change we're looking for.
For now, we'll have to learn to invest in
ourselves enough to hire coaches,
ask for mentors and create a support system
that doesn't turn us into strung-out
loners.
3 - Success Brings Critics
.
You can search the web and find all kinds of
nasty articles, blogs, and
television snippets whose sole purpose is to
trash teams, players, coaches,
and fans.
Creative types sometimes try to play a game of
"not making people
upset." They contort themselves into limiting
boxes in hopes that
no one will notice them shine.
It's pointless. Snarky people are everywhere.
They pick apart
successful people
because they don't know how to do it
themselves. Keep your focus on your
work in the world, and let the snarky people
ruin their own lives with
their negative vibes.
4 - Have fun with ALL of it.
Michael Jordan tells a story of Coach Dean
Smith in the final seconds
of the championship game against Georgetown.
Carolina was down by one point.
During his time out, Smith outlined the play,
and then paused and looked
up at his players and asked,
"Isn't this fun?"
I remember this when I'm frustrated at my
writing, when I'm overwhelmed
with ideas, when I begin to think I should've
gone to law school. Creativity
is all about
loving the unknown
, being able to look at it, and then ask
yourself, "Isn't this fun?"
Because you KNOW it is!
5 - Three-Pointers Can't Make Up for Steady
Performance.
There are times when one team makes a run and
suddenly leads by 9 points.
The other team, in total panic, will try to
make a quick come-back by rushing
down the court and randomly shooting
three-pointers.
That's because three-pointers are a seemingly
quick way to get back on
track. If they're doing it from desperation,
it rarely works. That's because
they've stopped playing to win - and now
they're playing
not to lose.
Creative types are often holding out for the
"big thing." The
Record Deal. The Gallery Opening. Being on
Oprah. Something - anything
- to rescue them. They're running around
trying to get the three-pointers.
But it rarely works.
Nothing works like consistent, solid, steady
forward movement. That way,
when the three-pointers happen, they're just
icing on the cake.
6 - Passion is passion. (Swear words and
all.)
I always crack up when the camera hits a coach
after a bad call just as
he's belting out a stream of profanity so
articulate that even the blind
can read his lips.
It's a part of the passion. Don't be afraid of
yours!
7 - Keep Shooting.
In the last weeks of the 2009 tournament,
Tarheel player Danny Green missed
some baskets.
Well, no, that's not true. He missed
every basket
he shot. Three pointers, two pointers,
lay-ups.
The media went nuts. Everyone was wondering
what was wrong. All kinds
of drama and speculation.
Coach Roy Williams' advice to Danny?
"Keep shooting."
And he did.
Within a few games, he was back on track.
Sometimes we're off our game. The words don't
come. The passion is gone.
We're tired. Life bums us out.
In those times, you can decide it's all over,
you're washed up, nothing
is worth doing anymore. Or you can take Roy's
advice and keep shooting.
Performer, songwriter, and creativity consultant Christine Kane
publishes
her 'LiveCreative' weekly ezine with more than
11,000 subscribers. If you
want to be the artist of your life and create
authentic and lasting success,
you can sign up for a FRE*E subscription to
LiveCreative at
http://www.christinekane.com/
