Monday, March 5, 2012

The Imagineering Workout ~ Update 2 ~ Remaining Curious Requires Confidence


The Imagineering Workout ~ Update 2

Remaining Curious Requires Confidence



“Adults who remain curious have learned to ‘not care’ about what others think

or they had enough confidence as children to keep their curiosity.”

Katie Roser

Prop/Set Designer

Walt Disney Imagineering Florida



This is in a section of the book called Getting Started. This brings to my mind a thought I’ve had for a long time. We need to keep a childlike (not childish) view of the world. Now stop! Don’t think I’m telling you to act like a little kid and start ignoring adult reality.

Kids have a special way of thinking. They don’t automatically set limits on what they do. If they come up with an idea they will stick with it, trying different ways to make it work. They don’t usually care much if they fail as long as they get closer to the goal. What if I . . . . is their language. That is because they are curious. It takes curiosity to create and it takes courage to continue after you fail once, twice or more.

It is only when the adults in their lives tell a child to “quit trying and see reality” they stop trying. Also constant failure usually caused by lack of adult support causes failure. A child can’t succeed at drawing if they don’t have art supplies. A child can’t learn to build if they don’t have blocks. This barrage of negative thought and lack of support will kill both curiosity and courage.

If you want to succeed at being creative you need to learn to think like a creative child. Remember to give yourself permission to try and fail. It is in failure you learn what works. It is in sticking with an idea that problems are solved and creativity happens. Quit letting what others think or say limit your creative thinking. So what if they don’t like the color you paint your room. If you like it that is what is important. Don’t let fear of failure stop you from trying and trying again.

This is a lesson I’m trying to learn. I’m trying to reject the negative comments people make or have made and only accept the constructive thoughts. I’m learning to let myself enjoy the process of being creative and learning. I’m trying to recapture the courage of my childhood. I’m learning to stop the negative thoughts I have. I’m working on telling myself I can instead of I can’t.

I’ve found in the last few days when I did let myself recapture my creative courage I succeeded more at the tasks. The tasks were everything for trying something different when I cooked to writing. I also found when I gave others the support they needed to have the courage to succeed, The support has been in both encouraging words and giving them the supplies they need they succeeded.

My husband has been wanting to build a table and counter with granite tops for our BBQ area for a long time. He had some of the supplies and some ideas. There has been a lot of comments negative comments about not being able to succeed at building this. My husband doubted his ability. Today he has almost finished it. It is together and just needs the finishing touches to complete it.

So how are you going to recapture the courage to create? How are you going to encourage others in their creative endeavors?

If you wish to follow along and read the book for yourself here is the information:

The Imagineering Workout

By The Disney Imagineers

ISBN 078685554-1

It is available at Amazon.com

2 comments:

  1. Thanks for this insightful, thought provoking post. I'm not certain I agree with you totally about having to provide blocks or art supplies in order to encourage a child's desire to build or create. I have 2 children who are very different- my eldest wants entertainment spoon-fed to her and has a very limited curiosity/creativity streak. My younger child (one is 6, the other 3) on the other hand requires nothing but a stick and some sand to create and she is constantly asking questions.."Why is the toilet paper in a box Mommy?" when at a public restroom, why is this green? Why,why why....her mind is perpetually running and she needs little more than a paper and pencils (of course I have more- but lack of art supplies doesn't stop her) I do think our ability to be "out of the box" thinkers comes from our core of who we are, more so than what materials are provided. That said- I completely understand what you mean about adapting a child-like mind as an adult. My husband and I truly enjoy Disney World as a fun place to enjoy fantasy and indulge a bit...pool time before bed? Sure! Why not! Wear ears on your head, pose for corny pictures holding a pretend Simba- of course! We have relatives who will only go to Disney when the kids are "old enough" and its a trip "for the kids" Heck- we went for our honeymoon. Having an open mind, a curious mind is a delightful way to go through life and a guarantee for growth and excitement as an adult.Adults desires to learn and grow are as important as a childs- and not to be squashed!- You are right on- positivity (my own word LOL) breeds opportunities to learn. So many adults live a life where they mentally squash their own ideas and become sedentary. Kudos to your husband for doing the remodel and taking that leap of faith to do it himself! -Nicole K

    ReplyDelete
  2. I totally agree that not all kids need supplies. I'm also not saying you have to give them every supply they ask for.

    That said I know many people who refuse to give a child a inexpensive digital camera when the child shows a creative spark for photography. I've seen some that limit the amount of paper and other drawing supplies to a scant few pieces.

    I've seen parents rip apart the creative attempts of their children. That is wrong. That is what kills the creative energy and destroys the courage of the child.

    We, as parents need to balance the money spent with the encouragement it gives our children. We need to listen with our hearts and see what will truly touch the child and help them live a creatively couragous life and do our best to supply it as we can.

    ReplyDelete