The science of improving your brain’s creativity - Nick Skillicorn

1. How do you have an idea?

1.1. Ideas are created by new connections between things you already know

1.2. Incubation = time to actually form those new connections

1.2.1. This is happening subconsciously and it feels like it happens out of nowhere

1.3. Verifying the idea:

1.3.1. Automatic brain function

1.3.1.1. Good Idea

1.3.1.2. Or bad idea

1.3.2. Sometimes it requires experimentation and tweaking and refining

2. Nature vs. Nurture

2.1. A study showed

2.1.1. 80% of your intelligence is genetic

2.1.2. 30% of your creativity is genetic

2.2. Another study showed

2.2.1. 90% of 2nd grade students considered themselves as creative

2.2.2. 5% of high school students considered themselves as creative

2.2.3. The tests in school are forcing students to give a certain answer

2.2.3.1. That system is killing creativity

2.3. Is Art the Solution?

2.3.1. Teaching art is not a solution

2.3.1.1. Imitating art is not creative

3. Enhancing your creativity

3.1. Temporary solutions

3.1.1. Getting yourself into an alpha mental state (relaxing)

3.1.2. Changing your surroundings

3.1.3. Changing your routine

3.2. Long-term solutions

3.2.1. Changes

3.2.2. Improvisation training

3.2.2.1. To focus your ability to stop your dorsolateral prefrontal cortex

3.2.2.2. To be able to control that inhibition

3.2.3. Gathering new knowledge and experiences

3.2.3.1. All ideas are based on the knowledge you already have

3.3. Ideas are worthless unless you actually do something with them!

4. What's happening when an idea is being generated?

4.1. New connections are being formed between networks of neurons in the brain

4.2. Between the left an the right hemisphere

5. Who is creative?

5.1. Everyone is creative!

5.2. But

5.2.1. People are sabotaging their creativity

5.2.2. Many people consider themselves as not creative

6. What is creativity?

6.1. Producing a new idea which has value to someone

6.2. But: Generating an idea isn't enough to be creative

6.2.1. You need to execute on that idea!

6.3. How the brain works when it comes to generating new ideas

6.3.1. First the brain thinks of memories

6.3.2. Second come ordinary ideas

6.3.3. And finally the special ideas that are really new and different ideas