“If you are open to growth you tend to grow.” Worth a read, twice. If not, being scrappy pays off. Define your talent set by continually working at expanding it.  According to research people tend to operate from a a fixed mind set or a growth mind set.  That is- “I am what I am and that’s all that I am…” and “It is what it is- don’t mess with it” or the non Popeye’s who look at life, like editing- a constant wrestle with revision, adaptation and more research. Never wholly finished. “Well, hmm now can I become that.”  Are you cut an stitched on the bias with one hem and puffy sleeve-line or a long piece of fabric that can be re-draped and retied? Cement or dampened clay when it comes to ideas? If you define yourself only by the talent you have or what the crowd expects of you, then you are limited, or in some cases even constrained to hit a certain mark (oh no the pressure!) or to never be anything more than one kind of talent in one kind of way. According to the Handbook of creativity (can there be such a thing, with chapters and bullet points?) the top ingredient for creative achievement is the ability to learn from experience. Also resilience and perseverance, though those are immeshed in the learning process.  But another aspect of both creativity and success is the element of risk. So what if it doesn’t work out or it takes a few tries to get there. Do over, fail better next time. Let’s say you have an idea you want to pitch, can you do in 5 minutes or on a single sheet of paper? Are you that willing or that hungry to make the effort? How many nights are you willing to stay up late crafting? What has always intrigued me is the fear of failure and how becomes a catalyst for absolute inaction. Can’t is a four letter word as are fear, fail and risk. Personally, I prefer “grit.”  I think the kicker for success is seeing past now and into the universe of an idea. The ability to step into those different realities- now, where you need to be, and how strategically you get there yet the whole while you remain completely yourself.  ]]>