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The ‘Third Layer’ process itself

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Safety, Bravery, Aha!: The Creativity Pyramid
Alex Leviton Alex Leviton

Safety, Bravery, Aha!: The Creativity Pyramid

If the foundation is the tangible, safety is the intangible. Do you feel safe expressing yourself? Have you faced your Inner Critic? Do you have any nopers in your life who shit on your creativity?

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Creativity’s shove of necessity
Alex Leviton Alex Leviton

Creativity’s shove of necessity

The missing piece — that boring, lonely second corner — is the invisible barrier that stands in the way of 99.9% of people’s creativity.

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Mini-c creativity
Alex Leviton Alex Leviton

Mini-c creativity

To progress your own creativity, think about how mini-c creativity shows up throughout your day. Those step-by-challenging-step blips of insight, hard work, or creative joy that. Are. Everything! to our creative lives. The silly songs you make up, or the recipe workarounds. You are pulling off dozens of improvisational creative genius moves every day of your life.

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TTS: Ten True Statements

TTS: Ten True Statements

Write down ten statements that are currently true about creativity.

These statements can be anything: “My grandmother was so creative,” “I need a messy/clean desk in order to be creative,” “I like the color yellow.” Anything.

They can be about your creativity, creativity in general, creative thinking. Seriously; anything.

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The creativity of traveling locally
Creativity, Awareness Alex Leviton Creativity, Awareness Alex Leviton

The creativity of traveling locally

In many ways, travel in a foreign locale is easier. You don't have to do anything, the creativity and newness is everywhere. Travel nearby -- especially to places not over-popularized -- *takes* creativity. This is one of the reasons I loved being a guidebook author. You can't cover a place if you look at it on the first layer only. What's the second layer? How about the third? What can I learn about my own backyard that's different to my preconceptions?

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Guidebook writing on the third layer
Alex Leviton Alex Leviton

Guidebook writing on the third layer

But sometimes you triangulate your travels. You read a book. You ask around. Or you, you know, go there.

In these layers, you uncover a destination later by layer. You draw the dots between your preconceptions (the first layer of creative thinking) with more research (second layer) and more in-depth analysis and insights (third layer).

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Calming the Nervous System through Creativity

Calming the Nervous System through Creativity

… meditation and breathing are like staring the parasympathetic nervous system straight in the eyes and daring it: ‘Calm, dammit! Right now! Now now now!’ While creativity is more like dropping a hankie in its general direction coquettishly: ‘I’m just gonna be doodling or playing air guitar over here, if you don’t mind and … Sure, I’d love to go on a date together!’

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The Creativity Ladder, safety and primordial soup

The Creativity Ladder, safety and primordial soup

Why is it important we know our unique Creativity Ladders?

Because we are radically different people creatively/artistically/problem-solvingly when we’re at a layer 1 vs a layer 6. (Not to mention vs the surprisingly elusive layers 7, 8 or 9.)

Because, as the ladder shows, if we push creativity when we’re below a 0, we can — and often do — lasting damage. To our own creativity and mental health, but also to others’ creativity without us realizing.

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Creativity on the Quarter System
Alex Leviton Alex Leviton

Creativity on the Quarter System

In the same way that our brains like containers for physical objects (i.e., books instead of piles of paper), our brains like containers for intangible concepts. Like time.

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