It’s time for another book review on creativity which this time is Wired To Create, Discover the 10 things great artists, writers and innovators do differently, by Scott Barry Kaufman & Caroline Gregoire.
The co-authors, an academic and a journalist, outline the ten often paradoxical habits and traits found in highly creative people. Creative minds are messy. They tend to be open and sensitive, imaginative and disciplined, playful and deeply introspective.
This book collates the massive amount of research surrounding creativity and distills it into the ten recurring traits that wire creative minds. A quarter of the book is the notes and references from each chapter!
After the introduction, I explore the ten chapters which each focus on one of the ten traits. Along the way there are quotes, stories of famous artists and thinkers and a few of my personal recollections.
Chapter Highlights
Imaginative Play is not just for kids, it sparks experimentation, innovation, and joy.
Passion’s deep, intrinsic motivation often keeps creatives going through the ups and downs.
Daydreaming? Just fall in love with your wandering mind already. Turns out, it’s doing important creative work behind the scenes.
Solitude allows creative thoughts to marinate and develop more deeply. Yes, alone time is good for you.
Intuition in the creative process is all about trusting your gut instincts and emotional insight.
Openness to Experience is the willingness to explore, be surprised, and embrace novelty.
Mindfulness (& meditation) allows being fully present for richer creative awareness even amidst our crazy chaotic lives.
Sensitivity shows up in creative folks as vulnerability, emotional depth and attunement to the world, often feeding powerful work.
Turning Adversity into Advantage channels many creatives’ struggles into fuel for expression and transformation.
Thinking Differently lets creatives see connections where others don’t, flipping the script on norms and assumptions.
This book is both a comfort and a nudge. It reminds us that creativity is definitely not a linear process. It’s messy, layered, and often contradictory.
Whether you’re a maker, thinker, feeler, or daydreamer, Wired to Create might help you understand (and appreciate) that being wired a little differently is often where the magic comes from.
🎧 Whether you live and breathe creativity or just want to peek inside the minds of those who do, you’ll want to hear this. Each chapter shows how the ten traits manifest and why they matter and how creatives see and move through the world.
Books & Resources Mentioned:
📖 Wired To Create by Scott Barry Kaufman & Caroline Gregoire
🗺️ Glass Town the Brontë siblings’ paracosm
📝 Highly Sensitive Person Scale (HSP) by Aron & Aron
📚 Big Magic / The House That Joy Built / Two Beats Ahead - my previous book reviews
💖 The Vibrancy Society to sign up for my newsletter
💬 What did this book stir in you? Any takeaways or Aha-s? Leave me a comment so we can continue the conversation!
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