Many people mistakenly equate creativity with art. While artistic expression is a big part of creative endeavors, it’s not the only thing.

This misconception makes a lot of people doubt whether they are creative or not. Those who are not outstanding musicians, painters, or writers often give up on themselves too early

But the good news is that there is much more to creativity than artistic value.

Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes, and having fun.— Mary Lou Cook

So if creativity is not (just) art, what is it?

Creativity is… curiosity

It combines being open to new ideas, concepts, skills that outside of our daily scope of attention with exploring the world around and seeking answers to why things are the way they are.

Creativity is… seeing connections

The creative thinking process often feels like connecting dots, where novel ideas come from familiar things linked in an unusual way. It takes awareness, observation, and taking mental notes to master it.

Creativity is… flexibility

An adaptive mindset allows you to bend rules, keep your mind open, and make the circumstances work in your favor. Unlike a fixed mindset, it is an advantage that makes you more resilient to changes and uncertainty.

Creativity is… learning from failure

In everyday life, we try to avoid falling as much as possible, but creative thinkers know that trial and error are a core part of experimentation and innovation. The trick is not to focus on what you didn’t get right but on what you can learn from the foundings.

Creativity is… embracing ambiguity

Uncertainty may feel paralyzing because of the lack of information, but it also creates plenty of opportunities — anything can happen.

Creativity is… finding solutions

It plays an important role in problem-solving. Creative thinking helps to navigate the process and find solutions that are not only unique and novel but also useful, no matter how small or big the challenge is.

Creativity is… asking the questions

Right questions create space for possibilities. Such questions as “Why?”, “How?” and “What if?” encourage exploring and challenging the habitual concepts.

Creativity is… being open-minded

And taking advantage of beginners’ mindset. An open mind allows you to see the connections where they are not logically possible. And yet they are there.

Creativity is… imagination

An ability to envision images that don’t rely on reality and look beyond the obvious options. Without imagination progress and innovation wouldn’t be possible and we would still live in caves

Creativity is… having fun

Creativity and pressure don’t go hand in hand. In certain situations, some constraints do help to come up with innovative solutions, but in general pressure and stress prevent creative thinking. Allowing yourself to have fun and enjoy the process, but, creates the environment for creative thinking to thrive.

The list goes on.

Because there is no one single unified definition, creativity can be whatever you want it to be.