Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world. – Albert Einstein
The path to finding more of ourselves is allowing ourselves to see the world in a different way. Letting go of old habits and ways of thinking can help us step out and experience new things or allow us to see the things we thought we new in incredibly different ways. Listed below are some books that might help you find ways to unshackle your mind…
The artist’s way : a spiritual path to higher creativity / Julia Cameron
Julia Cameron’s novel approach guides readers in uncovering problems areas and pressure points that may be restricting their creative flow and offers techniques to free up any areas where they might be stuck, opening up opportunities for self-growth and self-discovery.
The program begins with Cameron’s most vital tools for creative recovery – The Morning Pages, a daily writing ritual of three pages of stream-of-conscious, and The Artist Date, a dedicated block of time to nurture your inner artist. From there, she shares hundreds of exercises, activities, and prompts to help readers thoroughly explore each chapter. She also offers guidance on starting a “Creative Cluster” of fellow artists who will support you in your creative endeavors.
A revolutionary program for personal renewal, The Artist’s Way will help get you back on track, rediscover your passions, and take the steps you need to change your life.
The creative habit : learn it and use it for life : a practical guide / Twyla Tharp, with Mark Reiter
Creativity is not a gift from the gods, says Twyla Tharp, bestowed by some divine and mystical spark. It is the product of preparation and effort, and it’s within reach of everyone who wants to achieve it. All it takes is the willingness to make creativity a habit, an integral part of your life: In order to be creative, you have to know how to prepare to be creative. In The Creative Habit, Tharp takes the lessons she has learned in her remarkable thirty-five-year career and shares them with you, whatever creative impulses you follow — whether you are a painter, composer, writer, director, choreographer, or, for that matter, a businessperson working on a deal, a chef developing a new dish, a mother wanting her child to see the world anew.
When Tharp is at a creative dead end, she relies on a lifetime of exercises to help her get out of the rut, and The Creative Habit contains more than thirty of them to ease the fears of anyone facing a blank beginning and to open the mind to new possibilities.
Art & fear [electronic resource] : observations on the perils (and rewards) of artmaking / David Bayles & Ted Orland
This is a book about making art. Ordinary art. Ordinary art means something like: all art not made by Mozart. After all, art is rarely made by Mozart-like people; essentially-statistically speaking-there aren’t any people like that. Geniuses get made once-a-century or so, yet good art gets made all the time, so to equate the making of art with the workings of genius removes this intimately human activity to a strangely unreachable and unknowable place. For all practical purposes making art can be examined in great detail without ever getting entangled in the very remote problems of genius.
Discover your genius: [ten secrets to breakthrough thinking from history’s most revolutionary minds] [electronic resource] / Michael J. Gelb
Michael J. Gelb, bestselling author of How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci, draws upon history’s most revolutionary minds to help you unleash your own creativity. With fascinating biographies of all ten geniuses, personal self-assessments, and practical exercises, this book is the key to unlocking the genius inside you!
Plato: Deepening your love of wisdom– Filippo Brunelleschi: Expanding your perspective- Christopher Columbus: Strengthening your vision, optimism, and courage — Nicolaus Copernicus: Reorganizing your vision of the world — Queen Elizabeth I: Wielding your power with balance and effectiveness — William Shakespeare: Cultivating your emotional intelligence — Thomas Jefferson: Celebrating your freedom in the pursuit of happiness — Charles Darwin; Developing your powers of observation and cultivating an open mind — Mahatma Gandhi: Applying the principles of spiritual genius to harmonize spirit, mind, and body — Albert Einstein:Unleashing your imagination and “combinatory play”
Imagine [sound recording] : how creativity works / Jonah Lehrer
Did you know that the most creative companies have centralized bathrooms? That brainstorming meetings are a terrible idea? That the color blue can help you double your creative output?
From the New York Times best-selling author of How We Decide comes a sparkling and revelatory look at the new science of creativity. Shattering the myth of muses, higher powers, even creative “types,” Jonah Lehrer demonstrates that creativity is not a single gift possessed by the lucky few. It’s a variety of distinct thought processes that we can all learn to use more effectively.
Lehrer reveals the importance of embracing the rut, thinking like a child, daydreaming productively, and adopting an outsider’s perspective (travel helps). He unveils the optimal mix of old and new partners in any creative collaboration, and explains why criticism is essential to the process. Then he zooms out to show how we can make our neighborhoods more vibrant, our companies more productive, and our schools more effective.
Manage your day-to-day : build your routine, find your focus, and sharpen your creative mind / edited by Jocelyn K. Glei ; foreward by Scott Belsky [founder of Behance]
Do you work at a breakneck pace all day, only to find that you haven’t accomplished the most important things on your agenda by the time you leave the office? With wisdom from 20 leading creative minds, 99U’s Manage Your Day-to-Day will equip you with pragmatic insights for using your time wisely and making your best work. We’ll show you how to build a rock-solid daily routine, field a constant barrage of messages, find focus amidst chaos, and carve out the time you need to do the work that matters. Contributors include Scott Belsky, Mark McGuinness, Gretchen Rubin, Seth Godin, Tony Schwartz, Leo Babauta, Cal Newport, Christian Jarrett, Dan Ariely, Erin Rooney Doland, Aaron Dignan, Lori Deschene, Tiffany Shlain, Linda Stone, James Victore, Todd Henry, Scott McDowell, Stefan Sagmeister, Elizabeth Grace Saunders, and Steven Pressfield
The popular pastor and New York Times bestselling author of Love Wins and What We Talk About When We Talk About God shows us how to pursue and realize our dreams, live in the moment, and joyfully do the things that make us come alive.
Each of us was created for something great—we just need to figure out what it is and find the courage to do it. Whether it’s writing the next great American novel, starting a business, or joining a band, Rob Bell wants to help us make those dreams become reality. Our path is ours and ours alone to pursue, he reminds us, and in doing so, we derive great joy because we are living our passions.
How to Be Here lays out concrete steps we can use to define and follow our dreams, interweaving engaging stories, lessons from biblical figures, insights gleaned from Rob’s personal experience, and practical advice. Rob gives you the support and insight you need to silence your critics, move from idea to action, take the first step, find joy in the work, persevere through hard times, and surrender to the outcome.
Steal like an artist [electronic resource] : 10 things nobody told you about being creative / Austin Kleon
You don’t need to be a genius, you just need to be yourself. That’s the message from Austin Kleon, a young writer and artist who knows that creativity is everywhere, creativity is for everyone. A manifesto for the digital age, Steal Like an Artist is a guide whose positive message, graphic look and illustrations, exercises, and examples will put readers directly in touch with their artistic side
