In this episode, Heather takes us back to her 8th-grade art class at the American School of Paris, where Mr. Kingsley made every student feel like Claude Monet in training. But not everyone had a Mr. Kingsley, many of us had our creative identity stolen at a young age. Heather explores the five systemic ways creativity gets killed in our lives and organizations. If you've ever packed away your creative self and learned to color inside the lines, this episode is for you.

Key Takeaways:

School taught us there's one right answer, so fear of being wrong causes us to skip divergent thinking and jump straight to finding the "correct" solution

Creativity has been optimized out of the schedule and you cannot innovate on a ruthlessly optimized calendar.

We say we want innovation but punish every mistake.

Well-meaning gatekeepers starve creativity through micromanagement, chronic stress, and criticism that destroys the psychological safety creativity needs to flourish

We defined creativity too narrowly. If you only look for artists and inventors, you'll miss the creative genius all around you, including your own

Next Episode: Special guest Cecilia de la Hoz joins us from Madrid, Spain. She never saw herself as creative until she took The Hodges 12. Fun fact: She and Heather have been friends since 8th grade!

Take the Assessment: Discover your creative genius type at www.thehodges12.com

Connect with Heather:

Website: www.HeatherHodges.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-l-hodges-phd-07400a142/