How to be more creative...

This morning, while going through my usual ritual of injecting caffiene directly into my veins with a large-diameter syringe, I stumbled across a wonderful blog called "The Gaping Void".

Which of course, immediately pissed me off, as I had been called The Gaping Void for time-immemorial by some good friends from The 'Hat, and instantly thought... fuck-yeah, I should have started using that... but I digress.

No, what caught my eye was that he articulated something that few people do, but all of us worry about... How do you stay / get / become creative? And it's not just for writers / artists / photographers / fraud artists / porn stars or politicians. So without further applause, I present to you Hugh Macleod's how to be creative, the short version... (ps, go and read the long version, slacker).

1. Ignore everybody.
2. The idea doesn't have to be big. It just has to change the world.
3. Put the hours in.
4. If your biz plan depends on you suddenly being "discovered" by some big shot, your plan will probably fail.
5. You are responsible for your own experience.
6. Everyone is born creative; everyone is given a box of crayons in kindergarten.
7. Keep your day job.
8. Companies that squelch creativity can no longer compete with companies that champion creativity.
9. Everybody has their own private Mount Everest they were put on this earth to climb.
10. The more talented somebody is, the less they need the props.
11. Don't try to stand out from the crowd; avoid crowds altogether.
12. If you accept the pain, it cannot hurt you.
13. Never compare your inside with somebody else's outside.
14. Dying young is overrated.
15. The most important thing a creative person can learn professionally is where to draw the red line that separates what you are willing to do, and what you are not.
16. The world is changing.
17. Merit can be bought. Passion can't.
18. Avoid the Watercooler Gang.
19. Sing in your own voice.
20. The choice of media is irrelevant.
21. Selling out is harder than it looks.
22. Nobody cares. Do it for yourself.
23. Worrying about "Commercial vs. Artistic" is a complete waste of time.
24. Don’t worry about finding inspiration. It comes eventually.
25. You have to find your own schtick.
26. Write from the heart.
27. The best way to get approval is not to need it.
28. Power is never given. Power is taken.
29. Whatever choice you make, The Devil gets his due eventually.
30. The hardest part of being creative is getting used to it.