Highly Creative People

So, I've been reading articles about highly creative people because I suddenly felt curious about it.
When I was reading them, I found myself crying and I don't know why. I am guessing it's because I felt kind of overwhelmed. I was fascinated and overwhelmed reading things that are so familiar to me. It's like the articles are talking about me, like they know me so much, as though they can read my soul. I couldn't help the tears.

"'It's actually hard for creative people to know themselves because the creative self is more complex than the non-creative self,'" Scott Barry Kaufman, a psychologist at New York University who has spent years researching creativity, told The Huffington Post. "'The things that stand out the most are the paradoxes of the creative self ... Imaginative people have messier minds.'"

"While there's no "typical" creative type, there are some tell-tale characteristics and behaviors of highly creative people. Here are some things they do differently.

• They daydream.
• They observe everything. The world is a creative person's oyster -- they see possibilities everywhere and are constantly taking in information that becomes fodder for creative expression. - I am very observant :|
• They take time for solitude. "In order to be open to creativity, one must have the capacity for constructive use of solitude. One must overcome the fear of being alone," wrote the American existential psychologist Rollo May. Artists and creatives are often stereotyped as being loners, and while this may not actually be the case, solitude can be the key to producing their best work. For Kaufman, this links back to daydreaming -- we need to give ourselves the time alone to simply allow our minds to wander.
  "You need to get in touch with that inner monologue to be able to express it," he says. "It's hard to find that inner creative voice if you're ... not getting in touch with yourself and reflecting on yourself." - I like being with people, and I am very social with people I like but I also like to have my me-time where I can be in solitude and let my mind wander.
• They seek out new experiences. Creative people love to expose themselves to new experiences, sensations and states of mind -- and this openness is a significant predictor of creative output. "Openness to experience is consistently the strongest predictor of creative achievement," says Kaufman. "This consists of lots of different facets, but they're all related to each other: Intellectual curiosity, thrill seeking, openness to your emotions, openness to fantasy. The thing that brings them all together is a drive for cognitive and behavioral exploration of the world, your inner world and your outer world." - I always seek out new experiences whether with someone or alone. I like exploring places, going into the woods and read or write or play music there. I just feel like I want to do things differently sometimes to know how it feels and to know if it's good or not, if it's something I can do again.
•  Doing creative work is often described as a process of failing repeatedly until you find something that sticks, and creatives -- at least the successful ones -- learn not to take failure so personally. "Creatives fail and the really good ones fail often," Forbes contributor Steven Kotler wrote in a piece on Einstein's creative genius. - I have failed a lot, and I still do but this doesn't hinder me from reaching towards my goal.
• They ask the big questions. Creative people are insatiably curious -- they generally opt to live the examined life, and even as they get older, maintain a sense of curiosity about life. Whether through intense conversation or solitary mind-wandering, creatives look at the world around them and want to know why, and how, it is the way it is. - I ask everything WHY way too often. I ask others and myself why and how the things are the way they are. I've always been curious, but I don't pry. Prying is different from being curious. Sometimes I am too curious that I analyse things and people.
• They take risks. Part of doing creative work is taking risks, and many creative types thrive off of taking risks in various aspects of their lives. "There is a deep and meaningful connection between risk taking and creativity and it's one that's often overlooked," contributor Steven Kotler wrote in Forbes. "Creativity is the act of making something from nothing. It requires making public those bets first placed by imagination. This is not a job for the timid. Time wasted, reputation tarnished, money not well spent -- these are all by-products of creativity gone awry." - I've taken a lot of risks lately, to be honest.
• They follow their true passions. Creative people tend to be intrinsically motivated -- meaning that they're motivated to act from some internal desire, rather than a desire for external reward or recognition. - What I'm doing now actually.
• They lose track of the time. Creative types may find that when they're writing, dancing, painting or expressing themselves in another way, they get "in the zone," or what's known as a flow state, which can help them to create at their highest level. Flow is a mental state when an individual transcends conscious thought to reach a heightened state of effortless concentration and calmness. When someone is in this state, they're practically immune to any internal or external pressures and distractions that could hinder their performance. You get into the flow state when you're performing an activity you enjoy that you're good at, but that also challenges you -- as any good creative project does. "[Creative people] have found the thing they love, but they've also built up the skill in it to be able to get into the flow state," says Kaufman. "The flow state requires a match between your skill set and the task or activity you're engaging in." - Soooo true. Happens to me all the time!
• They surround themselves with beauty. Creatives tend to have excellent taste, and as a result, they enjoy being surrounded by beauty. A study recently published in the journal Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts showed that musicians -- including orchestra musicians, music teachers, and soloists -- exhibit a high sensitivity and responsiveness to artistic beauty. - Hahaha, this is sooo me!
• They connect the dots. If there's one thing that distinguishes highly creative people from others, it's the ability to see possibilities where others don't -- or, in other words, vision. Many great artists and writers have said that creativity is simply the ability to connect the dots that others might never think to connect.
• Exhibit heightened emotional sensitivity. May be very sensitive to beauty, and visibly moved by aesthetic experiences; are expressive and willing to share what they feel and think. - Sooo me. I cry like 90 % of the time when I see or hear something beautiful. Music, words, painting, food, etc.

Characteristics of creatively gifted individuals

Possible negative traits of creative people or non-conforming behaviors

Independent, anti‑authoritarian Divergent thinker Generally considered intelligent Open to new ideas Little tolerance for boredom Willing to undertake stimulating challenges, curious and inquisitive Self‑actualizer Aesthetically inclined Above average use of those skills attributed to the brain’s hemisphere Strong imagery ability and spatial skills Abilities of sensory synthesis; tasting color, seeing sound, hearing smells (synesthesia) Generally unaffected by peer pressure Highly versatile and adaptable Score high on Torrance Tests of Creative Ability in the following areas: fluency‑‑produce numerous ideas flexibility‑‑produce variety of ideas and approaches originality‑‑novel ideas elaboration‑‑fill in details redefinition‑‑define or perceive in way different from the average

Stubborn Challenges Authority Unconventional Uncooperative Assertive Cynical Sloppy or Careless Questions or Challenges Rules Temperamental Withdrawn