Franklin D. Roosevelt — The Thrill of Creativity

Creativity is not limited to writers, artists and musicians.  Anyone can be creative if they open themselves up and listen to the ideas inside.  Who has not had a better idea about something?  There are creative business people who have new ideas about how to do something better.  There are creative doctors who develop better ways to treat patients.  My dentist has developed 12 products that he has sold on the market. Unfortunately, some people bury their creativity deep inside.  They even announce loudly to those around them: "I don't have a creative bone in my body."  We all have the potential to be creative if we allow ourselves the opportunity.

Creativity is one of the most thrilling acts that we as humans can participate in.  If you have ever experienced the excitement of chasing a new idea or exploring a new way of seeing the world you will understand what Roosevelt is saying.  Some people might say that Roosevelt was not creative.  He did not produce any great works of art.  His creativity lay in his ability to change the way he and others saw the world.  The ideas that rose to the surface during his Presidency dramatically changed life in the United States and around the world.  People today are still trying to understand the impact of the changes Roosevelt created in our society and our politics.  Roosevelt was a creative leader.

What are you doing to cultivate creativity in your life?  Give yourself the freedom to look at the world in new ways.  See the world in ways that others don't.  Don't accept things as they are.  Question why?  Creativity is not about technique.  It is about seeing the world in new ways.  

Richard Wollheim

"Learning appears as a way of staying young, perhaps of staying alive, and also as a way of growing up, perhaps facing death."

— Richard Wollheim

British Author, Philosopher

1923 - 2003

Commentary
Life-long learning is a powerful habit to develop. Learning something new keeps us in touch with our youth and helps us to stay active and alive. What have you learned in the last week? The past month?  Who has taught you something new about yourself or your art?

We experience the world through our senses — hearing, seeing, tasting, touching and smelling. And what we experience teaches us much if we are paying attention and alert to the possibilities. Did you smell the wind today? Did you hear the approaching storm? Do you taste the rain on your face?

From the time we are born until we die, our purpose is to learn, to grow, and to change. Most learning does not occur in school and we don't stop learning once we graduate. Cultivate a learning attitude. Unfortunately, many people do not learn from their mistakes. They are not willing to change and grow. To be a great artist or writer, you must be constantly learning about the world in which we inhabit.

And when we face death, it will teach us much that we have forgotten. Do not be afraid of death. Understand that it is a gift. It is a door through which we pass, a gate that leads to another world.

Biography

Wollheim was the son of actress and a theatrical agent.  He participated as a soldier in World War II and for a short time was a prisoner of war.  After the war, he studied philosophy, politics and economics.  He taught at the University College in London, Harvard University, Columbia University, University of Minnesota, the University of California at Berkeley as well as other universities.

Wollheim married Anne Powell in 1950 and had twin sons.  He married his second wife, Mary Day Lanier, in 1967 and she gave birth to a daughter.

Richard Wollheim is known for his philosophical work on mind and emotions as related to the visual arts.  He was president of the British Society of Aesthetics from 1992 until 2003

Wollheim wrote and published 14 books including a biography of Freud (1971), a novel entitled, A Family Romance (1969) and several philosophical books including Painting as Art, Art and Its Objects, The Thread of Life, On the Emotions, The Mind and Its Depths and The Germs: A Memoir of Childhood.