Being a Creative

by Linda Stanek

We need Creatives, and we need to recognize that we all have it in ourselves to be one. We need to foster it in our children, and we need to welcome it in our society. The innovators of the world were Creatives. If they hadn’t thought “outside the box,” if they hadn’t been willing to be wrong over and over, in order to “get it right” they never would have come up with a new or better way of doing things. They say Thomas Edison tried over a thousand times to create a light bulb. Now that’s the persistence of a Creative. We must turn away from the idea that we must be right, right now. Instead, we need to be willing to risk, to try something new, to take a chance that after being wrong enough times, we might find the elusive right way. That is being a Creative.

Think of someone you consider to be a Creative. What are some qualities you admire in him or her? Do you see any of those qualities in yourself?

Linda Stanek was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio, and has always loved visiting the zoo. She spends her time taming stray cats and corralling words into stories and books—both fiction and nonfiction. She also writes for magazines, e-zines, and non-profit organizations and writes teacher’s guides for award-winning children’s books.

Linda has a B.S. degree in elementary education from The Ohio State University. She lives in Columbus with her three cats, Frankie (named after a Columbus Crew soccer player), Chloe (just because she likes the name), and Cubby (named after the Chicago Cubs baseball team). Beco’s Big Year is her second book.