Create
Definition: Creation can be both tangible, like art, or intangible, like an idea, and involves making something new while utilizing previous experiences and memories as guidance.
Criteria: A creator is innovative, not afraid to stand out, learns to take criticism well, and most importantly is not afraid to fail. In order to create, one needs to seek inspiration in all aspects of life. One needs to take risks and step outside of the comfort zone in order to find meaningful inspiration.
Criteria: A creator is innovative, not afraid to stand out, learns to take criticism well, and most importantly is not afraid to fail. In order to create, one needs to seek inspiration in all aspects of life. One needs to take risks and step outside of the comfort zone in order to find meaningful inspiration.
Example 1: As part of an entrepreneur business institute program I participated in during the summer of 2011, I was asked to create my own original product to center my project around. Stumped, I thought through my daily routines and tried to note anything that was missing or could use improvement. As I walked around my home trying to encourage ideas, I came upon my hair dryer and I thought about how many times my brother has asked me to not blow dry my hair in the middle of the night because it gets very loud. At that point, I decided that my idea of a silent, light-weight hair dryer would be perfect for my project. In the creation and development of my idea, I used ingenuity to complete the tasks at hand, including making a survey, product description, and competitive analysis to make my product better. Building a portfolio on my silent hair dryer product allowed me to apply my creativity to a business environment. I enjoyed using of the right side of my brain for a logical purpose. This experience is what first stimulated my interest in business as a possible major!
Example 2: As the executive for Public Relations, I created a theme for PREP’s recruitment week. The purpose of a theme is to make PREP stand out from all the other freshman leadership organizations in a positive and aesthetically pleasing manner. My partner and I looked at themes from past years and spoke with the other members of staff to get us started. In conclusion, or so we thought, we decided to go with a general sports theme. Our first task was to create a shirt to go with the “Team PREP” theme that staff would wear during recruitment week. Many phone calls, emails, and designs later, my partner and I finally had a shirt we were excited about. We sent out the design to the rest of staff, awaiting the positive feedback, only to be disappointed. The negative criticism we received was overwhelming, but in the end, the consensus held PR to a higher standard of creativity. In putting aside our pride, taking the feedback into consideration, and looking over our design once more, the PREP 2017 baseball theme was conceived.
Overall Reflection: While building my portfolio on my product, I was able to put the intangible and tangible sides of creativity together. I came up with a design and realistically developed it. But in order to do so, I first had to brace myself for possible rejection and take a risk in showcasing my idea to the other students. Throughout the entire process I was forced to mix creativity with logic, when I normally stick to the rational side of things, and was able to strengthen my creative side, something that I used to think of as a weakness. Similarly, in the making of a design for the PREP recruitment shirt, I learned the importance of feedback because in the end, it made for a better theme all around. From that experience, I learned to take criticism with grace and was challenged to use my creativity to its maximum potential.