It's actually hard for creative people to know themselves because the creative self is more complex than the non-creative self. The things that stand out the most are the paradoxes of the creative self ... Imaginative people have messier minds. Scott Barry Kaufman More Quotes by Scott Barry Kaufman More Quotes From Scott Barry Kaufman Genius involves figuring out who you are, and owning yourself. It’s about amplifying your best traits and compensating for the rest. Geniuses grab life by the horns, and persevere amidst setbacks. They take control of their lives, instead of waiting for others to open up doors. In this very important sense, greatness is completely, utterly, made. Scott Barry Kaufman greatness waiting doors Talent emerges over the course of a lifetime of reciprocal interactions between the developing brain and a stimulating environment. Scott Barry Kaufman talent growth brain I am not talking about rebelliousness, but giving people time for constructive internal reflection and even daydreaming. A lot of research is suggesting that the more that you demand people's external attention, the less chance you are allowing them to dip into the default mode where daydreams and reflection happen - and lot of great ideas are not going to come from the brute force of work but from personal life experience. Mind-wandering seems to be essential to the creative process, and I don't think a lot of businesses are aware of that fact. Scott Barry Kaufman reflection talking thinking Inspiration is not purely passive, but does favor the prepared mind. Scott Barry Kaufman inspiration mind doe I think it’s the person that’s creating the magic, and they happen to have hardship and the ability to use that hardship for creative growth, people who are able to take this trauma and turn it into some kind of advantage, especially a creative advantage, are those that take it and put it into their work, they put it into their art. Scott Barry Kaufman health We did some research looking at inside the brains of creative people as they’re trying to come up with really imaginative things, and what you find is, they’re really good at switching back and forth between two major brain networks. Scott Barry Kaufman health