Favorite Quotations ~ Creativity

Creativity watercolor portrait Creativity is the spark that turns “what if” into “why not.” ✨ May these words from visionaries—artists, thinkers, and dreamers—remind you that imagination is courage in action.

“The more you reason, the less you create.” ~ Raymond Chandler

“When I get an idea for a song, it gels in my mind for weeks or months, and then one day—just like that—I’ll write it.” ~ Johnny Cash

“If you’re going to be an artist, real life is your inspiration.” ~ Madonna

“A person creates what they defend against.” ~ The Buddha

“Criticize by creating.” ~ Michelangelo

“Happiness lies in the joy of achievement and the thrill of creative effort.” ~ Franklin D. Roosevelt

“Sometimes I think creativity is magic; it’s not a matter of finding an idea, but allowing the idea to find you.” ~ Maya Lin

“Creativity involves breaking out of established patterns in order to look at things in a different way.” ~ Edward de Bono

“When the spirit of child’s play enters into the creative process, it’s a wonderful force and something to be nurtured.” ~ Joni Mitchell

“In my experience, the best creative work is never done when one is unhappy.” ~ Albert Einstein

“The whole difference between construction and creation is this: a thing constructed can only be loved after it is constructed; but a thing created is loved before it exists.” ~ Charles Dickens

“Sometimes we become so entangled in the mundane facts of our lives that we forget about our creative nature until it nags us with reminders of its needs—or until we feel so fractured we know something is wrong.” ~ Anne Hazard Aldrich, Notes From Myself

“Creativity is the firing of my soul.” ~ Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

“True creativity often starts where language ends.” ~ Arthur Koestler

“The best way to become more creative is to create nothing. Return to zero point. Rid yourself of the mental and emotional blocks that keep you from manifesting your full creative potential.” ~ Ilchi Lee, Principles of Brain Management

“The creative process must be explored as the expression of normal people in the act of actualizing themselves.” ~ Rollo May, Courage to Create