The Opposite of Creativity

Letter Zero 21

Dear friend,

On my road trip across Nebraska last week I was plugged into a book called, Alchemy, by Rory Sutherland. One of my favorite quips from the book is “The opposite of a good idea is a good idea.” As far as creativity shortcuts go, this is about as close as you can get. 

Sutherland’s book could just as easily been called “Blasphemy” because Rory explains how data, logic, and rationality limit our thinking. Few have the courage to say that out loud, but it is true. If you are looking for “invisible headphone jacks,” conventional thinking just won’t get you there. 

The opposite of a good idea is a good idea.

Be careful, however, because this is also a formula for sounding crazy. That’s dangerous. On the flip side of convention you lose hold of the comforting safety markers. The data gets blurry, the instruction manual disappears, and the barriers for buy-in mount. Sometimes creativity can be career suicide. It’s a good idea to avoid alchemy altogether. Or maybe it's the opposite.

I’ll write again next Sunday. Stay creative.

Your friend,
Adrian

P.S. If you are looking for more creativity hacks, you should read my essay Ingredients of Creativity.