Creativity An Introduction

Emotions are fuel for creativity: from inspiration to do something creative, to determination for follow-through, and enjoyment of the finished product. Moreover, if emotions are fuel for creativity, we will demonstrate how certain personality traits, such as openness to experience, are akin to turbocharging the engine, lowering the threshold for creative thought and creative behavior. Emotion-related personality traits – tolerance of ambiguities and risks inherent in doing something new – are at the core of one’s willingness to make the decision to do something creative. Steve Jobs, for example, was famously willing to go on with plans for the iPad in spite of popular wisdom that people would not be interested in the device (Buchanan, 2013). Finally, we will propose that people need not be at the mercy of their personality nor emotional state, but rather can channel their personal experience into creativity through their ability to recognize, understand, and regulate emotions effectively.