Hard work has great importance in life, but hard work that is only repetitive and lacking in any creativity can in no way be justified. Such kinds of hard work do not lead to any progress or excellence in life Instead of carrying out routine laborious tasks, by developing new ideas, putting in focussed thoughtful efforts, adopting patience, and fostering creativity, we can build excellence and succeed naturally in life. For this, we need to understand the process of developing creative excellence. Specialists have divided the process of creativity into four stages: preparation, incubation, illumination, and verification. These four stages can be understood in the following way:
1. Preparation – This is the preparatory stage. Here, we try to extract as much information as possible by discussing with others, by contemplating and by brainstorming about a problem that we intend to solve, or a new concept that we wish to concretize, or about a new creative idea. So, we think about all aspects related to the problem or the subject, and after the best possible efforts of gathering relevant information, leave it for the second stage of incubation.
2. Incubation – This is the time for maturation. It is also the time for waiting and mental relaxation. We set aside and forget about the problem. We sleep over it and start doing something else. We allow the thought processes of our subconscious mind to work upon the new idea or the solution. As the subtle portion of the subconscious mind continues its processing, the results show up in the next stage as illumination.
3. Illumination – After a while, when we sit at our desk to look at the problem at hand, several new ideas related to the topic flash in our mind, and new innovative solutions spring forth. The new ideas can flash while walking or working or even in sleep. These are like moments of lightning in the sky of the mind. These ideas and solutions are noted, and their actual execution is worked upon in the next stage. 4. Verification or execution – In this stage, we implement the ideas and solutions and evaluate their utility. New thoughts are applied or are linked to existing concepts. If this verification process throws up significant shortfalls, then the entire process of preparation, incubation, and illumination is restarted to produce newer thoughts and solutions this time with greater insight and depth, and we take our activities now to their conclusion. This is the systematic and scientific process to carry out tasks with creative excellence. By mastering this process and balancing hard work with sufficient rest and joy, we can take our lives to new heights of success in a very natural way.
Source: Akhand Jyoti Sept-Oct 2020