Creativity Is a Process, Not an Event

Using the Newton-and-the-apple story (the falling apple was only the start of a 20-year arc that ended with the Principia in 1687), Clear argues that creativity is a trainable skill — George Land's study found 98 percent of five-year-olds scored highly creative but only 2 percent of adults — and shaped by a growth mindset, the willingness to look bad in public, and a small set of practical levers: constrain yourself, write more, broaden your knowledge, sleep longer, spend time in sunlight and nature, embrace positive thinking, and ship on a sustainable schedule.