[with] + [for] -- creativity
What is creativity? Intuitively, it is synonymous with “insight”. Insight, in turn, can be reduced to two basic cognitive operations —
(1) Regrouping given data. Indeed, this is the essence of genius — to look at things that have been seen many times before with new eyes. We all inhabit the same physical universe and have access to the same words, musical tones, and color palette. Creativity imposes a new and more productive order on the same old boring world.
(2) Substituting equivalent expressions. After regrouping the given data, new expressions emerge. Creativity exchanges old expressions for new ones. This new data can often be reanalyzed and regrouped, and we are lead back to Step 1.
Although the creative process is easy to formalize, precisely how to regroup or what expressions to substitute cannot be easily taught or algorithmized. Experience and study can teach us which paths are *likely* to be most fruitful, but an excessive reliance on past experience defeats the purpose of creativity. For better or worse, the irreducible human elements of intuition and dumb luck play just as large a role in the creative process. The best way to foster creativity is to become immersed in our field, keep our eyes open for interesting anamolies, and approach every new experience as a curious novice.