Creativity, where art thou?

I came to the conclusion a month or two ago that I completely lack creativity. I am totally a product of the American system of teaching people to do things well, but without any of their own creativity. I've noticed this in many different areas of my life. I've played piano for years, and while most of my friends who play decently can fiddle around and compose, I (literally) never deviate from the notes on the page. I love to cook and to bake. Most people who love to cook make up their own recipes, try things out. I don't.

Perhaps most importantly, I lack creativity in sociology. You may be thinking, "I don't even really know what sociology is, much less why you'd need creativity for it!" Unfortunately, almost the opposite is true. The best sociologists are creative. They combine ideas never combined before, think of new ideas never thought before, and are generally just... creative! I lack the spark these people have.

So, where does one get creativity? I feel like I've missed out on it since I was a little kid. While I'm certain that some part of creativity is hardwired, I'm also certain that creativity can be cultivated. For all the talk schools do about stimulating creativity, I don't think mine was ever stimulated. About the most creative we were ever allowed to get was choosing which pictures to paste on the social studies collages in middle school or choosing which font to use on title pages for our high school papers.

Where were the projects that really help you learn the creative process? I was reading random blogs awhile ago, and I read a blog of a fellow Rice alum now teaching seventh grade science. For the final project, she assigned something along the lines of making a comic book story that used physics. Now, first, props to this girl (Laura) for coming up with such a cool idea. She mentioned a few of the things the kids came up with, and it really made me appreciate combining science (usually one of the more rote subjects) with creative thinking. I don't remember ever doing anything like this.

I think creative thinking also needs to be stimulated later on in life. I wish more of my college professors had assigned us projects involving creative thinking. Off the top of my head I can think of only one such project: at the end of my class "African Americans in Society" we had to write a paper coming up with a policy that would somehow improve the position of blacks in America. While for many papers you have to come up with a topic or an idea, few papers require much more creative thinking than that.

For me, I also need to recognize that creativity involves risk. I think I stick to my recipes and my notes on the pages because I'm afraid of screwing up. When I do exactly what I'm told, I know I will have a fine (or sometimes great!) product. Why mess with that, just to be creative? Surely I will fail at a much higher rate if I venture into creativity. My analytic cost-benefit analysis combined with my history of little creativity always leads me back to the tried and true.
Anyone who can suggest ways for me to work on my creative side, please comment! I don't want to be stuck to the instructions forever!

Most amusing conversation of my last two weeks in the Bend

From my astute sociology colleague Matt Loveland (fellow grad student at Notre Dame), a happily married 27 (or 28?) year old guy, to Brandy and I (two unmarried girls in our 20s).

Context: Brandy, 27, never used to want to get married. Now she does. Why? Because all her friends have significant others/spouses now, and there's no longer that person who she can call whenever, because all her friends have a significant other to be that person. Essentially, she wants a lifelong partner for the companionship. She specifically noted, "I don't want it for sex. I could get sex if I wanted. I mean, I could probably even get it anonymously if I wanted."

Matt: "Oh yeah, women can get sex whenever they want. Not like guys. You two could get sex right now if you wanted. [pause while he thinks a second]. In fact, I'm married, and you probably still could get sex before me. If we started the clock right now, I bet you two would win."

[Bob, a pious Mennonite and ridiculously gorgeous blonde guy in the sociology department, walks by. Don't get any ideas here; unfortunately Bob is happily married to a ridiculously gorgeous and super sweet Guatemalan girl who we all love].

"Well, Bob might be able to beat you two, sorry."