Why Being Creative is Essential in Today's World (Short Essay)

 

“It is creativity which gets you through opportunities which the stars have kept for thee.”

     

 

As a child, I grew up with a mindset that creative people were the ones who were good at drawing. Apparently the ones around me possessed the same mindset, and by me having a good hand at drawing meant I was ‘creative’. Many a times I regretted it, for everyone expected my assignments to be full of colorful pictures and my projects to be excellently illustrated. The reality was quite different, where my drawings were blatantly visible in the corners of my English textbook, which I had found to be an effective way to keep from sleeping in class. 

Being creative in today’s world means finding simple yet effective solutions for seemingly complex problems. Let’s take a common classroom example- I always found History difficult, for it had a lot of things to memorize. But when I accidently hummed a song while reading the text, I could fit the words in the rhythm and I still remember them today. Now, everyone in my class has to learn the same things in some way, but the time taken by each varies, and here comes the efficiency into play.  

Every walk of life demands creativity- from students to business strategies to rocket science. This intellectual property is key to make things possible in limited resources. When scientists at ISRO launched the entire Mars Orbiter Mission in less than half of amount of resources than a similar mission of NASA, they used their creativity for resource and capital efficiency. If the pressure hadn’t been on them, they might have required the same million dollar budget.

In the end I would like to say that everyone has creativity. And we should be proud of it, like young kids happily wanting to show off their scribbling to everyone around them. You ask me why? I don’t know why you still have this question.

 

Anyways, start reading it all over again.

#BookReview1 : Indra Nooyi- A Biography

 The book Indra Nooyi- a Biography written by the author Annapoorna tells the inspiring story of an Indian woman who went on to become the CEO of PepsiCo. Indra Nooyi’s meteoric rise and success has been documented in several business magazines and journals, but this biography is the first one to address the person behind the image. The book briefly traces her life from childhood spent in the neighborhood on G N Chetty road in Madras to purchasing a house in Poes Colony, the neighbourhood of Chief Minister Jayalalitha.

Although it does not describe a stereotypical rags to riches story, the story does begin with Indra growing up in conservative family. Although her family is concerned about the sayings of the society, it is also portrayed to be extremely supportive in terms of education. Saying this, Indra does find her way to secure admission in the prestigious MCC and IIM universities, followed by Yale university for higher studies. While it could be said that Indra Nooyi was one of the few who pioneered flying across to the west and settling there, the book conveniently highlights her love for her motherland and her deep connection with the people and ethos of India.

The author has meticulously compiled excerpts from various interviews as well as anecdotes of her several well wishers. Each chapter begins with quotes from the Indian vedas which provides a deep understanding of the chapters of Indra’s life. The simplicity of the author’s writing is deceptive, and somewhere one feels the lack of detailed descriptions of Indra Nooyi’s personal experiences and thoughts, considering the fact that this is the first biography to be written on her.

The book does explain in vivid detail how Indra’s Indian roots helped her to shape her instinct while leading the multinational company. Her journey from being a knowledgeable student to an educated leader is endearing. One understands through her journey, the value of simplicity and hardwork- every person next door cannot have a resume as formidable as Indra’s. The book silently teaches one that laurels and achievements do not knock on your door and titles do not  magically get your name printed on themselves; you have to work relentlessly to make that happen. With that said, while you work your way up to the top, Indra Nooyi’s legacy gives inspiration as it awaits yours to be followed.

Are We Happier Than Our Forefathers?

“For the first time in history, more people die today from eating too much than from eating too little; more people die from old age than from infectious diseases; and more people commit suicide than are killed by soldiers, terrorists and criminals combined.”- From Homo Deus by Yuval Noah Harari.

It is interesting to know that despite of living in riches today, we still suffer silently from so many problems. When I was reading the book from which I’ve quoted the above lines, I was astonished to find out these facts for true. I remember my history textbooks filled with the struggles our ancestors had to go through. I feel that today, despite being in the 21^st century, our problems and struggles are no less. The major difference only being that our problems affect us mentally to a much greater extent, which makes matters worse.

Also today, surprisingly everyone has enough confidence to speak ill about others over the internet. May be it is the screen of usernames which they hide under. But it is so disturbing to know that someone is under depression just because of someone else’s rude remarks under the tag of ‘no offence’. These problems are only getting worse day by day. There are reality shows which handsomely pay people to fight against eachother. The people who ‘act’ in them do not mind, but the message which is propagated through such shows destroys the mutual integrity of a society. This is the form of entertainment for the 21^st century. Now a sane person would not get involved in such things, but such a person is so rare in today’s society that he himself feels lost amongst the insane people. Today the voices of those who want help and want to help are drowned in those of the ones who do not simply care, but still have to say something; just for fun.

Now there are a few rare societies in the world which propagate humanity, peace and happiness. Many people all around the world travel thousands of miles to listen to them. Tons of fuel is burnt for personal luxury. Even if they might feel happy now, they would not, considering the damage they’ve done to the environment, in the future.

And if these problems were not enough, major parts of the world still suffer from poverty, malnutrition, child labour, female foeticide, child marriages, child trafficking and abuse. When we imagine ourselves experiencing comforts and luxuries, one really cannot ignore these sufferings which our fellow residents of the world go through.

So are we really happier than our forefathers? Maybe not. in this world where money buys you happiness, it does not buy you satisfaction. Man remains greatly dissatisfied despite of his achievements and advancement. He keeps wanting more, and his greed makes him suffer with restlessness. Only the ones true to themselves, who know their purpose are said to be truly happy, but the irony being that such people are mostly cast off, labelling them as ‘old- fashioned’. Now if the principles and sayings of our ancestors really made one happy, it would be fair to say that our ancestors were indeed happier than us.

But of course, we can try to be happier. We have a lot of reasons to be pessimistic, but optimism does not harm either. In today’s world, we can only be happy by sharing happiness- spreading it far and wide. Illuminating the darkest places and souls on earth, giving them a helping hand, by telling them that we understand. Respecting others’ choices and decisions irrespective of what they are and not judging them based on that. By trying to shift our perspective and widen our horizons. To shift from ‘unity in diversity’ to ‘unity is diversity’.