The blank page can be intimidating. Why not think of it as a “mystery box”?
This suggestion comes from writer, director, and producer J.J. Abrams in his lively 18-minute talk on TED, the nonprofit group that sponsors annual conferences featuring the world’s most fascinating thinkers and doers. Decades ago for $15 Abrams bought a box containing $50 worth of magic tricks, which he’s never opened, and he loves the way it represents possibility and potential. As you write you wonder what comes next and you answer questions–which is akin to solving mysteries.
Listening to Abrams, who co-created the TV show Lost and directed he movies Star Trek, Mission: Impossible III, and Super 8, got me thinking about creativity in a different way. I need to focus on the excitement of producing something rather than the fear that my effort will fall short of my hopes.
The blank page–a mystery box waiting to be filled.
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