Creativity is all consuming

Flashes of creativity appear in the blank spaces on my calendar. In the shower. On a walk. While driving. They seem to bubble up from my subconscious without any prodding. And the more I look for them, the less they appear.

They usually aren't original thoughts. Instead, they're mixtures of ideas from elsewhere. Original only insofar as their combination. Beauty at intersections.

These creative flashes seem to arrive effortlessly, but in reality, they are delayed rewards for intense conscious effort. Deferred compensation for hours of seemingly fruitless focus on a topic I'm seeking to understand. The more I struggle, the more I am rewarded.

This direct correlation between conscious effort and subconscious reward is an exponential relationship. The best results come from consistently focusing on one thing for extended periods of time. And half the effort produces much less than half the results.

Unfortunately, this means that for my best, most creative work to emerge from my subconscious, I must let my conscious mind be completely consumed by a single topic.

And for my multitasking, overstretched, shiny object syndrome affected self, that is a challenge I must learn to overcome.