Have we been taught to ignore our creativity and our gut feeling?

Question

I know that my question is mainly true. But when you think about it, especially with traditional teaching in schools and in other areas, we are always taught what to believe or what to think. We are taught to use logic instead of creativity. We are taught to use our minds instead of our hearts. We are taught so many things that renders us incapable of feeling, creating, or learning something in a new way. It renders us incapable to see the truth.

Answer 1

The purpose of teaching is to help a person to form their own opinion and learn to discern the truth, the purpose is not to create uniform thinking. Truth is relative and you must find your own truth. I don't believe that things which we tought renders us incapable of feeling, it stimulates us to do the work and research to help us find our own truth.

Answer 2

Yes I think we are taught to ignore our creativity. The creative side of the brain is much more powerful because it also uses logic. The two are not mutually exclusive. Take for instance the way I learned how to type on a keyboard. I would go to school an type yyy xxx ect until I was familiar with the keys. After a year I could type 35 words a minute, this is the traditional method. My kids typed at the same age somewhere around 80 to 90 words a minute. How did they learn? Instant messaging. Their brains were connected to their creative side. This form of learning is called constructivism. If you go with your passions you will seek what you wish to know. Knowledge is layered and builds on its foundation. Any time you have an interest your brain will be more motivated to learn. Does that make sense?

Answer 3

Yes you are right! I'm left-handed & a former full-time artist. Being empathic & creative is seen as a weakness in society. Not to mention being honest, asking questions & pointing out stagnation.

Society admires the Donald Trumps, cold reasoning & following the masses. Ask questions & people laugh at you! "Don't fix nuttin that is not broke" they respond.
(Even make one typo & they pop a vein in their brain!)

Einstein was very creative. So was Thomas Edision & many others. To be a "day dreamer" is the label of stupidity. Cold hard logic gave us
the German Nazis.

RX companies & Corporate America only need those who are smart enough to work & pay taxes. Think with your hearts? Oh my, the macho & shallow say that is weakness.

Before we die, will we say "I wish I made another $10,000?" Isn't it better to review our memories...and remember how we helped so & so...created, had heart, invented & lead life as a human being.

Can you imagine if we used our hearts instead of our minds? Well half of Congress would be impeached! Yes you are right about truth. Truth is buried beneath the RX prescriptions humans take. Truth is buried so humans can work against nature & aggregate a large financial portfolio.

Only to end up losing their health, children, spouse & having lived a full life as a feeling human being. I'm not perfect either & have cursed G-d many a time for making me creative.

But I'd rather live & experience life thru colored passionate eyes than just B+W sameness.

Answer 4

I don't agree. Nature has its own laws, and you have to learn them. The speed at which something falls due to gravity, the result of 2+2, the cause of rust on steel: all these things have known answers and you cannot know the answers by intuition, you have to learn them. In art and to some extent in other areas, intuition has a role, but again, even there, if you go to a doctor, do you want a doctor who knows little medicine but is creative, or do you want a doctor who knows medicine thoroughly even if he's not creative? I think that modern society encourages people to act on the basis of impulse--so that you buy things without thinking first--and it does so by making you think you're being creative/different/free-spirited when you do so, but it's just a gimmick. The great advances in any field have been made by creative thinkers who really knew what they were doing, and so could see connections that other could not, like Einstein and Salk. But they knew their field first, they studied and learned.

Answer 5

Yes, what we are taught is discipline, order, method, propriety etc. which at first sight looks like suppressing or even overruling creativity and gut feel.
On a deeper thinking, one realizes that in fact, the reverse is the truth. That is, what we are taught actually gives useful and meaningful form and direction to our creativity and gut feel. Creativity and gut feel are inherent in human beings, but these are pretty wild and disorderly as they arise. Education and culture are the important reins which make sure that the wild horse would actually serve the purpose by going the distance at the right speed and in the required direction. Education and culture are like the woman's womb to ensure that the sperms fertilize an egg rather than get lost in the wilderness. This is the only way to make creativity and gut feel productive and useful.

Answer 6

I really loved your question. Because of you, I signed up to this site. Your question shows true thinking and creativity. You are on track my dear! Have you ever read the book "Artist's Way"? You REALLY should look at that book. It is the most serious book I've ever come across on the topic of rediscovering one's creativity. Most people are hooked after reading the first page. Try a 2nd hand bookstore if your cashflow is tight.

For now this is the best answer I can supply you with, other then saying that multi-national corporations and television have greatly affected individual's creativity in negative and subversive ways. People need to turn off their TV sets and learn to think for themselves. Use the $40.00 that you pay each month for your cable and sign up for an art class, or a spanish class, or learn to play an instrument. The music you play and hear is more up to you then you realize! Cheers! VFR_Girl.

Answer 7

Yes, we have been taught to stifle our true self. We should all just be exactly alike, who are we to be powerful? Yes, instead we are taught situational ethics and humanism. If it feels good do it, no matter the consequences. One only needs to look at all of the violence around us to see that we are passing on horrible messages to our youth. After all if we are all alike, then it is easier to control our minds. We are not taught to use wisdom, only facts piled on facts. Learn enough facts to pass a test. How to use the information we have accumulated to find an anwer we have not been taught? NEVER! That is just the way the government likes it! Keep us "dumbed" down. I heard of someones neice who was baking a cake that required 3/4 of a cup of water. All she had was a 1/4 measure cup, and she couldn't figure out how to make that into 3/4 of a cup. She was ready to throw the whole thing away!

Sounds like we need to return to teaching children how to think, not just how to remember a bunch of facts.

Answer 8

This is definately a realy good question, I have often wondered if why the systems is set up in such a manner. I think School and education is the good but we definatley become robotic as we simply take classes to get grades and not really to learn. Having said that I don't think anyone has the ability to take your creativity away from you. The system is the way it is and we should try to change it if possible, but that is not likely; however we can change our attitudes in such a way that we will overcome this obstacle by deciding for ouselves to remain creative, to take what we can that is good from the system and then discover our own paths. This will always be a big question in large societies. I believe that it is up to the individual to step outside of the bubble and choose for themselves. Creativity will come to those who do this. Thankyou and great question. -Boomer

Answer 9

It is a delicate matter to help people to develop their creativity and to listen to their gut feeling.
That may be the reason why in most teaching situations that kind of education is avoided.
How could you have an army if you helped people to love each other and to live life with real joy ?
How could people be pushed around if they were taught to speak up for their rights ?
Great question and lots of soul searching needed to answer it.

Answer 10

Yes, that is why I have always hated conventional schooling. They don't teach children to think outside the box. I mourn for the lost creativity of so many young people. Education should bring out from within, not make robots out of us. Didn't Plato believe that as well? When my son was young, I had him in a Montessori school, because the philosophy was based on bringing out the child's own creativity, and encouraging independence. Also, when a child was ready to learn something, he would not be discouraged because it wasn't in the teacher's plan that year. He would be given the means to find the answers to his questions. I think as parents, we can help our children learn how to think for themselves. It's hard- the public schools will tear it all down. But if you feel you or your child are gifted in certain areas, pursue ways to express your gifts.

Answer 11

Yes and No, when it comes to choosing our own path in life we sometimes have to use creativity and our gut feeling. When teaching in schools they almost teach by the exame or the test, You will not get the answers correct if you don't suck up to them.(Pardon
the language) Anyway, you have to do what is told to you in schools, but when it comes to other things, such as sports, music and art you need a sense of creativity and you have to use your gut feeling.
So, it's all a choice one has to make, you have the power to choose to be creative or not, it all depends upon you.