You’re probably going to call me crazy, but I miss school.
I mean, technically I’m still in school, but as far as getting my Master’s degree is concerned, all I need to do is sit on my butt and finally finish that thesis. But the last time I attended an actual class was maybe a little over a year ago.
And, again, I miss it. Not because I’m a glutton for “punishment” (although, I could argue that I am); not because I feel a need to fill my days with lectures and (some) pointless busywork.
No, I miss school because it was a breeding ground for creativity. Nothing gets the creative juices flowing like being stuck in a room with twenty other like-minded (and not so like-minded) individuals whose job it is to throw ideas around and ask questions. School was designed to make you think—to open the doors to new possibilities—and thus, school was always an outlet for finding new ways to look at things.
Frankly, I envy people who are still full-time students because, for them, the learning hasn’t stopped. Their minds are still being filled with information that they can take or leave, and in that knowledge they are able to further bend the rules of their crafts and create new ones. Once that ends, ideas have more of a habit of slowing down and becoming stagnant. And that’s where I feel I am right now.
In the long run, this is why I am extremely supportive of higher education. Not because I think a piece of paper is going to get you somewhere in life (mine clearly hasn’t), and not because I think people who go to college are necessarily smarter than those that don’t (though it certainly helps). I just know from experience that going to college means you’re in the midst of a vast array of opportunities to grow. To change your perspective. To find a path you didn’t expect to find. And most importantly, to dedicate yourself to being a better person today than you were yesterday.
And it is this type of dedication that is the basis of all creative thinking.
I once had a teacher tell the class: “No one who willfully remains ignorant can produce great art.” And no great creator ever ignored an opportunity for growth; creatives want experience. We crave it. Even if it’s something we’ll never truly be able to understand, we at least want to hear about it. Because “knowing” gives us something to work with. “Knowing,” no matter what the subject is, presents an opportunity we otherwise would not have.
The pursuit of knowledge is always a catalyst for greater things. So, no matter who you are or what you’re studying, just make sure to enjoy “learning” as a full-time job for as long as you can.
— C.M.
Night Owls, what little tidbits / skills have you picked up over the years that helped you grow as a creator? What creative things would you never have tried if it weren’t for going to school?