Book Review/Takeaways: The Creative Habit

I just finished reading The Creative Habit. It’s the fourth book I’ve read on creativity, and it’s interesting because each one gives a different take on how they approach being creative. 

In The War of Art Steven Pressfield focuses on the idea of the resistance. That voice and feeling we get when we’re trying to create that put’s up road blocks and obstacles to stop us from following the muse. In The Artists Way Julia Cameron talks about rediscovering yourself in order to create, and provides effective exercises and affirmations to help readers reconnect with their innate selves. She encourages readers to follow their instincts and perceptions when it comes to creating. In The Creative Act Rick Rubin gives a pep talk to the struggling artist and provides examples to encourage and motivate the reader. Of the four books I found The Creative Act to be the most ‘unstructured’ in terms of how to create, but I still found it to be effective. 

But the one thing that all three of those books have in common, that differs from The Creative Habit, is that while they speak to the innate ability to create that lives within us, Twyla Tharp drives home the idea that creating can also be a habit you cultivate. That through hard work, dedication, and discipline, you can forge a creative path in whatever field interests you. That with structure and process you could create beautiful work.

Hearing that went against everything I thought I knew about being creative. The message was so direct and so juxtaposed to the first three books I had read that I actually had to put it down for a few weeks after reading only a few chapters. I wasn’t ready for it, or at least I thought I wasn’t ready for it. But during my short hiatus from it all I could think about was how what I read had already impacted my life.

I realized that my new morning routine of working out, something I had jettisoned, was actually inspired by learning about Twyla Tharp’s routine. For decades she’s been waking up at the same time every morning to be at the gym by 7 am for her 2 hour workout. Morning workouts were always part of my routine until I started writing. I believed that those morning hours had to be for creating.

Where Rick Rubin provides a pep talk, Twyla Tharp provides tough love. Where Steven Pressfield drives home the idea of getting past the resistance, Twyla Tharp shows how she pushes passed resistance and failure to propel her. And where Julia Cameron stokes the spiritual side that lives in us all, Twyla Tharp makes the case that creation doesn’t just come from within, it also comes from everything we see and do.

All of these books are great, and I would recommend each one of them to anyone looking to create, but I also think they hold tremendous value as tools for personal development. Because while they are focused on getting the reader to create, they are also filled with lessons of struggles and failures, as well as stories of growth, discipline, and perseverance, all of which are relatable. And I think that is something we could all use more of, creatives or not.