Why it’s essential to understand the rules, especially if you plan on breaking them

If I asked you to make me the best cup of coffee that you knew how, there are a few things I could count on you doing.

I could count on you engaging with some kind of coffee bean. That bean may be whole and unroasted when you start. It may be ground into oblivion. It may even be brewed and then dehydrated into some form of instant coffee. But you would likely use some kind of coffee bean.

I would also expect you to use at least one type of liquid. Water? Yes. Milk? Maybe. Flavored syrups? Possibly, sure.

If I asked you to make me the best cup of coffee that you knew how, and what resulted was you placing tiramisu in front of me, I would be very confused. My conclusion would be that you did not hear me correctly.

Why?

Well, even though tiramisu contains coffee beans, water, milk, and even flavored syrups as ingredients, it is very much not a cup of coffee - even if it is served in a cup.

This is easy for most people to understand because even in a world with one billion different types of cappuccino, cortadito, flat white, lavender swirl caramel crunch triple shot iced latte concoctions, there is a clear framework for the standard cup of joe.

And because we so clearly understand the simple rules and realities around what this standard cup of coffee is and is not, we can easily and abundantly riff on the concept of a cup of coffee without disrupting the reality of a cup of coffee.

As much as I love talking about coffee, this is not about that.

This is about the importance of understanding the fundamental rules of any given situation - especially when your ultimate goal is to break them.

Controlled chaos

When most people come across something new, innovative, creative and totally out-of-the-box, it is common to experience and process the ways in which that new idea feels free and unconstrained.

However, the reason that our brains are able to pinpoint, recognize, and appreciate the areas of new creation is because our brains are also able to contextualize that newness within a framework of dependability.

I know it can feel quite disappointing to come to terms with this, but our human brains are hard-wired to seek out patterns of dependability as a means to safety. I’m not saying this is a conscious awareness or that it’s something we ‘fix’ through enough trauma work.

I’m saying that it’s a reality of being a holder of a human brain.

There have been countless scientific studies done that showcase the human brain’s ability to quickly edit out any new stimulus or experience that it doesn’t yet have the framework to understand. We like to think that our eyes see reality, and our ears hear reality, and our fingers touch reality.

But really, our brain creates its own reality from processing our senses. And if we sense something that we can’t at least somewhat contextualize within our existing reality, our brain will not become enamored by it. Our brain will bypass it.

So when we experience newness that seems cool, quirky, interesting, or intriguing - it’s important to know that what we are actually experiencing is the balance and interplay between the freedom of creativity and the constraint of predictability.

Not one or the other - but both together.

Make a better wheel

One of the most valuable skills I learned in music school was the skill of iteration.

Yes, there is extraordinary value to creative exploration for creative exploration’s sake. Creativity as an explorative practice can be incredibly meditative, grounding, calming, nourishing, and even healing.

However, in addition to creative exploration, there are moments and situations where we want to effectively apply creativity to problem-solving, furthering a cause, or sparking change in the world.

Maybe you want to offer a certain perspective shift to your industry. Or you want to find your voice and make your mark as an artist. Perhaps you want to create your own methodology in your area of expertise.

This effective application of creativity is a process of equal parts inspiration and iteration.

Sometimes when people endeavor to proactively use creativity, they will only attempt to engage with inspiration, and iteration gets left behind.

This oftentimes results in fleeting ideas that are expressed in a sort of vacuum - with no way for others to really relate to or attach to these new concepts. Or, it will result in the creator isolating themselves until a great idea comes along - only for them to find that the idea has already been executed, resulting in a feeling of discouragement.

From my perspective, the phrase of ‘reinventing the wheel’ comes from this type of inspiration-only led creativity. It can be unnecessarily chaotic, wasteful, and ultimately unproductive.

However, when we pull iteration into the creative process, a whole world starts to open up.

First of all, any hypothesis presented through the lens of both inspiration and iteration contains much more depth of context than a hypothesis presented through either the sole lens of inspiration or the sole lens of iteration. Even if that context is not overtly stated, it is felt. And it creates a level of sturdiness around any concept being presented.

Additionally, the process of iterating on the old can spark a whole ton of creative inspiration itself. There are new ideas in the old, just as much as there are new ideas in the new. Hunting for gold can be just as much about going west as it can about turning over the rocks in your backyard.

And so oftentimes, when the world can get so consumed with chasing the biggest, newest, flashiest concepts, you actually may find that there is extraordinary newness available in deeply examining the old in new ways - and that type of newness may be more familiar and relatable to others.

I said I learned about iteration in music school, and the people who did it best were the jazz musicians.

When one listens to jazz, it sounds like the soloist is improvising from a place of absolute freedom and intuition. The great ones are, yes. But do you know what that freedom and intuition are resting on?

Hours and hours and hours of practicing scales, arpeggios, and standard riffs in the practice room.

Nobody practices the technical basics more than the great jazz improvisers. Mastering iteration to the same degree that they master inspiration is quite literally the equation of their mastery of fluid creativity.

My urge to you - whether you are a jazz musician, a tech entrepreneur, or dog dad - is to keep the value of balancing both inspiration and iteration when you endeavor to create whatever new thing it is you’re trying to bring into this world.

If you do, you may just find that your ideas and effort land stronger and go farther than they ever have before.