This is 99% invisible. I'm Roman Mars.

There's this old story and it goes something like this.

A visitor arrives at the Pearly Gates and asks St. Peter if he can meet the greatest general who ever lived.

And St. Peter points out one of the people in heaven and says, there he is the greatest general

in the world.

And the visitor is shocked.

And he says, no way, that's not the greatest general. I mean, that guy isn't even a general. I knew him on earth and he was a cobbler. I know, responds St. Peter. But if he had been a general, he would have been the greatest of them all.

It's a bit corny, sure, but the story raises some interesting questions.

That's General Avery Truffman.

How does a person discover their greatest creative potential, their best skills and talents and

capabilities?

You might be a brilliant novelist if you could find the time.

Or maybe if you had the training,

you could have changed the course of modern dance

or particle physics or, you know, been a great general.

So what makes brilliant and creative people tick.

And how did they get that way?

Today there are thousands of self-help books and counselors and consultants and websites that

promise to help you find your creative essence.

They teach you the habits of successful, effective, and creative people.

But this idea that you can study something as elusive as creativity and learn step by step

how to be more creative, it was unthinkable. creativity has always had something magical about it.

...