Creation of new is playing with a purpose

The creation of something new is not accomplished by the intellect but by the play instinct acting from inner necessity. The creative mind plays with the objects it loves.
- Carl Jung

I ran into this quote today and thought that it was simply excellent. When the "zone" hits and you are creating anything new, be it a program, a system, art, music or a new business model it feels like playing. When you watch someone who is really good at it, they almost seem to be having too much fun... it can't possibly be work that way right? I have always found so much enjoyment in these types of activities myself that to describe it as anything else is pretense. When your brain is in the right state, you are relaxed, the deep parts of your mind, where the real horsepower is, can bubble up thoughts and put things together that your conscious mind simply can't.

This phenomena was described to me recently as operating with the power in the frontal cortex (the default conscious section) is roughly equivalent to using the change in your pocket. When you are in "the zone" and your deeper mind is able to work it is more like the national product of the United States of America. That's one heck of a difference.

If you never play with your inner child they atrophy. Or potentially worse, get bored and go off in random directions. Kind of like any muscle in your body when you don't use it your mind gets tired too and you can't be as readily be creative... plus personally I think it just makes you prematurely old. If you ever want a dose of reality on your brain aging check out the Brain Age games on the Nintendo DS.

The moral of this post... play every day.