Creativity isn't a gift you're born with. It's a habit you protect.

People talk about creativity like it's a gift you either got or didn't. In practice it behaves more like a habit: something you build, and something you can lose if you stop protecting it.

Blocks are the proof. They rarely clear by pushing harder. Staring at the problem longer just deepens the rut. They clear when you step away, change the input, give the idea some room to connect on its own time. The work happens while you're not forcing it.

So I treat creative time like training, not inspiration. Regular reps, real rest, and enough slack in the schedule for ideas to arrive. The gift framing lets people off the hook. The habit framing is the one that actually shows up.