This road is paved with uncertainty

(gentle music) - One of my favorite poems as a kid was "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost. What I took away from it at the time was the taking the road less traveled, the path that others didn't, was the way to stand out. Being a nonconformist was the way to make a difference. In recent years, scholars have started to call this interpretation a misrepresentation of the poem's true intention. The protagonist of the poem doesn't even take the road less traveled. In fact, earlier in the poem, it states that both roads the protagonist must choose from have been equally used. They are the same. Now, according to Robert Frost, the poem is about his friend, poet Edward Thomas. During their time in England, they would have frequent talks walking together. On these walks, they would come across the need to decide on which path needed to be taken. Thomas would sometimes become disappointed with the path they chose, feeling like they'd missed a better experience on the other path. It's Thomas' indecisiveness that Robert Frost became amused with and it shines light on the poem's true meaning, it doesn't matter which path you take. Uncertainty affects many of us daily. When you look up the definition of uncertainty in the Miriam Webster's dictionary, you find the quality or state of being uncertain and in all capital letters, the word doubt. Using all capitals really connects with the emotional impact uncertainty brings. If we look to the Cambridge's dictionary, it's referred to as a situation in which something is not yet known. As creatives, some of us have had brilliant ideas become shelved because of uncertainty and the unknowing of how people might react to the work. To others, uncertainty has become the trigger or greater and further creative exploration, something to lean into and explore. We all have our own voice and the ability to frame uncertainty as the natural occurrence that it is. If we can be open to the idea and take uncertainty out of the equation, this just becomes about finding creativity. Hi, I'm Nick Harauz. I'm here to share with you my passion for creativity, how I've discovered it during difficult times, and even how I continue to find it when things are going well. This course is designed for creatives from all walks of life and those of you interested in creativity who may feel you don't possess those skills. In this course, we will look at challenging your assumptions towards creativity, how we might be able to change some of the stories you may be telling yourself, and then how to make creativity actionable. I'm very excited for you to join me on the road ahead, where together, we'll look at finding creativity in these uncertain times. (upbeat music)