Free Nonsense

On Creativity

By Pedro Costa*

I have notices recently that when people leave their homes in the morning they have certain rituals that will prevent them from forgetting something. A hand in each trouser pocket (“mobile…wallet…”), hands on the jacket pocket (“keys…tissues…”). Everything’s here, so now we’re out the door to start our day. In my case, the ritual often includes checking if I have a book with me. I love reading. When I was a child, I read everything I saw. And when I say everything, I mean EVERYTHING! I can actually say that I tormented my parents by reading the names of all the stores we passed by, all the slogans in political propaganda posters, or even the  expiration dates of the juice cartons I drank.

Ever since I was a teenager, and even now as an adult, I always carry a book with me. And I do so, not only because I enjoy learning new things – becoming part of the stories and living new lives through characters –, but also to fight the vile lack of creativity that haunts me by having such a technical job. Let me explain: when I was a high school student, I was able to write far more creative texts than now. The texts flowed better, they were less technical, they were a lot more similar to my thoughts. This is not the case with the reports I had to do over the years. Higher Education and the theme pursued are not favourable to certain whims. Both the format of our written communications and especially what our reader expects to find are predefined, and “god forbid” we try to change that.

I am not the only one who feels this way. I know people who are close to me that suffer with these restrictions to creativity. From college students who have their research thought out and structured by their supervisors without being able to change it, to teenager family members who already feel that their path has been defined and that their future… either fits the certain box, or they’re in trouble. Nowadays, creativity is only for those who practice it as a profession or those who cultivate it outside of work. I do understand the need to standardise or structure (after all, I am an engineer), but I don’t agree with it. There should also be room for creativity in Engineering. No one can be motivated if they cannot be creative.

That is why I enjoy working with BRAIN (a group within C-BER coordinated by Professor João Paulo Cunha). We do serious and responsible work, but we can be creative and “engineer” personalised solutions for problems. Remember your “self” when you were 18. Isn’t that what you were looking for when you decided to become an Engineer?

*Collaborator at the Centre for Biomedical Engineering Research (C-BER)