How to be more creative | The Gray Area

Sean talks with writer David Epstein about why unlimited freedom and endless choice often make us less creative, less focused, and less fulfilled. They discuss the hidden power of constraints, the psychology of attention, why humans struggle with too many options, and how useful limits can help us do better work and live more meaningful lives. Subscribe to our channel! http://goo.gl/0bsAjO Host: Sean Illing (@seanilling) Guest: David Epstein (@DavidEpstein) 00:00 Intro 01:46 How restraints helped create the periodic table 03:41 The relationship between freedom and creativity 10:55 Is freedom the absence of limits? 16:50 Why does choice create anxiety? 22:20 How do we navigate a world with too many choices? 27:22 Making a decision vs ‘sliding’ into one 34:02 The value of ritual 37:55 Creative limits and Dr. Seuss 39:41 How David Epstein’s life changed after writing this book We would love to hear from you. To tell us what you thought of this episode, email us at thegrayarea@vox.com or leave us a voicemail at 1-800-214-5749. Your comments and questions help us make a better show. And you can watch new episodes of The Gray Area on YouTube. New episodes drop every Monday and Friday. Listen to The Gray Area ad-free by becoming a Vox Member: vox.com/members. Vox.com is a news website that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Check out http://www.vox.com. Watch our full video catalog: http://goo.gl/IZONyE Follow Vox on Facebook: http://goo.gl/U2g06o Or Twitter: http://goo.gl/XFrZ5H