Three Cheers For Stress!

With the endless chatter today in pop culture about the importance of inner peace and tranquility to happiness; of inner harmony, calm, and mental stillness to a stress-free life, please note that such so-called "blessed" states of mind have done precious little to advance the cause of our cultural heritage - that is, if we view "creativity" as a powerful indicator of human achievement. Quite the contrary. Most, if not all, of our greatest geniuses - Michelangelo, Beethoven, Newton, Einstein (the list is endless) - hardly knew a day in their productive years without doing intense inner battle with their particular problems, whether they were wrestling with elusive artistic, conceptual, or technical strategies; or spending countless days, months, even years, analyzing complex philosophical/scientific ideas.

In short, "peace of mind" had no meaning to them. The moral to the story is quite simple: if you want to live a life of inner calm, spend a great deal of time meditating or doing yoga. If you want to change the world, however, (i.e., discover a cheap, clean, and abundant source of energy, cure a disease, or even write a great song or story), come out of your cave, be audacious, and brave the turbulent waters of frustrating, creative expression - for as the 19th century, German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche once quipped: "Chaos gives birth to a dancing star..."

Image source: Diego Cervo/Shutterstock.com