To quote Shakespeare, “(stabbing him) What, you egg? Young fry of treachery!”

Now that I have started with an out-of-context meme-worthy funny quote, we’ll delve into the mechanics of creativity and routine, with context. This includes marketing and advertising, but it also goes beyond that. It’s also delving into human nature and finding what we strive for. We will talk about how creativity is ageless only when paired with the gift of perception.

For me, I’m creative with a deadline, a pressure constantly hanging over my neck. This sentence has been rephrased and overused in so many celebrity interviews & Ted talks but there’s always a why behind it. The answer is purely scientific. Let’s start with an example of Stephen King. He is considered to be one of the greatest fiction writers in a career spanning decades. He has struggled with drug abuse and illusions with his definition of creativity. In his part-memoir, part writing master-class book, “On Writing”, he focuses on the thought that Creativity doesn’t need mediums to be enhanced, nor a time. You need yourself and a belief system.

In reality, every human is very creative. Yet, there are few who choose professions like Advertising, Filmmaking, Music, and Writing; because those are the few who can be creative-on-command. You have to be improvising like a jazz musician with a rigourous routine of a soldier, an unlikely combination. Those unlikely combinations end up leading new paths and illuminating that path for others following. Suppose one day you can’t sleep at 2 AM and thoughts overflow, your hold over your emotions ebb (not egg) away. You feel so much and the only way to express it is through poetry or prose. You write a poem and it works like a therapy for you. You sleep sound and wake up next day; to realize the poem you wrote is beautiful. You post it on your social media and bask in the glory of likes. Only to wait for that specific moment of emotions to overflow you again so that you can write something beautiful, again.

The fact that you wrote, it means you have it in you. The fact that you thought of a beautiful jingle for a brand you like, that too means you have it in you. The important question is, “How do you channel that emotional flow and divide it in pieces of your daily life?” The answer is routine. The answer is also delving in the craft, understanding the science behind it. The answer is also not trying to find situations to motivate you, but to motivate yourself to get up and think. Thinking is what we really ought to do.

Now that we have talked about creativity, it’s my turn to tell you about something more interesting; The Timelessness of Creativity.

When Javed Akhtar writes a love song, from Veer Zara to Wake-up Sid, we don’t question his ability to delve into the mindset of the characters and write from their perception. We don’t. He has the gift of perception. But using the word “gift” is also romanticizing the idea of perception. Perception is a muscle; you can make it stronger only by exploring humanity. The time you overheard teenagers cracking jokes in the metro and then observed people in their 30s cracking jokes; you, my dear reader, have explored the subjectivity of humour in different age groups. You can write some from the perceptions of both. It wasn’t that tough, you just had to be more open to your surroundings.

The muscle of perception is the biggest tool in advertising. One advert won’t please everyone; the brand image is based on the audience it’s catering to. When you add this muscle to the creativity in everyday practice, you get your answer to being creative-on-command.

Why have I talked about prose, poetry, music and films when I should be focusing on advertising? Well, the answer lies in the question itself. Advertising, the creativity part, has a bit of everything. You see it every time you walk by a billboard or a TV screen. It’s everywhere.


​ Creativity can be channeled to everyday use; it’s not a luxury but a tool. Perception comes from everyday experiences. When perception is paired with creativity, it makes the form of art timeless. Also, eggs are funny.