My daughter told a kid at school she's learning the clarinet. Kid said, "You don't look like a clarinet player".

When my daughter told me this, I laughed, but then I thought about it a bit. Then I was a little disturbed.

It turned out that this kid wasn't getting alone with my daughter so he wanted her to feel like she wasn't the type to play the clarinet (what ever that is).

But this often subtle social influence to blend in, conform, or go with the crowd, becomes the normal thing to do at a curtain age. The very opposite of being creative. Instead of enjoying the challenge of trying new and interesting things, kids are encouraged to become normalised & socialised to the point that they don't know who they are anymore.

This starts early but it doesn't really stop. Adults can find themselves doing work that is totally unfulfilling just because they were 'encouraged' to follow the more well worn paths. Even if they are earning a good income, they still feel trapped by their profession.

My daughter's biggest fear is playing her clarinet in front of the other school kids. It will happen one day, but I'll need to help her to do what she loves doing, even if others think she shouldn't.

For the 'being born creative' series (childhood creativity)

You can find Steve at www.ineedtocreate.com