CREATIVITY AS A WAY TO PRESERVE ONESELF DURING WAR

           War intensifies various feelings and impulses, such as the unexpected desire to create. I will explain why Ukrainian entrepreneurs don't need to restrain their creative energy, even if it seems inappropriate now.

           In the first weeks of the war, Chernihiv was one of the hotspots. Accompanied by the sounds of artillery in the basement of my house, I recorded thoughts in a notebook or on a recorder. Later, when processing the recordings, I noticed that it turned out quite well.

I am not alone in this.

           Many of my entrepreneur friends have noticed their desire to write or draw—to externalize their creative energy. And they are quite ashamed of it: it's not common for businessmen to engage in creative activities.

           How Creativity Helped Me in Business

           The business I'm involved in, at first glance, is far from high matters. Pet Technologies is an engineering company.

           I discovered my inclination for creativity about three years ago and was quite surprised. However, I did not restrain myself. As a result, several books and dozens of publications were created. For me, all of this is not the goal but by-products born in the creative process.

           The free flow of creative energy has had a very positive impact on business. Although I haven't been involved in operational management for several years, more creative business solutions have emerged, contributing to the company's development.

           When I analyzed my own experience and heard the stories of other entrepreneurs, I realized that creativity is a natural and inseparable trait of a businessman. Business is creativity.

           If you've already built a company, and it can function successfully without you, it's not a reason to shut down the creative flow. You just need to find another way ou for it.

           Why You Should Share Your Creativity

           New business projects don't always effectively address challenges. I believe that creativity, like finances, needs to be diversified. Investing it only in business is like putting all your eggs in one basket. What's the difference: producing machines, sausages, or bricks? Algorithms of actions remain the same.

           Creative activity is like a second leg for a businessman: it's very pleasant to rely on, and sometimes it's simply necessary.

           Building a business is anyway challenging. When you get through  this path, you gain invaluable experience. And then you feel like an overloaded ship. You need to unload to keep sailing: share your knowledge with someone.

           It doesn't matter if it's through texts, mentoring, or some other format. The main thing is to share.

           Creativity is a realization and recognition that are crucial for an entrepreneur. If they have realized themselves in business, they can successfully continue their realization in creativity. In the process, they discover a second wind that doesn't allow them to fall asleep and retire from "business operations."

           Why Create During War

           In Eastern philosophy, a businessman is seen as a warrior. Japanese samurais wrote poetry. The martial arts and poetry were intimately connected.

War is a terrifying time. Besides external horrors and threats, there are many internal risks. You're used to controlling the process, but now you don't have that ability. You're used to making plans, but now it doesn't make sense. You're searching for where you can apply yourself most effectively, but it doesn't always work for everyone.

           Often energy is wasted in vain, and the situation becomes even worse due to further disappointment and despair. To this is added a sense of guilt for seemingly inactivity or ineffective activity.

           Endless scrolling through news feeds and Facebook, pumping oneself with destructive hatred – it's a waste of time, energy, and the nervous system.

In the third week of the war, I realized that creativity is also a way not to lose oneself, an element of psychotherapy. Sometimes it's better to write than to read.

           The senseless and cruel war that Russia unleashed against our country and the entire civilized world raises many questions. When you can not find logical answers to them, you begin to generate interesting reflections.

           History is being written right now, and therefore, thoughts that come to us in the context of what is happening have special value. I would even say historical value.

           What were Ukrainians thinking about, how did they explain to themselves what was happening during "that" war, how did their lives and they themselves change? Years will pass, and this war will become "that" war. This is another reason not to hold back and to let out creative energy.

           How to Organize Creativity

           I share ten percent of what I write. It's not necessary to showcase thoughts, to write for an audience. We do this work primarily for ourselves.

           How to organize creativity? Even before the war, I pondered this a lot.

           To articulate thoughts coherently and, most importantly, write them down in a timely manner is not the same as conducting a meeting at the factory.

           Moreover, as entrepreneurs, we don't take creative work seriously, so we always postpone it for later.

           Important: there is no better moment to record a thought that suddenly visits you than the moment it comes to you.

           If you write it down or describe it later—if you don't forget entirely—it will lose its emotional color and depth. I record thoughts on a recorder, then process them myself or send them to a literary editor.

           It's already a pattern: the most interesting ideas and conclusions come in the most challenging and "non-creative" moments. For example, in the audio recording of my words for this note, you can clearly hear the air raid siren.