Madness can be a viable career choice.

I don’t mean raving, unfocused madness, but rather madness with purpose.

Madness is defined as extremely foolish behaviour, as in, one who behaves so far outside the social norm as to be viewed as not being remotely a part of it.

But what is foolish behaviour exactly?

In the context used within our established language, foolish means to utterly lack good judgment. But is that accurate to the term being used in the context of describing madness?

2 brothers from Brazil decided to turn a normal cement yard in Vancouver into a tourism attraction. A foolish endeavour to be sure, pure madness.

But then they behaved foolishly for a while – and madness became art.

This art has since drawn the gaze and admiration of millions who’ve had the pleasure to see it, myself included.

If someone thinks you are mad, maybe you should listen. If you can find a way to be angry in the context of productive creation, you become unrestrained and free.

Social norms place labels and definitions on the creative mind as if to say, ‘you can play any way you want until we don’t like it. Then you need to stop.’

If we’re trying to preserve creativity in our society, should we redefine madness and foolishness? Or, perhaps change our terms to better reflect creativity being an inherently messy process?

I feel children and educators may benefit from working on this issue of clarity in madness the most, as madness breeds creativity, which is often subject to crushing repression within the educational institutions we know today.