I think people who use this phrase are unimaginitive-- not just because they use a cliche phrase that's been passed around more times than the potato in a game of hot potato, but also because they rely on others' paths to follow their own.
My entire life I've prided myself in being unique. Always a quiet outcast, I spent the majority of my life doing my own thing. I've become so self reliant that when a shortcut someone's created presents itself, chances are I won't use it because I'd rather spend the time doing it, myself, in my own way.
I know many people would probably argue against my roundabout way of life. It's time consuming, it's redundant, it's unnecessary, it's foolish, they'd say. And I would respond with an assured yes in that reinventing the wheel and stubbornly refusing a shortcut is time consuming.
But you see-- for me, the goal begins selfishly. When I create, I first do it for me. I want to mess up and get frustrated and then rejoice when I finally make it go my way. If someone were to ask why I would want to go through all that trouble, I'd explain it like this:
at one point in time, someone just like me sat down with the intent of achieving my goal, and had the privilege of experiencing the creative process in its entirety. So although someone else has already done it, does that mean I should allow myself to be robbed of doing it for myself?
Because, in the long run,
creation is not about the product; creation is about the journey.
