A dominant characteristic of creative people that is closely related to personality is a passion for the work. People will be at their creative best when they feel motivated primarily by the interest, satisfaction, and challenge of the work itself—and not by external pressures. Passion for the task and high intrinsic motivation contribute in turn to a total absorption in the work and intense concentration, or the experience of flow. It is an experience so engrossing and enjoyable that the task becomes worth doing for its own sake regardless of the external consequences.

Perhaps you have had this experience when completely absorbed in a hobby or some analytical work, or when you were at your best in a sport or dance.
(Flow also means being in the zone.) The highly creative leader, such as a business owner developing a plan for worldwide distribution of a product, will often achieve the experience of flow. To fully understand the contribution of personal characteristics to creativity, we note the basic formula of human behavior: B=f(P,E) (behavior is a function of a person interacting with the environment).

In this context, certain personal characteristics may facilitate a leader’s being creative, but the right environment is necessary to trigger creative behavior. The right environment includes the leader encouraging creative thinking.