Donna Frost

The critical creative collaborative inquiries in action 137 5 Using symbolic language The literature around professional artistry is full of creative language including descriptive adjectives, simile, metaphor and analogy. Donald Schön ( 1987 , p. 3 ), for example, referred to the high, hard ground of professional practice, where technical and theoretical solutions are easy to apply, and the swampy lowlands of professional practice where problems are messy and require more creative solutions. Andresen and Fredericks ( 2001 ), trying to communicate something of the mystery of professional artistry, described the artistry in professional practice as being like the fifth player in a jazz quartet. Titchen’s ( 2009 , 2019 ) work, too, employs rich descriptions of practice as well as metaphorical language; she describes multiple intelligences, for example, ‘work[ing] closely together in a beautiful ecosystem […] of professional artistry processes’ (Titchen, 2019 , p. 51 ). Symbolic language, such as the metaphorical principles within critical creativity for creating the conditions for human flourishing (McCormack & Titchen, 2006 ; Titchen & McCormack, 2010 ), helps communicate the essence of complicated ideas in ways that enable the listener, or reader, to connect the ideas to knowledge or experiences they already hold. It helps to close distances and release the imagination. At the beginning of this study, when seeking people interested in inquiring collaboratively into the professional artistry of their own practice, I wanted to communicate something of the feel of professional artistrywhile avoiding theoretical explanations which only made it sound more complicated. ‘The X-Factor’ talent shows were playing on Dutch television at the time and one of my colleagues (Marja Legius) who I spoke to about the topic of the study said to me, ‘Oh, you mean you are looking for people with the x-factor? Nurses with the x-factor? I bet every nurse knows someone who fits the bill!’ (Donna-RJ 20110501 -Vol 2 p 85 ). This idea proved very helpful. When told I was investigating the professional artistry of nursing practice people tended to ask me what that was andwait for an explanation. When I said I was looking for nurses with the x-factor and that I wanted to learn more about the x-factor in nursing by studying their practice, people began instead to tell me their ideas about what the x-factor looked like, how such a nurse might nurse and why he or she made a difference. Language, and not being afraid to use creative language, made a big difference to the kinds of responses invited from people. Creative language kindled the imagination and invited in turn more open and creative reactions. There was less anxiety, for example, about giving a wrong answer.