Jump Start Your Creativity!

Part Two of Two

In a previous article, I wrote about the importance of creativity. While creativity is something that naturally occurs in your brain, many agree that there are things you can do to grease the wheels. Here are just a few things to inspire you:

Read about Creative People and listen to what they have to say and how they live their lives:

Elizabeth Gilbert, noted author and speaker, wrote about creativity in her book “Big Magic” where she advocates that creativity lies in all of us. She takes particular interest in the link between curiosity and creativity. So much lip service is given about “following your passion” or “dreaming big” but she argues that passion doesn’t always present itself or even last very long, whereas curiosity is always there. So she advocates for following your curiosity instead of your “passion.” Her book (and excellent podcast of the same name) is for everyone – not just the novelist with writers block or for the painter whose muse has gone the way of the dodo. It’s for the mommy blogger who is thinking about writing a book. It’s for the PR consultant who is thinking about starting a podcast. It’s for the book lover who is thinking of starting a blog. Elizabeth Gilbert also has one of the most-watched TED talks on creativity that is worth checking out.
Margarita Tartakovsky from PsychCentral.com has 2 awesome ideas for spurring creativity:
Make a list of things that inspire you and revisit them whenever you need a pick-me-up (I’m adding Margararita Tartakovsky’s blog to mine!).
Create a “commonplace book” Capture quotes, ideas, images, anecdotes, anything that touches you in some way that you want to revisit.
Restrict yourself. This recommendation comes from the blog over at the 99u.com. Here, blogger Gregory Ciotti explores the idea of providing structuring to your imagination. He gives the example of Dr. Seuss who wrote Green Eggs & Ham after betting that he couldn’t tell a story in less than 50 words (a challenge he accepted and produced arguably one of his most famous works).
Listen to music and get moving. Shut your brain off for a bit. It will still be working in the background. But remove yourself from the task at hand and put your headphones on and head out for a walk. See if you can snag any of that Mozart Effect!
In “The Creativity Cure: How To Build Happiness With Your Own Two Hands,”authors Carrie and Alton Barron (both physicians) advocate closing the laptop and dusting off the notebook and pen. If you’re like me, you type faster than you write, so the act of writing forces you to slow down and write with more purpose.

What about you? What are your favorite ways to spur creativity? At VISVA we are working to create a network where you can be free to be as creative as you want.

When thinking of being creative, do you believe you’re more likely to share if you’re with like-minded people? Let us know post a response…every opinion is valid!