Feeling Stuck? 6 Ways to Boost Your Creativity
“I’m just not the creative type.” I used to think this was an unarguable fact. If you gave me some numbers to crunch, I could bang out a spreadsheet in no time. But, creativity? That’s for the creatives!
If you’ve ever had this thought, I want you to know that only 22% of the variance in creativity is genetic, according to Psychology Professor Barbara Kerr. Most of us can be creative, if we realize that creativity is like a muscle. If you use it regularly, it gets stronger and stronger!?
Research shows that creativity is highest in children, and as we get older, our creativity declines over time. In 1968, George Land conducted a research study for NASA to test the creativity of 1,600 children. At age 5, 98% scored as “highly creative.”? When testing the same kids at age 10, only 30% scored as highly creative, at age 15, just 12%, and as adults–a measly 2%! While this is old data, check in with your own life. Have you noticed a decline in creativity as you get older?
Many factors hinder our ability to be creative. “Stress is a well-known creativity killer,” according to Robert Epstein, psychologist and Harvard PhD. Fatigue and lack of sleep limit our creativity. Working in the same physical environment can be a creativity blocker. Negative self-talk and imposter syndrome can get in the way as well. Feeling like we’re not smart enough or that our ideas aren’t good enough are not helpful to the creative process!
For me personally, as a Black woman in corporate America, this concept of “Black Excellence” and feeling like I had to be twice as good as everybody else because of stereotypes and unconscious biases, made me not want to take risks; especially when it came to sharing creative ideas. Perfectionism and a fear of failing sometimes made me not even want to try. This often led me to feeling stuck and not knowing how to get unstuck!
If you can relate to this stuck feeling, I want to share six things you can do to boost your creativity in these moments.
6 Ways to Boost Your Creativity
1. Go to sleep with a request to your subconscious.?
Recent studies of people lying in brain scanners and performing tasks requiring creativity show that ideas are generated in the Default Mode Network of the brain. The Default Mode Network is managing what happens in the background, our spontaneous stream of consciousness. When you are sleeping, this part of the brain is still active. Vincent Van Gogh explained how his ideas come to him: “I dream of painting and then I paint my dream.” Mozart wrote an entire movement of a symphony while asleep in a carriage. So if you ask a question right before you go to sleep, your brain will be working on the answer and you’ll be surprised at what ideas might come when you wake up!
2. Brainstorm while you exercise.?
Research shows that movement and exercise is linked to higher creativity. When we are moving our bodies, endorphins are released that lower our stress levels and allow our brains to truly get to work! Whether it’s going for a walk or going to the gym, exercise with the intention of problem solving, and have your phone ready for voice memos or taking dictation on your notes apps.
3. Work in a different location.
When you work in the same location, same desk, same views, etc, it can hinder your creativity. So change it up! Go to a different floor. Work in a coffee shop. Go outside with your laptop if the weather allows.???
4. Do a creativity exercise to flex the muscle.?
Maya Angelou said: “You can't use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.”? So it’s critical that we flex these muscles as much as possible. You can find a ton of creativity exercises with a quick Google search, but I love the ones that have constraints. For example, try time boxing; e.g.,?Come up with 10 ideas in 10 minutes. Or, try writing a 6 word story. The exercises don’t have to be about the particular problem you’re trying to solve, as this is more about warming up the brain and getting it active!
5. Brainstorm with your non-dominant hand.
This might sound strange at first, but I invite you to try it with an open mind. As described in his book, Thought Revolution, William Donius has used this method with over 200 companies and 30K people. Using a pen and paper, put the pen in your non-dominant hand (i.e., if you’re right handed, then use your left hand), and start brainstorming! While the handwriting might look like that of a 5 year old, you’ll be using a different part of your brain and the ideas will be much more creative than your conventional thinking!
6. Let your mind wander for 10 minutes.
Daydream. Doodle. Meditate. Let your mind wander! Freely moving thoughts are associated with increased alpha waves in the brain’s frontal cortex, and this sort of brain activity maps well to divergent thinking (thinking “outside the box”) as well as convergent thinking (choosing the best of your ideas.)? So take a break.? Find a quiet spot. Set a timer for 10 minutes, and see what arises!
Zee Clarke is the author of the book, Black People Breathe (Penguin Random House). She has been featured in many leading publications including ABC, Fortune, Forbes, CNBC, Ebony, Essence, and Fast Company.
She is a Harvard Business School graduate who applies holistic healing practices to corporate environments. Zee leads transformative workshops on mindfulness, breathwork and stress management tools at organizations such as Google, Visa, AMC Networks and more.
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