How To Go From Stuck Thinking To Kid Thinking

We have two contradictory needs, one for novelty, the other for ease. But creativity demands that we let go of the need to do only the things that come easily.

To create, we need resilience to endure the dread of a potential failure. As children we were far more comfortable with not being seen as “good” at something. I call this ease with exploring possibilities: Kid-Thinking. It was easier for us when we were kids. No one expected that we would hit a fastball, or write an excellent poem on our first try. Most adults however, avoid looking like beginners at all cost. The problem is that many of us have become more desirous of 'appearing a certain way' than we are of engaging in the joy of learning and experiencing new things. It's then that we hit a common roadblock on the path to creativity called: Stuck-Thinking.

One of the tools I use to overcome Stuck-Thinking is a form of time-compression. If there’s something I need to write, (it could be a song or an essay) but I don’t feel the least bit inspired to write, I'll set the timer on my Smartphone for seven minutes.

This short time period I've created for myself gets me over the obstacle of Stuck-Thinking because it takes away the pressure. If it turns out that what I’m writing is terrible, well then, who cares? I can deal with the ignominy of writing poorly for seven minutes! Typically though, when the alarm on my Smartphone goes off I find I’m already aloft, doing what just moments before I believed I couldn’t do.

Here's one other trick I employ quite often when I'm in Stuck-Thinking mode. I'll quickly sketch out my goal in its completed form. Sometimes it'll take the form of a written sketch, other times it'll be a simple drawing. I call this focused imagining FutureVision.

When I've outlined my goal with just a bit of detail I'm able to visualize it in its fruition, By seeing it fully formed — at least in my mind’s eye— I not only get a clearer sense of where I'm going, I create a counterweight to the fears that often plague me when I'm beginning a goal.

Write to me at [email protected] to find out how I help companies and individuals gain trust in their creative potential.

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