Rediscovering the creative in you
If creativity was a requirement for participation, would you show up? Or would you run a mile because you are not creative?
Contrary to popular belief, we all have a creative streak. Maybe it's not in the areas typically associated with being creative, but we all possess the ability to create; to make something new and valuable. Being creative is sometimes just a different way of looking at things.
All children are considered creative, whether that is in how they play, the stories they tell, songs they sing or the crafts they create. As we get older, the focus on creativity becomes less and less until it is limited to a couple of careers for creatives and the rest classifying themselves as not creative.
Luckily for us, it does not disappear but creativity-in-hiding, like other skills or muscles, can be rediscovered and developed if we invest in it. So how do you reconnect with your creative side? Here are some examples:
- Paint a couple of pictures – it doesn’t matter what it looks like and you don’t have to show it to anyone unless you want to. Make it more challenging by replacing brushes with sponges or other things.
- Take notes as a mind map if you normally just write it down with bullet points
- Get lost and try to find your way without a map (for a couple of hours at least)
- Include a couple of restrictions in how you normally do things and try to get to the same result
- Write a short story
- See the shapes in the clouds
While you can do it by yourself, with others it can be a lot of fun and even inspire more creativity. Once creativity is activated again and practiced regularly, it will grow and start affecting other areas. Before you know it, you will describe yourself as creative.