Creativity Is Your Birthright!
Every person is creative. Many people read that and their first thought is I can’t draw a straight line with a ruler. I am just not that creative. You may believe creativity is the exclusive domain of painters, writer and inventors. I am here to tell you that is a myth. Sure creativity is being an artist but it is so much more. Creativity is how we think. How we approach problems. It might be buried under years of people telling you are not creative, cows aren’t purple, there is only one right answer, day dreaming is for kids, we have always done it that way. Creativity is your birthright.
In 1968, George Land and Beth Jarman conducted a research study to test the creativity of 1,600 children ranging in ages from three-to-five years old who were enrolled in a Head Start program. He re-tested the same children at 10 years of age, and again at 15 years of age.
The test was to look at a problem and come up with new, different, innovative ideas
The results were astounding. The proportion of people who scored at the “Genius Level”, were:
Creativity was identified by LinkedIn as the number one soft skill companies need most in 2020, while complex problem solving, critical thinking and creativity were rated as the top three skills needed by the World Economic Forum in its 'Future of Jobs' study
We need more creative people to solve our most pressing problems. We need to inspire as many people as we can to step forward and apply their massive creative potential to discover ways to save the ocean and our endangered animals, ways to combat climate change, solve problems of disease, famine, poverty and violence and social injustice around the world.
We need more individuals willing to step out of their comfort zone and embrace their creative power. It is time to stop worrying that someone will laugh at your idea or think you are crazy. Creativity is the mother of innovation and crucial to the future of our planet. And doing nothing is unacceptable.
We need to embrace our creativity as the gift it is because it is not just for the big ideas. It affects our everyday experiences from making a birthday card or last year organizing a drive by birthday, to teaching our children online while working from home or using leftovers to make a gourmet family meal.
The secret to a positive, sustainable future is in our creative power.
The key question becomes how do we foster a creative mindset?
Here are ten of my favorite ideas.
1. Set the stage. Surround yourself with things that inspire fun, wonder and joy.
Recommended by LinkedIn
2. Know who you are. Spend time in inquiry and reflection. What are your unique gifts and talents, values and passion? According to creativity researcher T.M. Amabile “Eminent creators choose and become passionately involved in challenging, risky problems that provide a powerful sense of power from the ability to use their talents.”
3. Artists dates. Julia Cameron coined the term in her book, The Artist's Way. Once a week commit to go out into the world and play, explore and experiment. Do something that nourishes you. New experiences are really opportunities for creative people, more adventures to describe and inspiration to draw on.
4. Rest and relax. . Your brain and body needs the time to recuperate and relax for you to come up with the best ideas and be the most creative. Turning off the news and all social media, walking in nature or engaging in mindfulness practices like coloring has been known to improve memory and focus, reduce stress and anxiety, and improve mental clarity and a sense of well being which all lead to better creative thought.
5. Be curious. Creative people are intrigued with the how and why of everything. They ask powerful questions. What would it take to......fill in blank.
6. Try something new. Take a new way route to work or hold your toothbrush in the opposite hand.
7. Day Dream. Let your mind wander and allow your imagination free reign
8. Scribble and doodle. Recent research in neuroscience, psychology and design shows that scribbling and doodling can help people stay focused, retain information, grasp new concepts and revise and improve on creative ideas.
9. Observe everything. Did you know that we have Velcro because a scientist noticed a burr stuck to his dog during a walk?
10. Keep an idea journal. If there’s one thing that distinguishes highly creative people from others, it’s the ability to connect the dots, see possibilities where others don’t, synthesize or vision new things.
Everyone as the ability to think creatively, problem solve and generate more ideas. It requires practice, the same way you need to train your body for a marathon. Let me be your trainer and partner in believing. Con