As a writer, I am in constant search for inspiration. Sometimes it comes to me out of the blue, but for the most part, I have to work hard for it. If only the solution were as simple as flipping a switch! Having creativity exercises on deck might just serve to unleash your creativity.
Science Behind Creativity: Why It Matters To Everyone
Creativity isn’t just for artists. Studies have shown mental and emotional health benefits to creative arts. Research even points to artistic activities preventing or delaying dementia in the elderly. Exercises that can foster creativity, like making a point to talk to 3 people every week who are totally different from you, might even help you make new friends.
In the workplace, creativity finds its roots in the right environment. Whether it’s giving employees more freedom over their schedule, adding diversity to a team, or playing games, managers have many tools to spur out of the box thinking.
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21 Ways to Get Inspired
But just how do you try to find inspiration? This roadmap provides hints and tips that you can follow to unlock your creative genius. Hard work is certainly the foundation to worthwhile endeavors, and being creative requires practice as well. Your path is going to have twists and turns just like this infographic. Being open to new possibilities , as these strategies suggest, might help you through the next roadblock.
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How To Be More Creative
Step-by-step guides are usually reserved for DIY projects like building a table or cleaning your car. However, here we have a guide just like that, but it’s all about igniting your creativity.
All too often, we assume creativity is a trait that we have to be born with. How to be creative is a skill that can be learned and practiced. If you don’t think that you are “naturally” creative, focus on the process, and try a few of these proven tools and strategies.
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9 Simple Ways To Improve Your Creativity Infographic
The fact that creativity appears inversely related to age, may seem slightly disappointing at first. But spend 5 minutes with a 5 year old and you will see that creativity in overdrive. We were all 5 once, so that spark must still be there! It just might take a bit of work to unearth. These are tactical tools to help you get unstuck.
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5 Challenges to Awaken Your Creativity
Sometimes tips, suggestions, and scientific studies just aren’t enough to spark your creative thinking. This infographic also points to the creative juices that were flowing when we were 5, but what did it come down to? 10x more questions asked and 50x more creative tasks undertaken each day as a 5 year old, vs a 44 year old.
Creativity training can be approached from both mental and physical angles, whether it’s centering your thoughts to open up the possibility of creativity, or using mental exercises. Challenging your limits with these exercises will help you flex those creative muscles.
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How You’re Killing Your Own Creativity
Personally, I really like this one because it talks about both good and bad ways of creative thinking. On the road to producing creative work, we often get stuck. That creative block may be a result or our own mental blocks, whether it’s using repetitive thinking, or trying to brainstorm on no sleep. Sometimes we need a reminder of what is killing our creativity so that we can gain it back.
Figuring out what the greats have done is another way to load up on inspiration. You may not need to copy their exact schedules, but there might just be a template that works for you.
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10 Scientifically Proven Facts About Creativity
To me, the idea that “all people experience moments of ‘ordinary creativity’, which permeates daily tasks”, is a fundamentally important one. If we ignore the status quo and try to be creative about everyday problems, collectively we have hope of solving seemingly insurmountable issues. Travel, vodka, and meditation also all sound like reasonable triggers to add to our lives (in reasonable quantity).
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40 Ways to Stay Creative
Sometimes when we’ve run out of ideas, we need ideas to trigger ideas! Here are 40 simple things you can try, like read books, sketch more, watch films, be curious. And sometimes that is all we need; a reminder that even simple changes can spark creativity.
Most of these tactics can be practiced by anyone with the will and of course time. To dedicate yourself to creativity, you will have to make the time for it. You might find the process itself can be quite enjoyable and varied.
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40 Ways To Get Rid Of Creative Block
When you feel stuck it may seem as though you have to move mountains to restart your project. It is irritating, stressful, and an overall unpleasant situation especially if you have deadlines. Having 40 tactical strategies in your toolkit increases your chances of getting out of the rut. Be crafty, try new experiences, change your environment, use that notebook. Have we left any stone unturned?
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Set Your Creativity Ablaze! 7 Ways to Generate New Ideas
At the end of the day, fostering creativity in the workplace or at home starts with the right habits. These are the types of habits that you rinse and repeat regularly, setting up the foundation for even more ideas. As this infographic mentions, ideas aren’t generally plucked out of thin air but are based on known facts. By building up that knowledge via teaching, chances are you can generate well informed ideas.
Using more metaphors sounds like a novel way to practice creativity. Speaking metaphorically would certainly be an interesting way to spice up conversations (or send away someone you don’t want to speak to at a party). In general by comparing situations, even if they seem unrelated, you might find a new context to evaluate your problem.
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Conclusion
There are common threads in many of these ideas. Seek inspiration both internally and externally, open yourself up to new possibilities through experiences, study what brilliant minds do, take a walk, and get enough rest.
Perhaps the first step is knowing that we all have access to tools to inspire creativity. Just remember to work for it. The goal is always to push forward, no matter how deep in the mud you’re stuck. As Jack London said, “We can’t wait for inspiration, we must go after it with a club.”
Which strategies help inspire your creativity?