‘Creative’ is a word that can be easily misunderstood. It’s mostly applied to specific talents, skills and types of work that feel distant to many people. A painter, a writer, a sculptor, a director. But every person is creative – in different ways, just like our different personalities. And the wonderful thing about creativity is, it’s innate. You can see it in children as well as in the photo albums and scrapbooks of your childhood.
If you want to uncover your creativity or mix up your creative quests, here are some ideas to try.
Stage a production
Produce something, anything you like. It could be a sweet slice, a soup, a scarf, a shelf. Maybe you could create a song with your little (or big) ones, play your piano or make a garden bed. Relish your creation, savour any compliments and use this feeling to inspire your next creation. Thinking about and planning your next ‘production’ will give you a happy burst and provide something fun to look forward to.
Refresh your mind with The Arts
What type of art do you love? What would you like to experience? Embrace the online world and seek out interesting films, documentaries, novels and memoirs. Enjoy ballet, hip hop and online choirs, and admire ceramics, drawings and paintings. Listen to music that moves you and see what other sounds and lyrics resonate. You could also start an online group with a few friends where you discuss a particular creative work every month or so. For example, a movie, book or documentary club. These soul-satisfying conversations will inspire each other’s creativity.
Create head space
Decluttering and organising a space requires lots of little decisions to ultimately create a new space. What do you keep, donate, gift and pitch? And where should unearthed items live? Often a fresh way of displaying and storing items arises. As do ‘new’ (forgot-you-had-them) items. Shoes, exercise equipment, notebooks, and who knows what else! When you get rid of stuff you create a new physical space and probably more head space too.
Go slow for creative flow
It’s often during slow-down activities like walking outside, showering or daydreaming where people have great ideas, solve problems and sometimes even experience epiphanies! Just when they’ve finally let their minds wander. Try to prioritise your slow down rituals and see if there’s others you could add to your day. You might be rewarded with a wonderful light-bulb moment – on top of the lovely experience itself.
To quote Ananda Coomaraswamy, “The artist is not a special kind of person; rather, each person is a special kind of artist.” Go and discover what kind of artist you are and revel in the self-expression, joy and meaning of creating.
This article was originally published on emmadelahey.com
