Creativity
What is creativity for you?
At school we are taught that creativity happens in the art class with pencils, crayons, paper and paint. Or maybe you remember it from an English class when you were asked to write a story using your imagination.
If you remember yourself struggling with those sorts of activities or even stopped doing them at an early age then it can be really hard to believe that you can be at all creative.
We hear of famous painters, musicians and rock gods all having a kind of creative block. Fortunately for them, some of them are in the amazing position where they have the financial resources to go off and do something else until inspiration kicks in again.
Although you may have no aspirations to be the next Van Gogh or Beyonce, I am sure that you face situations in your daily life where you are called to be creative.
This could be:
• In a work situation where you have to find the answer to a difficult problem
• For the inspiration for an event or celebration
• Finding a gift for a friend or relative
• Telling a story
• Fixing a problem
• Getting something to work
Sometimes it’s easy to stimulate our brains to creativity and thinking out of the box, but at other times we just get stuck and can’t come up with something novel or innovative.
This has to do with how we have been using our brains. Let me give you a brief and very simplistic overview of how each hemisphere (half) of the brain works. Basically, the left brain deals with logic and details, order and facts and it likes time-bound tasks. The right brain on the other hand likes pictures, feelings, sensations and colour. In order to be fully integrated we need to use both “brains”.
For example, if you are going to bake a cake you might need the picture in the recipe to see what you are going to make – this is the overview and calls on the right brain. The left brain is then able to sort out all the ingredients in order, follow the recipe by the letter whilst your right brain is imagining what you will serve it with and who you would like to share the cake with.
Often we favour one side more than the other because we lean more to the tasks it likes. However, that can mean we become lopsided and imbalanced. Regaining the balance might mean going off and doing something completely different to allow that part of you to relax.
Think of people that you know and what they like to do for example, the accountant who sings in her local choir – her hobby is totally different from her day job. The brain loves this diversity and chance to chillax.
Maybe the next time you are stuck for a solution or can’t figure something out then allow your brain some down time. I am sure that you will find that if you step away from the problem the answer will magically materialise.
If you struggle with this and need some help to quieten an overactive, analytical mind then please get in touch as I have some fantastic techniques that can help you out.
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