CHAPTER
21

Creativity Is Not a Destination

In This Chapter

• The continuous nature of creativity
• Finding creativity in everyday life
• Staying true to yourself
• Taking the time to celebrate

As long as you are alive, you are creating. Perhaps not in the artistic sense of paints and brushes, but on a much grander scale. Every day you are presented with opportunities to create the canvas of your life with whatever colors you choose to feature. Whose life will you touch today? When you come from your heart space and truly understand that your creative expression is yours and yours alone, you realize the vast potential of what you bring into the world. That’s creativity at its finest.

In this last chapter, you are given some inspiring thoughts to ponder, as well as some final tips on navigating your creative journey. It’s time to celebrate your success!

The Journey of Creating

One of the common questions that children ask when going on a long road trip is “When are we going to get there?” You may ask yourself that same question when looking at certain goals or dreams you’ve been working toward. Sometimes it seems you’ll never get there. With regard to creativity, I like to use one of my favorite personal sayings: “There is no there.” There’s only the journey that keeps going as long as you’re alive. You may stop many times along the way to rest, and other times you may be so enthused and inspired that you’re joyfully skipping down the creative path. Your jubilation may be fleeting or last indefinitely.

Creativity is about possibilities in every realm of your life. You can choose to lay the groundwork to advance your creativity, or you can let your ideas stagnate. Either way, your journey will continue. You can persist in dwelling on the painful experiences of your past, let them go completely, or capitalize on them by taking your creative energies to transform the past into a more vibrant future. There are thousands of examples of people who have overcome adversity by using their creativity, and in some cases, they have literally saved their lives with creative thinking. Hopefully, you’ll never be in that position, but regardless, realize the power to create is always there for you in any situation.

Maintaining Creative Awareness

Maintaining creative awareness will strengthen your creative muscle during your journey of creativity. One way you can do that is by noticing the small things that represent creativity. For example, recently I received an email from Teavana Tea that read “Brew some creativity. Infuse your recipes with tea.” In those two lines, the tea company was suggesting another use for their tea. When I clicked on the banner, it took me to a page of tea-filled recipes for pies, ice cream, cupcakes, and chutney. I took note of the creatively crafted email and what it represented.

Even checking product names can show you creativity in action. For example, what do Atomic Tangerine, Banana Mania, and Salmon have in common? At first glance, you might think they’re all foods. In fact, these are the names of crayons produced by Crayola. How about Phish Food, Chunky Monkey, Chocolate Therapy, and Cherry Garcia? If you’re a Ben & Jerry’s fan, you already know they’re the names of ice cream flavors. And then there’s tricycle red, oriental iris, and rolling hill green, which are among the many paint selections offered by Benjamin Moore Paints.

Can you think of other examples in which you see creativity in action in small ways? Observing examples that come your way every day will help you continue to exercise your creativity. That will come more naturally when you’re coming from a consciousness of creativity. It’s easy to take creativity for granted if you’re not paying attention, which may result in opportunities passing you by. But if you pay attention, you will learn about many opportunities to use your ingenuity to dress up what could otherwise be ordinary.

INSPIRATIONAL INSIGHT

“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who’ll decide where to go …”

—Dr. Seuss

Realizing the Ebb and Flow of Creativity

When your overall life seems to be flowing effortlessly, it’s likely your creativity will move along steadily as well. How do you know when you’re “in flow”? That’s when you experience those moments of being lost in time and space. You can literally forget where you are supposed to be next because you’re so caught up in the moment of what you’re doing. You lose track of time, you want to be exactly where you are doing precisely what you’re doing, and you feel energized.

Noted psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, whom I referenced in Chapter 5, described flow as “a particular state of heightened consciousness.” He, too, found that time flies during flow; you’re no longer self-conscious, and you feel you have a sense of control and proficiency. (In other words, you’re not afraid of failure.) These same feelings also apply to group flow. That’s when successful collaborations occur. It’s no surprise that research shows that when groups are in the zone, there’s a greater chance they’ll find innovative solutions to problems.

Csikszentmihalyi also discovered the following elements contribute to achieving flow:

• Skills that line up with the challenge at hand: If the project is too difficult, you get frustrated; if it’s too easy, you get bored.
• Well-defined goals: Being clear about your desires and focusing your attention on them will keep you moving—or flowing—in the right direction.
• Getting immediate, regular, and clear feedback: This keeps you from wondering if you’re on the right track and allows you to make positive adjustments along the way.
• The freedom to focus solely on the activity: With such focus, you don’t allow your thoughts to interfere with what you’re doing, nor do you let other things distract you. You get lost in the activity itself.

Csikszentmihalyi also makes the point that you don’t have to engage in a long-term, detailed commitment to experience flow. Simple activities, such as cooking, playing an instrument, or another favorite activity can also propel you into this feeling of flow. It’s all about creating a stronger self. He also believes that if you’re in a state of flow the majority of the time, you’re able to see a difficult or threatening situation as a challenge—even an enjoyable one—as opposed to a stumbling block or major blow. Chances are, when you’ve experienced flow, you had a more positive outlook compared to when you felt out of sync. The saying “Go with the flow” came about for a reason. Think of a time when you felt in flow and were totally engrossed in a creative activity, and get out your idea journal to recapture what you remember from that experience.

CREATIVITY KEY

Be happy! You will experience more creativity and flow when you’re in a positive frame of mind.

Now contrast that with an occasion when you desired to be creative but felt stuck, uninspired, a lack of motivation, or bored—otherwise known as an ebb in your creativity. Were you disappointed when you thought it was 5:00, only to see the digital digits on your mobile phone reveal the time was only 2:59 P.M.? What about your energy level? Did you feel like quitting in the middle of it and taking a nap? Did you realize the source of what felt like a dead end? Was it a long-lasting or temporary feeling and what did you do to get past these feelings? Recall one of the times that you were struggling creatively and write down everything you can remember. Mainly, you want to capture the feeling and what you believe led to it. More than likely, you felt the opposite of how you were when your creativity was flowing.

In writing about both your inspired and challenging periods, you are developing more of an awareness of what each of these circumstances feels like. As you become more conscious, your creative muscles will become stronger and you will be able to produce more moments of creative flow and make sure the ebbs have less power over you.

However, realize your creative projects and feelings are not an “either-or” proposition. You could be rolling right along on a long-term creative project and little by little begin to lose steam. This doesn’t mean you ditch the whole project; it just means you have to get re-energized by using one of the many techniques that have been discussed. And regardless of the nature of your undertaking, it’s always a good idea to take mini breaks every hour. This can be as easy as stepping outside for some fresh air, taking a walk, or doing some stretching exercises right at your desk. Experiencing an ebb and flow is a natural part of creativity; embrace it.

Being True to Who You Are

An ongoing cause for celebration is knowing that you’re being authentic with yourself and others. There will always be rules and regulations to follow, and many people—from your significant other and kids to your boss and family members—will likely place expectations upon you. Because of that, it’s easy to lose sight of your genuine self as you aim to please them and stay within their boundaries. Be aware of how easily this can happen. There are authors and screen writers who have hesitated to write what they really wanted to because, even as adults, they’re afraid their parents might disapprove. Yet to hold back what’s really in your heart and on your mind is to curb your unique creative expression, meaning you can miss out on opportunities.

To be truly creative, you have to let go of what other people think. That’s easier said than done, but anything less means you’re relinquishing a principal part of yourself. A block can begin to form at that very moment and continue to build if your acquiescence persists. How can you embrace and share the person you’re meant to be? By taking on some of the challenges that have been discussed in this book, which include the following:

• Continue to work through the blocks you’ve identified.
• Experiment with undeveloped ideas, even if they appear to be half-baked at first glance.
• Be willing to try new activities.
• Go outside of your comfort zone.
• Take reasonable risks.
• Allow yourself to be vulnerable.

As you continue to do this inner work, your confidence and self-esteem will increase and you can more readily dismiss what others think of you. Listen to yourself above all others!

Whether you feel you have a creative beast within you that’s dying to break free or a creative mouse slowly edging through the mouse hole, you have to find your way out and be willing to take the necessary action to burst forth into your real creative essence. As you navigate your creative path and the “true you” begins to shine, you may surprise others who had maintained a certain view of you or had no idea of your capabilities. What a wonderful feeling it is to share a creative part of yourself and to hear someone exclaim “I had no idea you could do that! You’re amazing!”

You honor yourself by being authentic. Yes, it takes courage and strength, but it drains you even more when you hide the real you. I liken it to a person who tells perpetual lies. He has to remember the last lie for the next one to make sense. After so many lies, it gets really difficult to recall the story. It requires so much less energy to just tell the truth. There’s no tale to remember. Deep within yourself, you already know who you are; you just have to be willing to go beyond your fears and express yourself. You can still maintain your privacy, as you don’t need to reveal every detail of your life. But when it comes to your creativity, go for the gusto. Unleash the real you!

CREATIVITY COMPASS

Jean was literally a “closet artist” during her teen years. She secretly had been doing all kinds of artwork that she then stored in her bedroom closet. She hid her art because she didn’t want to compete with her oldest sister, who was always perceived as the artist in the family. It wasn’t until the elder sister went off to college that Jean began sharing her artwork. So while she remained true to her creative self, that part of her didn’t publicly surface for years. Being an artist was a very real part of Jean, and she continues today creating beautiful works of art. Unlike Jean, do not wait another minute to show the world who you are and what you have to offer!

You Now Own the Keys!

By reading this book and participating in the creative plays, you have obtained not one key, but many keys to unlocking your creativity. You may find it helpful to revisit certain chapters for the details on specific techniques you may wish to apply when the right opportunities present themselves. Just remember that while on your creative path, you have to crawl before you walk and walk before you run. Be willing to allow yourself to go slowly. Stay on all fours creatively until you feel you’re ready to stand upright and take a few baby steps. Be okay with “falling down” on an endeavor a few times. You certainly wouldn’t reprimand a baby who’s learning to walk and then falls down; you would be gentle and encourage him to get back up and try again. Do the same with yourself. Don’t be afraid to lower your standards if that makes you feel better and moves you forward.

I have thoroughly enjoyed taking this creative excursion with you. This chapter ends with a creative play that involves a fun proclamation in which you will put your artistic skills to use—and yes, you have them! But before doing that exercise, get out your journal or a piece of paper and a pen or pencil and complete the following sentences:

• “Creativity is important to me because …”
• “Before I picked up this book, I would not have even considered doing the following things …”
• “Now that I have done them, I feel …”
• “When it comes to my creative expression, I am willing to …”
• “My greatest takeaways from this book were …”
• “I am going to take what I learned and …”
• “Expressing myself creatively makes me feel …”
• “Therefore, I am going to …”

Once you complete these sentences, be sure you take time to celebrate! You now own the keys to unlocking your creativity!

The Least You Need to Know

• Creativity is a journey that continues as long as you’re alive. It will wax and wane, but it’s always there waiting for you to turn it on.
• Noticing the small, everyday examples of creativity and how it infiltrates different corners of your life will strengthen your imagination.
• Be sure you’re authentic with your creative expression. This will bring you the greatest joy and will open you to more opportunities. Creativity is about expansion. Be the creator you were meant to be!
• Take the time to celebrate and reward yourself when you achieve noteworthy mileposts. Doing so will help you to stay in flow.