Everyone can be wildly creative – and unlock their inner creativity – including you.
In this article, learn and apply seven habits that can unleash your creative genius!
1 - Manage Time Effectively
It’s a wild misconception that creative people live wild, unstructured lives. Psychologists have found the opposite to be true. Psychologist William James says effective time management “frees our minds” for creativity. No time management means no time for creativity. So, pre-week plan to free your mind’s “creative bandwidth.” Plus, you’ll begin to apply your creativity towards “what matters most.” Double win 🙂
2 - Start With the Vision
Change your thinking from problem-centric to vision- and solution-centric. How? Always ask, “What is the vision?” When somebody comes to you with a problem, when discussing challenges, or pondering personal struggles – instead of dwelling on and rooting yourself into the problem, ask, “What is the vision?”
You’ll shift your brainpower from problem-focused to vision-focused, from negative to positive, and impossible to possible. You’ll be excited by the immediate rush of new ideas and entirely new thoughts as you unleash your mind on the very thought of “what is the vision?”
3 - Use "Creative Vocabulary"
As you shift your mindset to vision-centric, also shift your vocabulary to creative-centric. In particular, replace the word “should” with “could.” Studies are clear that when you use the word “should” the mind simply weighs the options presented to it (no creative juices here). However, when you ask people or yourself, “What could we do?” the mind changes gears from “which of these choices” to “what are all the possible options,” and creativity is unlocked! So, replace the word “should” with “could.”
4 - Learn to Effectively Brainstorm
Effective brainstorming is both an individual and group exercise designed to open the floodgates of imagination and creativity. Have a “brainstorm” session with a brainstorm map, or idea list, and come up with radical, outrageous, entertaining, absurd, and other-worldly ideas – there is no right or wrong, or bad or good ideas, and there is no criticism – there are only ideas – and the more the better. Remember, our modern world is wholly made up of what prior generations called the “absurd and outrageous.”
5 - Ask Questions
Questions breed curiosity and put the subconscious to work until an answer is found. Consider the impact of questions others have asked, “How can people fly?” “Why did that apple fall on my head?” “What would a government by the people and for the people look like?” “What if we sailed west to get to East Asia instead of around Africa?” “How can we create a car that anyone can afford?” “What’s creating this electrical activity (radiation from undiscovered elements)? Can we use radiation medically?” Always ask questions because curiosity drives creativity and innovation.
6 - Write Down Thoughts (and Questions)
What a tragedy it would be if Da Vinci didn’t have a “thoughts book.” Have you had a great idea, only to forget it later? Ideas not written down are generally ideas forgotten. Questions not written down too can be forgotten.
So, have a physical place to capture creative thoughts (such as a journal, the notes section of your planner, or a note-taking app), and you’ll always capture those ideas and answers that your marvelous and magical brain mysteriously generates.
7 - Take Care of Health & Relationships
When are you more creative: when you’re tired and have strained relationships, or when you feel healthy and your relationships are positive? Take time to take care of yourself – your health & your relationships – and you’ll have peak energy for peak creativity. How do you do this? We end where we began – with pre-week planning.
Pre-week plan to prioritize your health and relationships, and you’ll find that you perform better in all areas of your life – including your creativity.
Those are some creative-inducing habits! And, that’s becoming your best!
“Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the thinks you can think up if only you try!” – Dr. Seuss
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