Rediscover Your Creativity

Written by: Jim Arndt, MS
CIGNA Behavioral Health

Seeking positive changes in our lives may be a major part of who we are. We have access to a variety of tools to be able to find new and exciting ways to foster positive change and meet our individual growth goals. One of these tools is creativity. Tapping into the ability to use creativity productively may be the key to achieving your goals.

Creative thinking helps us envision ideas and solutions around existing issues in a new or different way that may help effect outcomes and change our experience. The key to creative thinking is being able to set aside rules that may limit your ideas. What can we do to be able to get our "creative juices" flowing? Here are some creativity methods to consider for the start to your exploration.

Brainstorming
Brainstorming is a process you can use to generate new ideas. The goal of brainstorming is to come up with new ideas by "thinking outside the box." Two methods of individual brainstorming include listing and free writing.

Listing exercise:
On a sheet of paper list any ideas or details for your topic. Don't worry about putting your items in any particular order or neatness. Write the idea/detail down whether you think the item is good or bad without judging. List your possible ideas and details as rapidly as you can. Don't restrict your ideas due to money or time constraints.

Take ten minutes of your time to write out your ideas. After the ten minutes are up, spend some time reviewing your list. Find one that sparks energy for you. If you have identified a possible idea or solution, you can start the listing process again with the new idea as a starting point.

Free writing exercise:
Free writing is a way to combat any inhibitions you may have while developing new ideas. To start, pick the topic you want to explore. Spend ten minutes writing about the subject. Once you start, don't stop or pause — keep moving. Don't be concerned about grammar, spelling, punctuation or if what you're writing makes sense. After the ten minutes are up, go back and pick out the pieces that stand out as possibilities. You can develop these thoughts later in a more meaningful way.

Change your thinking
We can experience many forms of mind "blocks" that can get in the way of our creative process. These "blocks" can be emotional, environmental, and/or perceptual. What they have in common is their ability to stop new ideas from flowing.

Examples of these blocks:

Emotional blocks:

• Fear of making mistakes
• Not wanting to take risks
• Not wanting to appear foolish
• Lacking commitment to new ideas

Environmental blocks

• Poor working space
• Excessive light and noise
• Distractions

Perceptual blocks:

• Difficulty isolating the problem
• Looking past the obvious
• Being limited by perceived constraints

Take the time to consider how these "blocks" relate to your creativity. Here are some suggestions that may help you remove these "blocks" on the road to creativity.

Change your thinking activities:

• Change or alter your working area. Find a quiet area without distractions, or, if that's not possible or practical, redefine your expectations of what, or how much, you can achieve in the space and time you have.
• List out what you think your blocks are, and identify possible ways you can overcome them.
• Think about the time of day you work best. Try to schedule your "creative" tasks at that time of day.
• Find a friend or group to discuss new ideas.

Believe you are creative. The first step in your creative process is to believe in yourself. Don't be afraid of making mistakes. You can develop solutions to meet challenges and problems you encounter. It's just a matter of breaking with routine and finding a new perspective. Practice the different exercises to find what works best for you.