A Little Creativity Each Day

Is that too much to ask? I don’t think so!

Are you looking forward to 2016?

I know we’ve got a couple more days until the ball drops and we all try to remember to write 2016 instead of 2015 (at least 5s turn into 6s very easily!), in my head I’ve already flipped the calendar and started planning for January, February, and beyond.

On my personal blog I use the tagline, “Better living through creativity… and cocktails” and I really believe it. Every day that we can do something creative is a better day than it would have been, otherwise. Now this doesn’t mean composing sonnets or your lunch break or painting a masterpiece after dinner. At least not every day 😉 But little things like doodling in the margins of your notebook or even organizing your space can be considered creativity at work (creative problem solving is creativity at its finest).

Of course, there are those days, you know the ones, when you don’t have time to create more than some CO2 as you breathe a sign of relief that the day is finally over. Still creating, you just have to look at it the right way.

I’m big on making to-do lists, and including creative bits in the to-dos along with the work and home stuff that also needs to get done. But what if you don’t know where to start or you’re in a bit of a rut? I’ve got a suggestion for that!

Several years ago I first encountered The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron. It’s all about ways to recognize and work through creative blocks and when in doubt, I turn to her techniques. There are 12 chapters and the original idea was that you’d work through a chapter a week for a 3 month pick-me-up, but I know plenty of people who take a month per chapter and make it a whole year’s activity. There are different actions to take (aka homework) with each chapter, and some of my friends have found it nice to have the extra time to work through the exercises at their own pace.

Regardless of the schedule you choose, as I started to work through the book I found that I was just super open to creative possibilities and the ideas started coming fast and furious. That was also the same year I started to keep a notebook close by at all times so I wouldn’t get bogged down trying to remember each of them. Something I still do, and my stack of notebooks is a treasure trove of ideas just waiting for the right moment.

So if you want to add “Be more creative” to your 2016 goals but are unsure of where to start, check out The Artist’s Way.

Have a safe and happy new year!