Create your own creativity

 

Creativity is something we all need to achieve something. At least if we want to create something new.

So what is this creativity, and how do we get that?

If you look it up in an encyclopedia, you will read something like this:  

Creativity is defined as the tendency to generate or recognize ideas, alternatives, or possibilities that may be useful in solving problems, communicating with others, and entertaining ourselves and others.

It's a bit boring and clinical to define the essence of creating something. 

Creativity is something fun, and it fills you with the energy to go further on whatever you are working. Creativity is the motor that makes the process reach the next level  

and makes what you do something new and more prominent than when you started.

Creativity is something we all have, more or less, but what holds you back is other things like poor self-esteem and self-confidence. 

I can't do that!

It is too complicated for me!

And so we go on…….

There is no wrong answer in a creative process; that is the point. You've begun your journey. Many things can go wrong, but there are also many things that you learn even if something goes wrong. 

That's creativity. 

Learn something and make something new from what you learned.

But how do I make something new from what I learned?

When I get stuck in what I am doing, I often leave it behind for a while. It could be for a couple of hours up to several months. Instead, I focus on something else, letting my brain do its own thing. Sometimes, not always, but I have a new idea next time.

In history, it is one common habit among creative and known persons.

They had many unfinished projects underway at the same time.

Leonardo da Vinci painted the Mona Lisa between the years 1503 and 1519.

Sixteen years it took, and I don't think he stood by the painting and painted and painted all those years. He probably put it away for a couple of years, went back to it, and then put it away again.

Unlike the highly composed music we hear today from Beethoven, Mozart, Bach, etc., these composers also made a lot of ordinary music between or simultaneously did their masterpieces. These more ordinary pieces have long gone unnoticed, and the best music pieces are the only ones we hear.

Experiment!

Try things with no known result.

I could be stupid things, but one thing leads to another.

I often say stupid things at my work, I can tell, but it sometimes makes someone else come up with a new angle and idea.

Don't be afraid to make mistakes and do things that make you look stupid in other people's eyes.

Don't go with the flow.

Or do that, go for a walk.

But not with the flow.

Steve Jobs, Albert Einstein, Beethoven, Virginia Woolf, and many other famous persons in history did all take a walk to clear their minds and let new thoughts grow.

Steve Jobs was famous in the area of Palo Alto for his long walks, which he used for exercise, contemplation, problem solving, and even meetings.

A study from Stanford University by Marily Oppezzo and Daniel Schwartz has found evidence that the process of thinking is much better for those who walk. 

The investigation discovered that walking inside or outside also helped creative motivation. Walking itself, not the environment, was the fundamental variable. In all cases, innovativeness levels were reliably and altogether higher for those walking than those sitting.

The problem is remembering the "brilliant" ideas you get!

I always have to stop now and then and write it down on my phone. A cleverer idea from Marily Oppezzo is to have your headphones connected to your phone and record your thoughts, pretending you are having a conversation, and write it down when you get home.

But don't have music in your ear while walking. 

Many people always have to listen to something when they're outside, it could be a pod, music, of course, a book, and that is a distraction. We need more silence around us. 

Another thing I do, not so frequently now, but very much in the past, is meditation. Meditation is a way of training your brain to drop thoughts you have, let your brain empty all those distracting thoughts you get. Meditation doesn't have to be complicated either. You don't have to sit and stare into a wall to meditate. It could be sitting by the sea watching the waves or sitting on a stone in a forest hearing the wind blowing in the trees. But try to avoid having distracting sounds around you at the beginning. The goal is to rest in ourselves, and with distracting noise around you, it could be difficult initially. After a while of meditation, you can meditate almost anywhere. However, I prefer nature but have done it in crowded places such as airports and train stations while waiting for my plane or train.

Lastly, my recommendation is to listen to Tom Waits' "Walking Spanish" if you need music to help you relax.