Finding the Rewards of Being Creative

There is a growing awareness that creativity is a capacity that everyone has, though they may not understand what is involved in accessing it. One of the main things that gets in the way of people embracing their creative gifts is a belief that creativity should be easy; that it should just flow out. They think they should be good at it immediately. If they are not and it's not easy, there is a tendency to think there is something wrong with them and it's never going to work.

Yet creativity in whatever form you choose to pursue is a complex process that actually asks a lot of us. This is why is feels so good to engage since it helps us discover that we are capable of more that we thought possible including working from expanded abilities. It is a muscle that we need to work with to develop, just like if we decided to run a marathon we would understand we needed to run daily for shorter periods to build up to the full distance.

Creativity is a practice that you have to stay with even when doubts arise. It tends to progress in a stair step fashion. We spend time showing up to the work each day for weeks, maybe months and we don't seem to be getting any better. Then one day we have crossed a threshold to a new level where we can do things we have been unable to. We will need to work on that plateau for a while before being boosted to the next level.

Being creative also involves studying our chosen form of expression. Long before I wrote my first personal essay, the writing form that almost seemed to choose me, every time I went into a bookstore I was drawn to the essay section. Those were the only books I read. I was learning to write in that form by reading it. So when I started to write, my creative mind already had a sense of what to do. Sort of.

I then had to practice, writing pages and pages that never went anywhere but taught me a lot. I learned to trust that things were cooking on the level of my subconscious and super conscious minds. The more I showed up to practice, the more I had a sense of what to do and how to work with the material on a conscious level. The more I stayed with it, the more the wonderful, magical state of flow would occur where I was definitely operating in an expanded state.

Being creative feels like a beautiful dance. Engaging in the process feels good, so I never really thought about all the time and work I had to put in to become an accomplished writer. For me the act of creativity has always been it's own reward. That has allowed me to stay with it through the doubts and slow going.

Now more than ever we need to resist the distractions like social media and the internet that give us a sense of instant gratification, making it more difficult to go the distance with our creativity. Keep in mind that you can make great progress with small steps taken day after day.

Try it: Pick a creative project. Then show up ten minutes a day to play with it. I did this recently in a form new to me, nature collage. I asked a painter friend about the best materials to use. Then with acrylic paint, glue and objects from nature, I let myself be intuitively guided in what to do. It took a bit before any of them turned out in a way pleasing to me. Yet each one taught me something.

As you play with your project resist the urge to judge. Put it away and look at a few days later when the critic has quieted down. Keep showing up, ten minutes day after day and see if you don't feel the deep satisfaction that comes with opening to your creativity.

The Power of Commitment and Practice

Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness concerning all acts of initiative and creation. There is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans; that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen events, meetings and material assistance which no one could have dreamed would have come their way. I have learned a deep respect for one of Goethe's couplets: "Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Begin it now!" - W.H. Murray The Scottish Himalayan Expedition

Whether its for writing, meditation, exercise, or anything you want to do but feel resistance to, establishing a practice can help you move forward in magical ways. It signals to the universe that you are committed. Having a practice means that you show up every day, no matter what. You are going to want to release all expectations of outcome or where you think you want things to go. It doesn't matter how good you are or what you accomplish or what happens with the practice. You sit down to meditate and your mind goes wild with chatter the entire time, that's fine. You show up to write and find yourself whining on the page, that's okay. The point is to show up and practice.

A lot of things are happening when you show up consistently to something. You begin to forge the neural nets in your brain needed for the task and strengthen them so that whatever you are committed to actually becomes easier to do and you are able to increase our level of skill. In writing your subconscious mind is working 24/7 on whatever you give it to focus on, so showing up everyday allows you to access new insights and ideas arising from your expanded mind.

You commit and take the action. The universe responds in kind, to the power of your willingness and the force your commitment. Free from expecting that you need to accomplish something, you relax and open up to allowing. In this receptive state, the your subconscious mind aligns with the workings of the Universe and you find support, synchronicities and inspired ideas coming to you.

Establishing a practice helps you move beyond any resistance that has been in the way. When you release the need for instant gratification you slip into a sense of satisfaction from the simple act of showing up for yourself. You learn to find joy in the practice itself and this allows you to expand your creative capacity.

To begin, start small. When I coach writers who are having a hard time showing up, I ask them at first to commit to writing ten minutes a day. This helps you cross the threshold of resistance and move past the associated voice that tells you that you don't have enough time. Once you have established the habit of showing up you will find things flowing with greater ease.

Working with an Imaginary Mentor

Imagination is everything. It is the preview to life's coming attractions. - Albert Einstein

I've been asking myself, how can I best help empower others at this time of great global change. The first answer that came in the flash of inspiration was the word imagination. Einstein regularly insisted that imagination is more important than knowledge. But the thing is, it's not just for geniuses. It's for everyone. We have just be taught to favor the rational mind at the expenses of capacities that actually can help us in amazing ways. It's easy to reclaim.

Years ago I learned an exercise from Jean Houston, noted author, visionary and one of the founders of the human consciousness movement. It involves working with an imaginary mentor to get advice on any question that we have for any area of our life. Using our imagination and intuitive mind give us access to a deeper wisdom and way of knowing beyond the capabilities of our linear mind.

I have used this exercise for years in teaching writing and with creativity coaching. I have been amazed and delighted that my students get much better advice than I could have ever given with all my years of experience. Everyone in class could hear the wisdom coming through as we shared our answers. Most remarkable is that the answers actually sounded like they were coming from the individual asked. If someone asked Mark Twain, the response would sound like something Mark Twain would write. Tapping your imagination and writing in flow can give you access to expanded awareness and better answers you could think up.

TRY THIS: Pick someone you think would give good advice. It could be Einstein, Plato or your grandmother. Imagine you have written him or her a letter asking a question you have about anything in your life. It helps to be specific. Then using the technique of free writing (writing as fast you can without censoring) you write the response to you as if it is coming from your imaginary mentor. Really let go on this one. Don't think. Just let the answer flow out of the pen or the keyboard for at least ten minutes. Then read the answer with an open curiosity as if you really have just received this letter in the mail. Be open, be objective. The more you play with this, the stronger the muscle of your imagination grows.

OR TRY THIS: You can also go for a walk with your imaginary mentor and have a conversation with them in your imagination. The key is to play and be open. Let go of thinking that you have to figure out everything with your mind.

Walking Helps Your Creativity and Brain

All truly great thoughts are conceived by walking. - Frederick Nietzsche

By Suzanne Murray

When you are engaged in a project and feel the creative inspiration has dried up, take a break. Anything that occupies the consciousness mind in a physical way can open you to the flow of fresh ideas and insights. Doing the dishes or taking a shower are good ways. One of my favorites is going for a walk. You could simply stroll around the block or walk deep into nature.

I have not been alone in my awareness that walking opens creative channels. There is a long list of well known creatives who walked to allow ideas and connections to flow . Charles Darwin, Virginia Woolf, William Wordsworth, Nikola Tesla, Aristotle, Sigmund Freud, Thomas Jefferson, Ernest Hemingway, Charles Dickens, Beethoven to name but a few.

Scientific studies have now found that creative problems can indeed be solved by walking, especially in nature. While walking the brain undergoes physiological changes that lower frustration and stress, increase your awareness and engagement with the world, allow for a natural meditative state and improve your mood. All of this helps you to experience more creative connections and flow.

Walking on a regular basis has also been shown to be good for your brain. It promotes new connections between brain cells, reduces atrophy of brain tissue that can come with age, increases the volume of the hippocampus, part of the brain important for memory, and stimulates the growth of new neurons.

Walking also allows you to balance two states that enhance creativity. Mindfulness, where you are present in the moment, and mind wandering or daydreaming, where you allow ideas, connections, dreams and visions for the future to come to us from the deeper realms of consciousness.

Try it. Next time you are looking for some creative inspiration take a walk. If you aren’t used to walking or don’t have a lot of time, simply start with a walk around the block. Find a park or a trail in nature and see how your muse opens up for you. Your body and health will love it too.

Think You Need to Wait for Inspiration

Recently a new writing coaching client emailed me to say, "I haven't been writing. I just don't feel inspired." I immediately shot a message back explaining that "You can"t wait for inspiration. If you get nothing else out of our coaching together beyond this awareness it will make a huge difference in your creative life."

No writer or other artist waits for inspiration before showing up. Painter Chuck Close said, "inspiration is for amateurs - the rest of us just show up and get to work." Flannery O'Connor, the noted Southern writer, described her habit of going to her office everyday from 8am to noon, “she wasn't sure if anything was going to happen but she wanted to be there if it did.” 

Most writers just start writing and find inspiration along the way. John Steinbeck would always end one day's writing in the middle of the page, so he could pick up the thread the next day. He insisted that "In writing, habit seems to be a much stronger force than either willpower or inspiration."

Current research in the neuroscience of the brain shows that creativity is activated when we are in the brain wave states of alpha and theta which are associated with meditation, intuition and information beyond our conscious awareness. This is why a writer often needs to write a page of what feels uninspired in order slow the mind down and hit the zone.

This is true of all acts of creativity. We have to show up and begin to play with the process to access the place of inspiration. The more we commit to our creativity through our intentions and actions the more our creativity flows and the more juiced, excited and inspired we feel.

Creativity: Co-Creating with Creation

It is art that makes life, makes interest, makes importance .. I know of no substitute whatever for the force and beauty of its process. - Henry James

There is nothing more satisfying to the human spirit, the human soul than being creative. You don't have to write the great American novel to qualify. A woman in one of my creativity coaching classes decided that she wanted to tile her bathroom. She took great delight in the entire process of researching the method, planning the tile pattern and executing the project. Now every time she uses her bathroom she feels a real sense of satisfaction.

That the spirit of creativity, whether we are writing a poem, painting a watercolor, planning and planting a flower garden or developing a new recipe in the kitchen. Our willingness to engage in making something new brings a quality of joy to the process regardless of where it flows easily or not.

Theologian Matthew Fox, in his brilliant book, Creativity: Where the Divine and Human Meet insists that when we are creativity we become co-creators with creation. I agree. I think that why when we are being creative it feels divine.

I want to stress that everyone is creative - it's our birthright. So many of us had it thwarted at an early age. Our creative self is a tender and vulnerable aspect, so she needs to be encouraged. It doesn't take much to send her into hiding.The good news is that you can bring her back out by a willingness to play in whatever way calls to you. A willingness to be messy, to draw outside the lines, to think outside the box.

Take a moment. Take a breath. What does your creativity look like? What would bring you joy and satisfaction? Suspend the critic and be willing to play with the idea. What contribution can your unique expression of creativity make to the world? It is through our creative imagination and abilities that we have the capacity to make the changes the world need at this important time in human history.

How to Invite Creative Inspiration

I often invite inspiration by asking my creative spirit or muse for help. Whenever I teach a class or get ready to write my monthly newsletter I always ask in advance, What's the theme for this one? or What do I need to know for this?. I say it silently to myself, directing the question to the part of me that knows what would be of highest value or support to my students or readers. Then I let it go. I don't think about it or try to figure it out. The answer always comes to me. It can be hours or days later, but I always get the answer in time. It comes as an idea that flashes into my mind or something someone says to me in conversation or the title of a book I see in the library. I'll have an ah ha moment, where I just know, that's it.

This works a lot better than trying to figure it out. When it comes to creativity and inspiration the mind really doesn't know. It's not capable of knowing in expanded ways. In fact you mind will usually start to tell you all the reason what you are wanting to create won't work. Trying to figure anything out generally leaves you feeling like a hamster on a wheel, exhausted and not really getting anywhere.

To be inspired the answer has to come from our Being or expanded Self. You can call it your subconscious mind or imagination. We all have access to this capacity. Yet since we have learned to glorify the mind and rational. linear thinking we are in the habit of looking there for answers. This limits what is possible. Our mind is like a computer, it can only draw from existing data banks. It isn't capable to coming up with something new. That comes from our imagination.

When we invite inspiration our subconscious or expanded Self goes to work on the question or problem. It will silently work on it 24/7 until the solution rises to the surface. It can come as an ah..ha or a whisper. We have to practice asking and trusting that it will come. We also need to pay attention to the world as the solution can also come as a synchronicity that speaks to our knowing.

This works when you stuck in your writing or other creative acts. It works if you are having a problem at work or in your relationships and more. You could also ask what contribution can I be to the world or the earth at this critical time. Play with this and see how your answers arrive.

Creativity and Consciousness

Consider consciousness providing a connection or a doorway to the field of infinite possibilities, and creativity as one way of accessing that place. Anytime you begin to play with the creative process, whether through art or gardening or cooking or tinkering in your garage or problem solving at work, you open up to your expanded capacities and more of who you truly are. You tap into the field of Oneness, the domain of the infinite. It feels good. You have a heightened sense of awareness. Time seems to stop and you lose track of the world around you. You are very much in the Now.

You don't have to be doing anything big or dramatic. It can start as simply as writing the draft of a poem or preparing a new dish without a recipe. Creativity happens when intuition, inspiration and attention intersect. We invite this mysterious process in when we start playing with a poem, a painting, an idea and allow it to be born from a deeper knowing. Our cognitive mind moves out of the way as if it grasps that it doesn’t have the answers. It feels nervous at no longer being in control. At this point if you really let go, suddenly you find yourself in the creative dance where time stops and inspiration and an awareness of what step to take next is obvious.

We were meant to live this way. Sailing the seas of imagination. Asking what else is possible. Creativity is literally a gift we are all born with. It's about more than arts and crafts. It expresses itself in a myriad of ways, in the unique form calls to us. It is also a capacity we use for everyday problem solving and creating our lives. It's about being connected to Spirit and the invisible realms that are eager to support us. It is a doorway into higher consciousness. It is the place we will find the solutions needed to create positive change in our lives and the world.

How Creative Can We Be

It’s the end of the month and I am just getting to the January blog. Every time I considered the topic I came up blank. What finally came to me is the sense that we need to create from a more expanded place than we have ever considered before. As we move into the third year of the pandemic, most of us have had our lives shaken up and are probably wondering where can we go from here.

Consider asking the question, how creative can we get in response to all the changes in our lives and the world. How can we create, create, create. What wants to be born anew from old ways that have unraveled. I get the image of confetti being thrown into the air in celebration of the creative potential in all of us. It's time to leave behind the beliefs that limit us and embrace the creative beings we truly are in whatever form that calls to us.

So I asked my muse for specifics. What should I create? The answers didn't come all at once. Generally they came as flashes of insight while I was out on my daily walk that puts me in a meditative state where an idea arrives that excites and energizes me. Then I know I'm on to something.

Beyond that I got that we all need to be willing to be surprised. That we need to open up in new ways. We tend to limit our creations, whether in the realm of creative expression or in creating our lives, to what we already know or to a variation on what we have already done. We also limit ourselves by thinking we need to figure out "the how" of whatever we are inspired to create rather than trusting and allowing the universe to support and guide up step by step.

At this pivotal time in human history opening up to truly new ideas and possibilities is essential. To paraphrase Einstein, "We can not solve our problems with the same level of thinking that created them." So here are some questions to ask. Can we allow ourselves new thoughts? Can we start to see ourselves differently? Can we see ourselves as capable of more than we have imagined up until this point?

I am asking myself these same questions aware that there is a seed within me and all of us wanting to emerge. We don't have to go looking for our creations, they live inside us in the dark womb of our soul and imagination. We can open up to let them grow, leaf out and blossom. We can do this one little step at a time.

Falling in Love with the Creative Process

A lot of people think that when it comes to creativity, inspiration is the key. Yet those moments of insight or revelation never occur without the willingness to commit to the work and continue to show up. This perseverance is just as important. You get a creative flash. You show up to the work and what wants to be born becomes more clear.

Nobel prize winning Canadian short story writer Alice Munro once said, "I threw away all my early writings and it wasn't because I was the mother of three small children. It was because I was learning my craft and it took a long time."

It was the same with David Guterson who wrote the award winning novel Snow Falling on Cedars. When critics acclaimed that a brilliant new writer had just come out of the Pacific Northwest as if he and his book had arrived by magic, he responded "excuse me but I've written in the early morning hours for 25 years before going to my job." It took him ten years to write the novel.

Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winning poet, Mary Oliver wrote for twenty five years before putting her work out into the world. She refused to take an interesting job because she didn't want to be distracted from her work. It was only a few years after she started publishing her work that she won the Pulitzer. Her perseverance clearly paid off.

One of the favorite essays I've ever written is 13 pages and it took five years to write. I started from a clear place of inspiration but then I had to do the work. I needed to do research. I needed to continue my writing practice. I had to put the draft away for a couple of years while I developed my skill as a writer because this essay was very complex and when I started it I didn't have the level of ability to finish it.

This is why as a writing teacher and creativity coach I teach people to fall in love with the process. It is true for any form of creativity. You show up, you start playing around and you find yourself in the flow where time stops and you taste of the joy of being creative. This allows you to persevere. Even when things aren't going well, you can find pleasure in showing up and being willing to play with what wants to be born out of your effort. This provides its own sense of satisfaction.

Keep Your Curiosity Alive - Journaling Can Help

For any writer who wants to keep a journal, be alive to everything, not just to what you're feeling, but also to your pets, to flowers, to what you're reading. - May Sarton

Keeping a journal or notebook to record not only your inner landscape but you observations of the world around you can make your life much more vibrant and alive. There is a long list of famous people who kept journals or notebooks. Anthropologist Margaret Mead, Charles Darwin, Thomas Jefferson, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Winston Churchill, Franz Kafka and Virginia Wolfe are just a few. The great geniuses and innovators kept their child-like sense of wonder and curiosity alive. Keeping a journal can help.

It's easy to start. Get a bound blank book, or you can start with a cheap spiral notebook. Date your entries. Begin by describing your surroundings, the current state of your life as well as your hopes, dreams, desires or questions. Put down anything you are curious about or whatever wants to spill out on to the page. If you are a writer, this is a good way to loosen up.

Leonardo Da Vinci actually carried a notebook attached to his belt and recorded anything he was curious about, any image he saw that drew him, any ideas that popped into his head or any questions that came to him. He insisted that passionate curiosity about all of life was one of the keys to his genius and remarkable accomplishments.

Short-term memory only retains information for three minutes. Unless committed to paper, an inspired idea forever can be lost forever. You can use your journal to record all the ideas and inspirations that flash into your mind. Plus paying close attention to the world and asking questions actually invites the subconscious mind into play increasing your creative and mental capacities.

So try what Leonardo did. Keep a notebook with you at all times. It could simply be a small spiral bound one that fits in your back pocket. Do it for a week and see if it doesn't awaken your sense of amazement for the beauty and complexity of the world.

I've started doing this, making note of the reflection of trees on the surface of a pond, the hawks crying out as they circle overhead, the newborn baby asleep in a stroller rocking back and forth with the motion, and the power of horses racing across a field.

I've kept a journal for over 40 years. It's added so much to my life and my writing. Carrying one with me everywhere has me opening to appreciating the world around me on a whole new level and making connections I would have missed otherwise.

Cultivating Your Creativity

The ability to live in the question long enough for genius to emerge is a touchstone of creative success. - Jonathan Fields

Think of your creativity as if it were your garden. If you want it to flourish what needs to be done? How would you tend it? What do you need to do to gets things growing? What would it look like to reap the harvest? To start the soil needs tilling, fertilizing and the seeds need to be planted and watered. You may need to read some gardening books or take a gardening class. You need to put in the time and some care.

What does this metaphor for our creativity look like in practice. To begin know that you are creative; that is a gift inherent to all human beings. Know that creativity is something you can grow. As John Updike so beautifully as "Creativity is merely a plus name for regular activity. Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or better." And in the words of Ken Robinson in his book Out of Our Minds: Learning to Be Creative "When people find their medium, they discover their real creative strengths and come into their own.

As a creativity coach, I have seen this over and over again in the workshops and individual work I do. People's creativity is lying just below the surface just waiting for a bit of encouragement to burst to the surface, often to their surprise and delight. So to start cultivating your creativity accept that in your own unique way you are already creative and your job is to be open to what that looks like and explore the possibilities.

How can you nurture your creative self? Understand that your creative self is a tender, vulnerable authentic part of you that likely wasn't encouraged at home or in school. She needs a safe and sacred space in which to emerge. Cultivate radical self acceptance for the part of you that is original and able to think outside the box. Entertain new ideas and possibilities. Experiment. Play. Let go of judging the new ideas, just be open and curious. Start asking questions. What are my creative gifts? What creative endeavors would bring me most alive? What do I need to do to awaken my creativity?

Practice, patience, faith and a willingness to be surprised are important elements. Once you have begun to take action there is also the element of allowing that needs to be considered. And understand that like a garden creativity moves through different phases and trying to produce a finished product in one step is usually impossible.

You start, you plant the seed and you don't keep pulling up the seed to see if it's growing. Know that in the fertile darkness of the subconscious that your creative ideas and project is incubating. Even when you are not consciously working on the problem that your creative mind is, so that when you return consciously to whatever you are working on, new ideas and solutions will rise to the surface. Understand that as John Cleese so eloquently said, "creativity is not a talent. It is a way of operating." Consider all the ways your are already creative.

Embracing Your Inner Weirdo

Normal is not something to aspire to, it's something to get away from. - Jody Foster

It is never too late to be who you might have been. - George Eliot

The word weird is derived from Old English. Originally spelled wyrd it was a concept in Anglo-Saxon culture roughly corresponding to our fate or personal destiny. In Beowulf, one of the oldest book in the English language, there is a reference to the hero being on his weird way or his destined path. The word weird further evolved over time to refer to that which is strange in a supernatural way.

In contemporary times the original definition and connotation of the word has been lost and we associate it with being odd or strange. Anyone who acts outside the limited parameters of socially acceptable behavior or the boundaries of what we think of as normal we call weird. As social creatures we want to feel that we belong so we often resist expressing our uniqueness since we don't want to be seen as weird or different.

People have been calling me weird since high school and I remember the first time I said "thank you" when they did. I must have realized even then that there was something good about being weird. The label came largely from the fact that I was being more creative, playful, imaginative and expressing more of my authentic self than we were being schooled to do.

Being creative shakes up the norm. It adds spice, color and joy to the world. I've come to feel that that is the job of the artist or those who express their creativity in any way. If each of us is going to bring these unique gifts to the world, we have to be willing to be a little weird. We need to accept and embrace the ways we are different even as we know we are part of the whole. We need to claim our own callings that come as the still small voice within us that may suggest a course of action that our mind and the people around us will think is weird but our spirit knows is the right thing to do.

What if it's our weirdness the world needs right now. What if you being you is the change you can be that will ripple out to transform the world in positive ways and bring more joy and satisfaction to your own life. What if a willingness to be seen as little weird is what is required to be on your destined path. What if weird could be the new normal

Curiosity Cultivates Creativity

“I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.” - Albert Einstein

“Curiosity about life in all of its aspects, I think, is still the secret of great creative people.” - Leo Burnett

Leonardo da Vinci, one of the most diversely talented individuals ever, was infinitely curious. He carried a notebook with him wherever he went and wrote down or sketched anything that aroused his curiosity. While best known for his paintings, the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper, he was also a sculptor, architect, musician, mathematician, engineer and inventor.

Being curious is a way of inviting creativity and can open us up to our unique genius. It opens our mind to make new connections and consider new possibilities. Albert Einstein attributed his brilliance to being passionately curious. Writer Henry James suggested to help your writing, “Try to be someone on whom nothing is lost.” With my writing students and coaching clients, I ask them to shake things up and do new things or visit a place they have never been before. Without curiosity, without "I wonder what would happen if I tried. . .", we would never create anything new.

Between my own creative work as a writer and my interest in nature, my curiosity about the world is finely honed. I love to eavesdrop on conversations or watch people in cafes, not out of noisiness, but a real interest in other people's lives and the wonderful range of possibilities for being human. I often get ideas for my writing that way. I'll make up stories about people to exercise my imagination.

Paying attention and being curious as I walk in Nature is a great way to practice mindfulness and live in the moment. It also allows me to feel connected to and nourished by a larger world. Observing Nature's great capacity as an artist also provides inspiration for my own creative work.

One of the things that ages us is doing the same old, same old over and over again. We do the same thing everyday, drive the same way to work, eat the same foods. The neural nets in our brain actually get rutted by our habits. Developing a habit of being curious and trying new things can keep us open to new possibilities and help keep us young as well as increasing our ability to be more creative.

TRY THIS: What are you curious about? It could be about trying a new recipe or visiting a new store that just opened. It could involve exploring a new place to walk or reading a book about a field you don’t know anything about but feel a pull toward. What can you do today to start building the muscle of your curiosity?

How Ireland Supports Creativity

Every May for a number of year I have lead a small group of travelers to explore the music, myths, magic and mystery of the place, the people and the culture.

I am always struck for the support for the arts in Ireland and just discovered a poetry walking tour in Galway City that honors a couple of dozen prominent Irish poets.

One of my favorite stories about the support for creativity in Ireland comes from an experience I had in the village of Doolin, County Clare which has been the epicenter for Celtic music revival in Ireland. Some of the best musicians in the country live there and play in the pubs.

One evening I went up to McGann’s pub to listen in. At one point a young boy about ten years old joined the group with his tin whistle. I learned that his parents brought him now and then, a two hour drive from their home, to encourage his desire to make music.

As he began to play the entire pub went quiet and as he continued one of the experienced musicians picked up his own tin whistle to support the lad through the places he couldn’t quite carry the notes on his own. At the end of the song the entire pub erupted into wild applause.

What if we all got that kind of support for our creative urges? What difference would it make? In Ireland with this kind of encouragement people come together in pubs all over the country to make music. It is a vibrant part of the culture. Three years after first hearing the boy with the tin whistle I was back in Doolin in a different pub and the same boy stepped up to play with a great deal more skill than before.

It’s not just music that is supported. In Ireland up until recently writers didn’t pay income tax and still artists don’t pay tax on what they make on the sale of their work. This honoring of the writers and poets has produced per capita more Nobel prize winning writers than any other country. With a population of 4 million, Ireland claims four Nobel laureates in literature along with a number of other writers of great stature.

How can we find ways to support our children, our grandchildren and ourselves in this vital part of being human. How can we honor the creative gifts that each of us hold in our own way and the world so deeply needs now.

What if it was as simple as a willingness to open up and play with however the creative process calls to us. Can we honor these creative yearnings and find community that supports our explorations. What would this look like for you? How would it feel?

Can you sense of joy fluttering in your heart at your willingness to play and create for no reason and see where the process leads. That will help you unplug from the pressure of feeling like you have to produce something. Rather being creative feeds our spirit and inspiration and support can show up for us in wonderful ways.

Playing with the Imagination

Imagination is more important than knowledge. - Albert Einstein

You must give birth to your images.
They are the future waiting to be born . . .
Fear not the strangeness you feel.
The future must enter you
long before it happens.
Just wait for the birth,
for the hour of new clarity
- Rainer Maria Rilke

I often say to my writing and creativity coaching clients that your imagination is smarter than you are; like intuition it gives you a deeper, faster, more expanded means of gaining critical insights and making important connections than the more limited workings of your linear, rational mind. Whether you want to write, engage your creativity more fully or develop an ability for creative problem solving, your imagination is an essential tool. To exercise your imagination try the age old favorite of looking for shapes in the clouds; or go sit outside on a bench to watch people go by and make up stories about their lives; or go to a park and lean against a tree and imagine what it would say to you if it could talk; or lay down on the earth and ask her what simple thing you could do to help the planet. Then be open to the ideas, images or thought that arise in your mind.

One exercise I like to work with is asking advice of an imaginary mentor. You think of a question and then write the answer yourself as if you are getting a response from someone you admire. You can ask Einstein, Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson or your grandmother. A woman I worked with did this exercise and received what was clearly really good advice. Unaccustomed to using her imagination in this way she asked, "how do I know if I am actually channeling this person or if I'm making it up". It's a great question because when we use our imagination it will feel and seem like we are making it up. And that's exactly how the imagination works.

We have a hard time trusting the information and ideas we get because we live in a culture that dismisses the power of the imagination but saying, "oh, you're just making that up" or we tell our children "it's just your imagination". Imagination is a tool of human consciousness that is underdeveloped in the modern world. Yet the more you engage it and play with it the stronger the connection becomes and you will begin to feel the quiet excitement and joy that comes from expanding this ability, that will give you new ways to looking at problems and solving them.

You can even ask your imagination for suggestions on how best to cultivate it. Sit quietly for five minutes following the flow of your breath and calming your mind. Then be open to what your imagination has to say to you. Try writing without thinking for ten minutes as if you were taking dictation from your imagination. Or you could ask your imagination what it wants from you and then answer the question by writing or drawing or even spontaneous movement where you let the thoughts and feelings flow.

Imagination is one way we access our deeper mind. It is a place where you shed your everyday self, where sparks fly and time stands still. It requires a bit of solitude and idleness. It asks that you slow down and sit still with your mind clear and expectant. It asks that you be willing to play.

Creativity: Being Part of Creation

Well, you're right in the work, you lose your sense of time, you're completely enraptured, you're completely caught up in what you're doing, and you're sort of swayed by the possibilities you see in this work. . . .The idea is to be. . .so saturated with it that there's no future or past, it"s just an extended present in which you're making meaning. - Mark Strand, poet

The thoughts that come to you are more valuable than the ones you seek. - Joubert

Some years ago I read a wonderful book by Matthew Fox, titled, Creativity: Where the Divine and Human Meet. In this book Fox, a former Catholic priest who had been censured by the Church for putting forth a doctrine of original blessing as opposed to original sin, suggests that when we are creative we become co-creators with creation.

I had been involved with creativity for a long time by the time I read his book; first with dance and photography and then a couple of decades spent writing so I knew immediately the truth of what he was saying. I remember the first time I really got on a roll with my writing and I knew that something good was coming out of my pen, I actually stopped and looked around the room to see where it was coming from because I knew it wasn't exactly coming from me. Since then I've come to the sense that it's Spirit or my Higher Self working through me and I've been able to integrate working with these mysterious forces as I write.

The word Muse has its origins in being intiated into the mysteries. And its important to understand that this connection is available to everyone not just a select few who are somehow born with this special gift. It is also not restricted to the arts.

The gift of creativity is woven deep into our being. Everytime we solve a problem we didn't "think" we could solve we are drawing on this invisible resource. We experience it in cooking, gardening, decorating our homes, raising our children, healing, teaching and business when we get the inspiration to do something in a new and expanded way. When we tap into this ability it feels great, it feels divine.

Regardless of where this creative inspiration comes from I've found that the more I show up to the practice of writing or anything else, the more I have a feel for working with this creative flow. It's like a muscle that gets stronger with use.

Joan King, a neuroscientist who has studied brain activity describes in her book Cellular Wisdom, "While such brainstorming [found in creative flow] is occurring, more and more neurons and neural pathways are being activated in the neural net. Consciousness acts like a spotlight, shining here and there, making connections, illuminating thought and memories, trying out possible solutions. As the process continues, more and more neurons are recruited, activating more of the great intermediate [neural] net." The key here is to stop thinking with your linear mind and let the creative imagination really run. Our linear mind has to get out of the way to let our big mind make its leaps and forge its connections.

Consider all the ways you are already being creative and what it feels like. Is there a sense of excitement and expansion when you exercise your creativity?. What would it takes for you to build more muscle in this area? I think the changes and challenges in the world today are actually calling forth this ability in each of us. They are asking us to embody our creativity in every area of our lives and in our contributions to the world. The beauty is that creation is waiting to help. We just need to show up, let go and step into the flow of being a co-creator. Our willingess is our invitation.

Are You Embracing Joy or Chasing Happiness

We can spend so much of our lives in the pursuit of happiness that we often neglect to savor or even notice our moments of joy. Happiness feels more a long term goal, something we can be ever in search of. Joy is more an in the moment experience that has the quality of deep satisfaction.

There are certain experiences that universally ignite joy in a person. The sight of a rainbow or a hummingbird or a dolphin or cherry blossoms. A single flower has the capacity to fill us with joy if we let it. Joy is our reward for following what feeds our heart and soul. Our joy drives us toward what feels good to us.

Creativity can be a great source of joy. The act of being creative whether we finish anything or make anything that we consider good has at its core a sense of joyful satisfaction. As a writer with decades of experience it is that pleasure in the process that has sustained me over the years. 

Recently I’ve started working with watercolors having been drawn to purchase a wonderful little instruction kit. My mind thinks I’m not very good but my creative spirit is having fun just playing and learning something new. 

The joy at the heart of creativity is the deep soul satisfaction that comes from creating anything new. We open to the flow of something greater than ourselves and find ourselves fully present in the moment where we seem to have all the time in the world.

Embracing joy is like taking time out to appreciate being alive. Consider for yourself what brings you joy and intentionally increase that presence in your world. What else can you do to feed your creative soul? As we regularly embrace what brings us joy we may just find our happiness.

The Importance of Play

If you want creative workers, give them enough time to play. - John Cleese

Play is our brain's favorite way of learning. - Diane Ackerman

The creation of something new is not accomplished by the intellect but by the play instinct. - Carl Jung

In my recent work with both creativity and writing coaching clients I've found that the key element in getting them out of the doldrums or a sense of being stuck or not being sure where to go with their work is play. Play gets us out of the mind's need for doing and it's focus on product and puts us in the place of being and enjoying the process.

Since creativity comes out of the alchemy of subconscious working in union with the mysteries, play is essential in accessing expanded states of awareness and putting us back into the flow.

This is true not just for art and creative expression but innovation and discoveries in science and technology. I always really enjoyed the books written for popular audiences by Nobel prize winning physicist Richard Feynman that illuminated the way he thought and made his remarkable discoveries. One of the founders of theory of quantum physics. Feynman had an IQ of around 123 which is above average but not close to the genius he was considered to be.

He described his process that lead to his astonishing discoveries as "noodling around", his term for play. He was passionate about the subject and he would just play with different ideas and vantage points and let his mind run with the possibilities.

Ultimately when we engage in creative play in any endeavor it feels good.. Bright ideas, insights and inspiration stream in, time slows down so that hours feels like minutes and we are infused with a feeling of well being. On top of that play encourages variation and doing things in new ways actually builds new neural pathways in the brain which expands our ability to be creative.

So ask yourself, what can I do to add more play to my life and see what ideas pop into your mind as you go about your day. And then have fun!

Creating with All Your Heart

If I create from the heart, nearly everything works; if from the head, almost nothing. - Marc Chagall

Love is a sacred reserve of energy; it is like the blood of spiritual evolution. - Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

I recently saw a short film tribute to Chuck Berry, the undisputed father of rock and roll, with comments from John Lennon of the Beatles and Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones both saying how much they admired Berry and tried to emulate his guitar work. Berry himself said that his secret was that he felt the music. Berry played with all his heart.

In my own creative work, especially with my writing, I have long been aware of the importance of connecting to the heart; both in the context of finding subjects and themes that make our hearts sing but also creating from the feeling place of the heart, from what we love and care about.

As Robert Frost said, “No tears for the writer, no tears for the reader.” I always know that if I am moved in my own heart by a piece of my writing then it will genuinely touch other people.

For whatever you want to create, imagine dropping down into your heart and drawing on that feeling place for your inspiration and guidance. One of my clients envisions a wooden staircase leading from her mind to her heart and sees herself walking down them and when she reaches the bottom she immediately feels the clarity and expansiveness her heart has to offer.

Centering in our heart gives us access to our connection to all of creation which inspires and informs the highest expression of our creative self. It allows us to live and create from the place of expanded possibilities.