WE ARE ALL CREATIVE
5-18-08

 

A reader writes, “When you were in politics, you were always creating and when you left, you started creating songs and books. What is the secret of your creative urge?”

 

The number one secret is not a secret at all but a fact: we become the way we see ourselves. So see yourself as creative. We can never be creative until we see ourselves as creative.

 

“But what if we have never been creative? How can we see ourselves as something we have never been?”

 

It is necessary to realize that we have been creative from the moment of birth. You have been creating all your life! That’s how you got to be who you are. You literally created this person you are. You did it with your thoughts.

 

It may have been a hap-hazard process like painting by throwing globs of paint at a canvas, but you did it. So now your need is to recognize that fundament fact of your life and to begin directing your energy toward general and specific goals.

 

I say “general and specific goals” because I think we should not get specific about our goals until we start a general movement in the direction we want to go. Let your first general goal be to just become more creative. Then become creative in a more specific direction, like writing songs, articles,  books , or painting.

 

As your creativity starts to purr, you can be even more specific about channeling it. Example: I had the goal of being a creative songwriter most of my life but at one point I decided to write a gospel album to raise money for a nursing home project. As soon as I got that specific, those kinds of songs started floating into my awareness.

 

Right now take a sheet of paper and write at the top: THINGS THAT TRIGGER MY CREATIVITY. For at least a month, write down things that foster your creativity. I have been writing on this list for years now and I recommend you make this page one in your creative journal. You do have a creative journal, don’t you? A notebook for your “things”?

 

I do not know what triggers your creativity but some things listed in mine are :

 

n     fellowship with funny friends

n     morning free style writing binges

n     reading my personal journal

n     meditation

n     a slow walk thru an art gallery

n     a meditative walk by the lake or in the woods

n     prowling in greeting card racks (lots of creativity there!)

 

As you see yourself as a creative person and build your triggers into your life, you will find that creativity becomes a fairly steady flow. Once it becomes a dependable flow, your only concern will be the unpredictable “dry times” that we all experience.

 

How do we get out of a dry time? My main suggestions is don’t try to. Consider it a vacation. Just let it be. Don’t fight it. We give substance to those things we fight.

 

I once said, “I’ll TRY to quit smoking” and I immediately corrected myself and just said, “No, I won’t try. I just will.” Never use the word “try.” It denotes “struggle” to your subconscious mind. Don’t try to do anything. Just do it.

 

So when you hit those inevitable dry times, just have fun. Do relaxing things. Do something different. Go see a place or two you’ve never seen. Go meet some wild character you’ve always wanted to meet. Change your daily rituals.

 

We are all creative. We create every waking moment. The secret to being more creative is to let it become your way of life, no matter what your work may be. If you feel you have a boring job, be creative with it.

 

Always start right where you are with whatever you are doing and expand until you have created a way of life that you love.