We’ve all had flashes of inspiration – moments when the muse comes down and whispers in our ear and a fabulous idea seems to fall out of the sky and into our head. Who doesn’t want more of these inspirational insights? Here are six tips from “How Can You Spark Creativity?” – a story in Discovery Magazine* to help get our creative juices flowing:
1 Be hopeful: “When you’re hopeful, you’re aware that the outcome might not be positive, but you’re motivated anyway.” Studies support the idea that being hopeful “actually helps people come up with more original connections and ideas.” Hope helps!
2 Get moving: Taking a pleasant, relaxing walk, “especially in the great outdoors, can help us solve problems.” Walking lowers stress levels, calms us, and improves our mood overall, all of which “can promote more creative thought connections in the brain.”
3 Go solo, then reach out: “Alone time and the space it provides is vital in coming up with a creative solution.” But once a light bulb goes off in your head, many creatives build on it by taking their “idea to a group to hash it out and turn it into a solution.”
4 Meditate: There’s growing evidence that meditation “can be a boon in getting the creative juices flowing, though only specific types of meditation. You don’t want to totally suppress your thoughts. Instead, exerts say, try mediation that allows you to first recognize your wandering thoughts and then to bring your focus back to the present.” Nondirective meditation activates brain areas connected to memory and emotion.
5 Think differently: Being creatures of habit, it’s easy to “get stuck thinking inside the box. But just trying to think differently can help. One long-term study found that innovative leaders spent 50 percent more time attempting to think differently – and consistently succeeding.”
6 Let sparks fly: Not surprisingly, “the more ideas you come up with and try out, the more likely it is that something will stick. In analyses of adults who were flagged as geniuses, only a small percentage of their creative ideas ended up leading to a substantial solution. Keep going!
Hopefully, one or more of these ideas will spark your creativity today. Write on!
* Discover Magazine, July/August 2016
Please help KWD grow by sharing: https://karinwritesdangerously.com/
