Some days I find that I can create for hours on end and other days, it just plain sucks! My mind is one of those highly creative engines that runs almost nonstop. Sometimes in life, I have to beg it to stop and give me some rest.
Lately though, it is like the creativity is flooding my mind to the point of drowning. My creativity comes and goes almost as fast as the sun sets and rises. I love it when I can sit down and just write, paint, create music or come up with a million ideas all at once. However, usually when I go through very intense moments of this, I crash.
One of the ways I have been helping myself to efficiently be creative is getting plenty of down time and rest. I do this through relaxation and meditation even if it is only for 30 minutes. I am amazed that if I just stop for 20-30 minutes and totally let my mind and body let go, I can come back with much more energy and creative empowerment.
Creativity is where I find my greatest joy in life. It is the one thing that gives me more power and energy in my day than any other single thing I can do. There is a price of exhaustion that comes with it if I fail to manage it, but no other thing gives me greater satisfaction.
I am reminded of how I view movies and films versus reading a book. To me, if the scene has already been created for me, I get bored very easily and quickly. My mind wants to create the scene, the characters, the colors and everything else that goes into the story line. In a movie, my brain does not get a chance to do that and I become disengaged from the creativity. Yes, I can appreciate the colors, character portrayals and creative aspects, but it is not the same thing for me.
If you give me a book I enjoy that is engaging, I can get lost in creating the scenes of the story line in my mind. It is a pleasure to read the words and bring them to life inside my brain. I actively engage my mind and body in the worlds that I read.
Creativity varies for each person and some people are inherently more creative than others. After all, we need people who can execute what creative people bring to life. Without the not as creative people, where would this world be?
For a long time in life, I chastised myself for my creative thoughts. I did not think I was good enough or perfect enough to do this. I was raised to not allow myself to be in this world because a boy (or a man) had to earn a living and you didn't do it with artsy-fartsy type stuff. On top of that, my self confidence and self esteem was so low that I didn't think that anything I did was good enough. I felt no one would like it.
I think that some of the reason my creativity comes and goes is that I often see my work through critical eyes, instead of in the framework of mindfulness. Some days, I don't efficiently manage my brain and I let my thoughts run away in my mind. Some days, I just get tired and I need to take a rest from being creative. This is actually where a movie can come in helpful as it tells my brain to chill out. It does not have to think in these moments.
As I stated earlier, I believe the best thing that helps me is when I take 20-30 minutes during the middle part of the day and just lie on my massage table, listen to some instrumental music and chill out. I do not use music with lyrics in it because I want my brain to quiet down.
If you are highly creative, make sure you take time to rest your mind and stop your thoughts. Give yourself the gift of allowing your mind and body to just chill out and let go. If you do this, you most likely will find like I have, that you can come back stronger in a creative sense.
To read more about being mindful and creative, click this link.
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Don, I completely agree - taking some time to relax is so important to keep from burning out while chasing creativity. I also find I need a lot of different outlets and I try not to box myself into "required" creative actions. I love to write and cook and blog and work on geek stuff - but not always everything every day. So I go with what inspires me at the moment ;)
ReplyDeleteMark, I can tell you're a highly creative person like I am. Can you believe, I didn't discover that site of myself until just a few years ago (early 2000's)! I do try to give myself a lot of latitude as well and sometimes I just sit at my keyboard and have fun on those keys. No thought of creating music, just having fun with it. By the way, I admire how you do your blog and food creations... very creative and engaging.
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