Not a creative bone in your body...?

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

In the writing course I'm currently teaching, I give my students a creative writing exercise during each class. Since the start of the semester, I've heard several variations of the statement, "I don't have a creative bone in my body."

• I'm not creative.
• I don't know what to write.
• My writing is always boring.
• I don't have any good ideas.
• I'm no good at this.
• I can't tell a good story.

Here are some of my responses to those statements:

• Hogwash.
• Yes, you do.
• Yes, you can.
• That's old thinking.
• Everybody's creative, even if they don't know it.
• ...etc., etc. You get the idea.

What might it mean when people say they're not creative? It might mean any number of things. Maybe they were laughed at for some creative effort(s) in the past. Maybe they don't like a particular type of creative activity and don't recognize that not liking something isn't the same as being unable to do it. Perhaps they believe that if they don't excel at an activity, they shouldn't do it at all.

Maybe this sounds like you. Do you think you can't write a story or paint or act or make a craft? Do you believe you don't have a creative bone in your body?

Well, consider these ideas:

• Are you a person who comes up with great party ideas?
• Do you come out with funny one-liners or puns, or do you tell jokes really well?
• Can you come up with options or solutions for nagging problems?
• Do you hum or sing while doing some other activity?
• Are you good at keeping the beat with songs on the radio?
• Was there an activity you loved when you were a child?
• Do you cook well or do carpentry?
• Do you enjoy a hobby?
• Can you tell stories to children that they enjoy?
• Do your neighbours compliment you on your garden or yard?
• Are you able to find the best arrangement of time or objects in order to get a job done well?
• Do you find yourself wondering how the writer came up with the idea for a movie or book you like?
• Is there one time of day when you seem to get a lot of good ideas?
• Do you like arranging food, flowers, furniture, artwork, or table settings in pleasing ways?
• Can you fix just about anything that needs fixing?
• Are you good at solving puzzles?
• Can you find the best/shortest/most scenic route to a destination?

This is a very short list of examples of creative expression. Maybe this list has given you other ideas about what you do well but never considered as meaning much. That's often the case with people who believe they're not creative.

Keep in mind that being creative simply means "having the power or ability to create...and is...characterized by originality of thought and execution." (Funk & Wagnalls' Canadian College Dictionary). Every single person can create something or come up with an original idea. Really. Creativity is not a special gift doled out only to a select few. It is a natural part of being human.

You are creative, even if you're haven't been given a Nobel Prize for Something or aren't published or famous. You are creative because you're alive and it's in your nature to create.

I encourage you to take a look at your attitudes about your own creative ability or that of someone else you've said isn't creative. What words and feelings go along with that limiting belief?  How can you change your words and thoughts and feelings to allow for a new concept? Do you expect phenomenal results, or can you see that creativity is a process to be enjoyed?

If you like, try the following:

Every day for two weeks, write or say to yourself,

I am creative. I like to __________ (fill in the blank), and this is a creative activity.

It's very possible that your ideas about creativity will shift. Then go ahead, do your creative activity some more. Allow yourself to enjoy it simply because you enjoy it. It doesn't have to measure up to anybody else's idea of "good." If you want to, expand on it, share it. Learn something new.

Creativity is fun and satisfying. I hope you allow yours to blossom.

Flower Power

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

This is not a post about hippie Flower Power (though I did mention having been a hippie in a recent blog post).

No, today I'm writing about the wonderful power of flowers to cheer us up, wake us up and just generally help us feel better.

On a website called aboutflowers, I found a number of scientific surveys that show how beneficial cut flowers are when displayed in our homes and workplaces. Few people need to be told by scientists that fresh flowers look beautiful and cheerful, whether we've received them as a gift or have cut them ourselves from roadside fields or our own gardens.

However, this research shows that flowers don't offer only pleasing colours and scents. Cut flowers have also been shown to affect our emotional and mental selves. They can:

• decrease anxiety and depression
• help non-morning people wake up more happily and fully
• improve social interactions
• increase a general sense of well-being and satisfaction
• enhance intimate relationships
• foster creativity
• increase productivity
• improve learning
• decrease stress

So do yourself or somebody else a favour. Roam through a field or flowershop. Plant a windowbox. Buy a flowering plant for the kitchen table.

What a simple way for everyone to win.

Mark Your Calendar -- January

January 7, 2010

In all times and in all places, humans love to mark and celebrate special times, events, people, even things. I enjoy the celebratory nature of birthdays and some holidays. Like many people, however, I'm less impressed with the commercialization of them. But as in all things, we have a choice in what we do and how we do it. To that end, (but mainly for fun) I've been compiling a list of days, weeks and months that have been marked -- by someone, at some point in time. Some of them seem like a bit of a stretch, but what the heck.

The list is extraordinarily long, so I'll only include observations that relate to this blog -- relationships, healing, growth and writing. Well, and a few others that bear repeating, such as the Oatmeal, Tea and Soup observances, which I just think are cool. Try searching the Internet for information on any that intrigue you.

For January, I've found numerous observances, including one called "International Quality of Life Month." I don't know who came up with the day or why they established it, but I think a month of appreciating one's quality of life is a great idea. My other personal favourites for January are:

• Book Blitz Month
• Be On-Purpose Month
• Celebration of Life Month
• International Creativity Month
• Get Organized Month
• National Mentoring Month
• Oatmeal Month
• National Hot Tea Month
• National Soup Month (The sponsor of this one won't come as a surprise.)

To finish off, consider observing the following at work, home and school. We're still within the boundaries of both weeks, so there's time...

• National Thank Your Customers Week, January 4-8
• Women's Self-empowerment Week, January 4-10

I've found several sources for this information. The two sources I'll mention are an American and a Canadian site, respectively:

1. "Chase's Calendar of Events today is the most comprehensive and authoritative reference available on special [world-wide] events, holidays, federal and state observances, historic anniversaries and more. Each spring, thousands of new entries are submitted to join the more than 12,000 items that make up each year's book. Each event listing (where applicable) contains contact and mailing information. There is no charge to be listed in Chase's. Each new edition appears in late September preceding the year in question."
2. Work Smart. Live Smart., a site in which Canadian "stress speaker and wellness specialist, Beverly Beuermann-King, CSP, translates current research and best practices information into a realistic, accessible and practical approach through her dynamic stress and wellness workshops, on-line stress and wellness articles, e-newsletters and media interviews."

So, take a break from the mundane. Be creative. Find and honour a mentor. Become a mentor. Empower yourself and thank your customers, right after you've fortified  yourself with porridge and a cup of something warm. Celebrate life in your own way.

Healing Attitudes -- an Exercise

Here is a journalling exercise that can help with your healing or personal growth. The exercise is presented in two parts, in two posts. You can do one or both of them or, of course, neither. The choice is yours.

I invite you to check out my earlier post called "Keeping a Journal 101" to read a short introduction to journalling. As with all journalling exercises I do and recommend, it's fine to either write on paper or type on your computer. I do suggest you date your writings if you plan to keep them; it's helpful and interesting to re-read them later to see how you've grown, what you've learned or what still needs work.

Below is a short list of healing attitudes. Consider and write briefly about how each has been helpful to you or could be helpful to you. Then pick one and write in more detail about what you can and will do today to make use of that healing attitude. And keep it simple, Sweetheart; one change at a time is plenty.

• willingness
• honesty
• acceptance
• determination
• creativity

If you'd like, maintain your attention to your chosen healing attitude for a week, then two weeks. Journal about what is changing as a result. Talk with someone trustworthy about what's happening with you.

You could then go on to focus on the other healing attitudes -- one per week -- and see what happens. However you approach this journalling activity, remember to listen to yourself. Take breaks. This is not a marathon. Enjoy yourself and give yourself credit for every effort. Healing and recovery aren't always easy, but they can definitely be satisfying!

In a companion post to this one, I'll offer a similar journalling exercise using healing actions you can take to help yourself.