Do you find your life a little routine, like you're stuck in a rut? Does it seem like you barely have time for work and life commitments, let alone creative outlets?
It's unfortunate but it seems for many of us, the daily grind of doing what we need to do in order to survive often saps us of our creativity. Instead of being sapped, how would you like to be zapped?
How would your life be different if you were more creative? What would you do differently if you had the time and energy to tap into your creativity? Would you enjoy your job more? Would you find ways to enhance your business? Would your personal relationships be rejuvenated? Would you increase your skill in your favorite hobby? Would you be happier and more alive? Would you feel like you were living more of your potential?
I know for myself, when I am more creative, my life takes on a new energy. I feel enthusiastic, excited, and energized. When ideas pop into my head, I can either enjoy them for what they are or implement them in my life.
Everyone has a creative wellspring within them. If you've been sapped but want to be zapped, here's how to tap into that creativity inside you.
- Look closely
Observe the world around you. Pay attention, search for details, and notice what's new and different in your environment rather than assuming nothing has changed.
Creativity is born out of curiosity so look for patterns in the sky, compare two trees standing side by side, watch people as they move and talk. Keep a notebook with you to jot down your observations, making comparisons, and noting what interests you. Take notes when you're stopped in traffic, running on the treadmill at the gym, or sitting at the coffee shop.
- Listen intently
Use your ears as sharply as you use your eyes. Listen for unusual sounds in your surroundings and pay attention to dialogue between people, traffic sounds, and the sound of silence.
Did you know the letters in "listen" also spell "silent"? Get silent and listen to your inner sounds. What creative ideas are trying to come through the noise in your head? What can you hear around you when you silence that inner dialogue? Creativity stems from your inner thoughts and may even come from that place where we are all connected in consciousness. Stay open to creative ideas with your ears wide open.
- Ask wisely
Did you know that dumb questions evoke smart answers? Well, there's really no such thing as a dumb question but creative people ask lots of questions: "How come? Why is that like that? What's important here? What's missing? What's next? How can I do this another way?"
Great questions provoke great solutions. Ask other people, from the experts to everyday folks. Then ask yourself. Put your inner creative juices to work.
- Brainstorm often
Collaborating with others can generate new ideas that you might not come up with on your own. Release any judgment, turn off the editor, and don't censor any ideas that arise. Focus more on the process than the outcome because that's where the ideas will start flying. When you want to brainstorm on your own, use mind maps to pull ideas from the right brain as well as the left.
- Be childlike
Children are highly creative. They make up songs, tell stories, and invent characters. They're open, playful, and curious. Highly creative people know how to have fun and to laugh at life and themselves. They don't take anything too seriously, knowing life is a joyful game. They exude passion, playfulness, and pleasure. In a childlike state, how can you be anything but creative?
- Change often
Find one thing to change every day. Break your routine, change the way you do something, listen to a new radio station, take a different route to work. Is your life tiring or inspiring? Notice how other people do things and experiment with new ways of doing ordinary things in extraordinary ways.
- Solve problems
A creative mind loves problems. That's when it pulls out all the stops to come up with solutions. Don't put a limit on your ideas; pull from the past. Experience, experiment and improvise... explore and invent. Take risks, learn from mistakes, keep creating, and never give up.
Use these 7 tips to zap your creativity and you'll find you are happier, more alive, and more successful in all areas of your life.
 | Written on 11/12/2008 by David Bohl. David shares the viral message Slow Down FAST and helps people raise the roof on all facets of their lives without risking implosion. Get some must-haves here. | Photo Credit: {meagen} |
译文:
挖掘创造力的七种方法
你是否发现你的生活有点墨守成规，犹如你总是干着老套事情？你是否觉得你几乎没有时间工作和完成生活的心愿，更不用说有创新的做法?
但似乎对许多人来说，很不幸的是我们每天为了生存做的许多事情都把我们的创造性压制了。以其让创造性被抑制，你怎样去激发它呢？
如果你更有创造性，你的生活会有怎样的不同？如果你有时间和精力发挥你的创造力，你会有怎样不同的作为？你是否更喜欢你的工作？你是否会寻找各种方式去巩固你的事业吗？你是否让你的个人关系重新焕发活力？你是否在你最喜爱的业余爱好中增长技巧？你是否感到更加幸福和富有活力？你是否会觉得你更加发挥你的潜力？
我知道当我变得更加有创造力时候，我的生活充满新的活力。我感到热情澎湃、兴奋和生机活力。当新的想法展现在我的脑海里，我可以享受它们，或者是运用它们到我的生活中。
每个人自身都有创造性的源泉。如果你的创造力被抑制，并想发掘它，这有一些让你发掘你内心的创造性的建议。
- 仔细观察
观察你周围的世界，记得要仔细观察细节，去发觉你所处的环境中什么是新颖的和与众不同的，不要假设什么都没改变。
创造力源自好奇心，所以观察天空中不同形状的云，比较两颗直立一起的书目，看着行人的行为举止。Keep a notebook 你携带一本笔记本记下你所观察到的事物，然后比较，记下你所感兴趣的的。在你等交通红绿灯，在健身房的跑步机上，或者坐在咖啡厅面时你可以记下你所观察到的。 - 认真倾听
充分利用的你的耳朵去倾听，犹如你锐利的使用的你眼睛一样。 Listen 你周围不一样的声音，并注意人和人之间的对话，以及交通响声和安静的声音。 你可曾知“倾听”也可拼读成“沉默”？安静下来，倾听来自你内心深处的声音。何种富有创造性的念头正尝试着从你喧闹的脑海中溜走呢？当你停止内心的对话时，你能从周围听到什么呢？创造性来源于内心深处的想法，甚至是来源于那些我们和意识联系在一起的地方。向充满创造性的观点敞开心扉，时刻保持自己耳朵的灵敏度。
- 明智发问
你是否知道，愚蠢的问题能引出聪明的答案？嗯，绝对不存在这样愚蠢的问题，而是独具创造性的人问很多问题： “怎么会会这样呢？这是为什么呢？重点是什么呢？？遗漏了什么？接下来会发生什么？我如何通过另一种方式解决？ ”
巧妙的问题产生绝妙的答案。问问其他人，从专家到日常人。然后问自己。把你的内在创造性地展现出来。
- 勤于动脑
与他人合作可以产生新的想法，这也许是你单独一人办不到的。随意评论，拒绝编辑，不要过分注重想法是怎么产生的，因更加注重过程而不是结果，因为过程才是想法实现的开始。想独立获得灵感时，让自己的思维促进左脑和右脑同时运转。
- 保持童真
儿童富于创造性。他们写歌，讲故事，并创造人物角色。他们很活泼、有趣而且有很强的好奇心。极富创造性的人懂得如何寻找乐趣，对自己和人生微笑。他们对一切都不会太在意，生活只不过是一项充满快乐的游戏。他们散发着热情，游兴趣和快乐。在孩子般的情境里，你怎么会不具有创造性呢?
- 经常改变
每天都找一件是事来改变。打破你的常规，改变你做事的方式，收听新的广播电台，变换自己上班的路径。你的生活是让人觉得疲惫不堪呢，还是让人充满灵感？意观察一下别人做事的方式，并试着去用新颖的方式去做平常的事情。 - 解决问题
具有创造性的头脑善于解决问题。它将竭尽全力地想出解决办法。不要限制你的想法；将其从过去中解放出来。经历，体验然后完善...探索和创造。冒冒险，从作物中吸取教训，不断创造，并且永不放弃。 用这7种建议激发你的创造力，你会发现无论在你生活的那一个方面，你都会更加快乐，更加有活力，更加成功。