Creativity Boost Blog

Are You Creative? How to Deal With Criticism

2012-02-22T08:47:54Z

The problem with being creative is your creativity. Being creative means you are thinking ‘outside of the box.’ You are attempting to come up with ideas and information which is outside people’s normal experience in certain situations. You are attempting to produce something new and innovative and as a result you are very likely to receive criticism. People like things to be the same. They like to recognise what you are doing and so are nervous of new ways of doing things if you produce something which seems strange and different.

So as a creative person you are very likely to come up against criticism and sometimes that can be quite upsetting and off-putting to your creative process. Yet creativity is vitally necessary not only be your personal well being but also for society in general because it opens up new ways of thinking and ways of solving problems and dealing with situations.

But for you as the receiver of the criticism it can put a dampener onto your creative output. What can you do to deal with criticism?

Switch off

If you can develop some way not to listen to things people may be saying or writing about you. Many well known actors never read the reviews of their latest films and so avoid reading adverse criticism. Very often people criticise because they have certain expectations and what you have produced doesn’t fulfill those. Their comments is probably saying more about them than you. Enjoyment of creative work is very subjective and people duffer in their opinions about what is acceptable and what is not.

Ask people not to comment

Explain that what you are doing is still a work in progress so you would appreciate if people would not say how they feel about it. If this doesn’t work then suggest that only positive comments are permitted and if they can’t think of anything positive to say then not to say anything at all.

Keep your creations private

It’s easier to keep a piece of writing private unlike a large painting but if you have a place to work away from others you may be able to keep your creative work out of the public gaze until it’s finished and even then you don’t have to listen to negative comments if you don’t want to. Ideally ask people to start by saying what they like about what you’ve done and then in relation to what they don’t like to tell you how they think the work could be improved in those areas.

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Let Your Creative Juices Shine Today

2012-02-15T20:22:19Z

Being innovative and creative is something that is not necessarily inborn. Though there are those who seem to have a nature talent for leaning towards the creative side, one can learn how to get in touch with that function of the brain and with constant practice, actually become good at it.

Are people born with a predisposition to be left brained or right brained thinking? The answer is yes. Yet there is always a possibility for people to practice the other side of the brain. The concept of whole brain management is now being adapted and used by a lot of companies. It is the marriage between logical input and creative thinking which is emphasized in whole brain management.

Phrases like “thinking outside the box” and “intuitive decision making” emphasized this system of management. In fact, some have even gone as far as dream interpretation or lucid dreaming induction which simply put, is trying to recount your dreams and make sense of it. A clear example of that is what is called a “deja vu moment” wherein you sense a familiarity of a certain event or place though it may have been the first time that you have been to that place or have gone to the event.

If you are more of a logical thinker, here are some things that you can do to wake up your creative process and become more whole brain in thinking:

- Do activities that are creative in nature. Take up painting, or learn and instrument. Go to art galleries. By doing such activities, you are opening your mind to another aspect of thinking. Learning to sketch, draw, and paint is something that does this in a major way. Start writing creatively by writing phrases, or even jotting down observations. Learning to play a musical instrument is something that perks your creative juices. Taking a rest from a logical thinking activity and just doing things that free up your mind and perhaps uplift your soul is something that you must do, and in doing so, you awaken the creative side.

- Go on long walks. Go on a walk without thinking of anything that is business related. Enjoy that walk by seeing the surrounding. Let your mind be filled with the sounds that you hear. Appreciate the breeze or the sun shining at your face. In a sense, feel the world around you when doing that walk. This is such a good creative exercise that can be done once a week which helps you become more creative by becoming more sensitive of what is around you.

Finally! A great place to know more about lucid dreaming techniques! Know more about lucid dreaming induction today and have better control over your subconscious!

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5 Ways to Ignite Your Creative Intelligence

2012-02-12T01:03:00Z

Every one of us is ‘bestowed’ with creative intelligence that for the most part is under utilized due to other responsibilities and busy lifestyles. This is not to make excuses for the under-utilization of our creative skills but merely an exclamation as to why they are not used more often. The thinking process associated with producing creativity and innovation requires a degree of focus along with a relaxed state of mind. The world we live in today, with hectic work schedules and other life responsibilities is very demanding on both our time and focus. In order to promote our own ability for thinking outside the box and spawn the creativity we seek within ourselves deliberate measures sometimes need be taken.

Here are 5 ways that you can help your mind gain separation from the demands and chaos that preoccupy it to help discover the creativity and innovation within you.

Unplug from the Internet

The internet barrages you with news and information thereby taking control of your thoughts. Escape and let your mind wander, ponder and create on its own without disruptive stimuli! It is difficult control your thinking process when it is busy ‘processing’ incoming information.

Exercise

Physical activity offers very little downside in terms of health and also offers the opportunity for your brain to function more clearly. Along with exercising being good for the body it also helps to increase the flow of blood to the brain which helps to boost your thinking.

Take a Walk

The peace and tranquility will soothe your mind allowing it to ‘create’ as oppose to ‘process’ which is what it normally does when surrounding by chaos. The ‘passive’ stimuli Mother Nature presents such as a bird in flight, a running stream, or peace and quiet is more conducive to creativity than ‘disruptive’ stimuli. Oh and by the way the physical activity will benefit you as well!

Gain Separation from the Work Environment

The work environment is structured in a way that symbolizes related issues and functions and therefore ‘triggers’ your mind to focus on just these areas. This structure as a result places limitations on our ability to think more expansively which allows for the flow of more creativity and innovation. Since the mind is now otherwise occupied it can not be expected to create.

Removing yourself from this environment helps reduce the ‘triggers’ associated with it allowing the mind to function more ‘freely’ leading to greater creativity.

Get Plenty of Rest

A fatigued or stressed mind will not work properly but a mind with plenty of rest or at least resting is more prone to creativity.

In order to ‘rediscover’ the creative intelligence hidden within you it is often necessary to take deliberate actions to filter out the chaos. Life as it is, places many demands upon our time making it difficult to relax and focus. This restricts our ability for thinking outside the box which invariably produces innovative thought. The 5 suggestions discussed above offer ways in which you can better create an environment that promotes a more creative thinking process. More time than not the solution is found in our own recognition that our creative skills are being suppressed by our hectic schedules. By addressing this preoccupation of our minds, as suggested above, we can better realize the potential of our own creativity.

TJ Philpott is an author and Internet entrepreneur based out of North Carolina.
For more tips on how to bring out your creative intelligence and to also receive a free instructional manual that teaches valuable niche research techniques visit: http://affiliatequickstart.com/

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Wrap It Up in a Tune

2012-02-10T14:23:37Z

If you need to test something out properly, try it on children or animals.

“How about igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks,” sneered the Educational Inspector, “I’d like to see what style of music would soften them.”

“Well, rock and roll, obviously.” I replied, and set to work straightaway.

I knew I was right, so now to test it properly. Music is a fabulous carrying agent. The difference between taking in cold, hard knowledge from the page or screen and singing it into the echoing recesses of your brain, is the same as the difference between eating dry muesli and eating it with a bowlful of milk.

Music goes deep and reaches the parts that words don’t reach; music stays long and harnesses the emotions; music softens resistance to persuasion and captures the imagination. Music and dance combined enable the most reluctant of concepts to be absorbed, understood and retained.

I was to teach a large bunch of 7-8 year olds (who were a good representation of honest childhood) about rocks, and the inspector would be in next week to do his utmost to trip them up. All I had to do was find the rhythm and the rhyme and the riff to carry the words into the untenanted recesses of those young brains, and then we could play.

The chorus was easy – a rock and roll pattern to dance to, while singing,

Old rocks never die, they just keep changing ground,

Planet earth keeps rocking on, as it rolls around;

Old rocks never die, they all go underground,

Planet earth keeps rocking on, as it rolls around.

There is, frankly, just far too much information around. This is as true for internet-users and businesses as it is for kids in the classroom. The right sort of atmospheric music does so much of the work for you. These kids hardly knew me and were certainly not all going, ‘Please, please, please tell me loads of heavy facts about rocks.’ The first job – as everywhere – was being persuasive.

Enter the guitar riff courtesy of Apple’s Garage Band. Playing air guitar and doing the hand jive wins over about 100 % of 7-8 year olds. Having a pattern of rhythm and melody to remember words to, also keeps them on your side. One day, one of those kids will be answering the last question on ‘Who wants to be a millionaire?’ and there will be a stunned silence. All help has been used up and it is just them and this question…

‘What is fulgurite?’

a) a species of sea-bird

b) a viral disease

c) a metamorphic rock

d) a language

And they will smile and stand up and dance around their chair singing loudly,

“But when lightning fizzes into sand, it fuses into fulgurite

The fastest metamorphic rock you’ll ever want to know!”

And maybe they will remember to send me a couple of grand, because it was The Master Patternator who harnessed the powers of music, rhythm and rhyme to make an indelible intellectual mark. There was some talking to explain the concepts, but nearly the whole lesson was chanting, singing, dancing and making fun of big words.

Music provided the wave of lightness upon which we surfed, and music will open the doorway to anything. Even people who never liked The Benny Hill Show will start giggling at the theme tune or feel a sense of seriousness on hearing the introduction to a news broadcast. And everyone has a signature theme (as well as a song and a book) inside them. If you can find the 30-second fanfare that represents you, half your branding work is done even before you start to speak.

The Educational Inspector was impressed (although it pained him to admit it) and puzzled. Quite often the answer was arrived at by humming and dancing, and there had probably never been such laughter on the subject of metamorphic and igneous rocks before. He was clearly not a rock-and-roll man, and would have preferred an operatic recall – and that would have worked too.

So now the only question is, ‘are you using music to the maximum potential in the branding of your business?’ If you are a musician, then the problem is easily sorted – just let the theme well up inside and record it. If not, then find someone who can help and order yourself an exclusive, customised wraptune.

Visit themagicword.co and you can hear the song on rocks for free!

Hullo, I am David Dawson (also known as dzai the make-it-come-troubadour) a poet, a writer, a composer and a connoisseur of living lightly. I am co-author of the Quantum Heartspace Project and founder of themagicword.co. The YES Company has started up an ezine called RealizEzine to promote authentic and ethical entrepreneurs.

http://themagicword.co
http://realizezine.com

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Creating Imagery Exercises for Artists Through the Imagination

2012-02-09T06:00:10Z

Mental Imagery provides a powerful tool to expand your creativity. The exercises below provide examples of how your imagination can bring forth ideas that will foster your creativity.

Try one or more of the exercises and even try them all. Use them frequently, repeat some, modify others, use them to give rise to your own personal exercises. As you go over them try to imagine what each will mean to you. Some speak to the unconscious, others to the development of inner and outer controls. Some focus on changing painting styles and other how to expand your creativity. All are meant to stimulate and act as one of the many vehicles you will use to expand your creativity.

MENTAL IMAGERY EXERCISES

Creating Paintings

1. A large airborne balloon flies by and you catch the dangling rope and are quickly carried aloft. From your carrying case you withdraw a long paint brush and a tube of vivid red paint and with quick unhesitating strokes you paint a striking picture across the face of the surrounding clouds. All over the world the cloud is seen and your art is recognized for its striking original style. You are seen as a visionary who rides the winds of the creative spirit.

2. You now look at a blank canvas and see a seascape appear. Gentle waves rolling onto the shore. As you watch, the scene changes and the waves become higher and more powerful. You are watching a series of paintings unfold before you. You clearly visualize each picture as a painting. In time you visualize many different paintings as you stop and restart the sequence at will. You return to the first image and change it to a picture of tumultuous waves casting foam on the beach and waves that start from afar. You now believe that you can convert seascapes into dramatic paintings of any kind you wish. You feel exhilarated with your newfound power.

3. Now start to produce a series of beautiful landscapes. Again you have the capacity to watch the land change. You see forests and mountains and raging rivers and quiet still ponds. Each picture that appeals comes into focus and you stare at it knowing you can reproduce it or similar ones on a real canvas. You know that there is no limit to your imagination.

4. You stand before a canvas and paint a picture of any type. As you watch, the colors change. Mountains that were dark, become red, or orange, or green. Different colors merge together. You recognize that you have control over the landscape and can freely explore how colors change the painting.

5. Imagine a certain specific picture on a blank canvas. First, a human form standing quietly looking back at you. As you watch, the human form changes shape. It becomes elongated. The arms stretch out and make strange shapes. The legs curl up and the head twists into bizarre forms, from the grotesque to cartoon-like figures. You recognize how your imagination has given rise to unusual and totally unique pictures through shape-changing.

Belief in your imagination gives you power for your creative endeavors. Whether you follow the artist’s path and paint or sculpt or draw or go along a completely different path of creativity your imagination is your ally and feeds your inspiration and sense of purpose. Believe in your power that derives from your imagination. It will serve you well.

By Marvin H. Berenson, M.D. September 11, 2011

The mental imagery exercises in this article came from my book “Awakening Your Creativity.” You can rapidly and effectively expand your creative life by following the methods and exercises described in my creativity book where you will find the primary tools to change your life in ways that will excite and delight you. You can become creative.

Visit http://www.DrMarvinBerenson.com to review “Awakening Your Creativity” and sign-up to receive Dr. Berenson’s highly informative biweekly newsletter and two FREE gifts.

Marvin H. Berenson, M.D. is Clinical Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry, USC Keck School of Medicine, psychiatrist, lecturer, author and artist.

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The Key to Innovation

2012-02-07T06:19:58Z

Every day, we see new problems arise that have some effect on our lives. As members of a community, we can ignore them, which many do, or we can, as other pioneers in the past, explore them and come up with a method to live with our challenge or we can change our environment to cope with the new predicament.

In our past, the innovator might be the artist or architect, the carpenter or engineer, or the software programmer or business manager. However, today, we find that all people in every career need to have the skills to change their own world.

People who deal well with change, the recognized innovators, will tell us that there is a method to handle the challenge. First, we need to distinguish what new attributes have affected our surroundings. For instance, let us say our old building needs a means for the older members of the community to get from one floor to another. In many cases, only a few members of the neighborhood even have recognized the need, but we were given the task to come up with a solution.

First and the key to success, we need to create a method to communicate the need. The days of solving problems in a vacuum are over. Oh yeah, we can come up with the grandest elevator, or people mover, but at the end it will be the public around us that will judge our design and we will be the birth mother of a landmark or the scapegoat of a white elephant. Good communication fosters better research, which promotes multiple design concepts, involves the skilled laborers who will build the mechanism and more importantly plants the seed of acceptance when the new-fangled apparatus is added to our environment.

Does this process run smoothly? Honestly, real change to our environment always causes conflict. There are those who will vehemently protest the addition of any alterations to their old ways. We hear “why spend the money” or “we could have done it better.” Remember, all points of view are valid. However, as the person tasked to get those older members to the next floor, we have to transform our lives. Innovators need to listen to all, but the stress we carry by moving towards a new and changed surroundings needs to be noted and then released. This is important.

Once we build our foundation of a communication using reports, newsletters, and 3D drawings showing concepts and the impending alteration, we can follow any known process for solving a problem. Expect hiccups along the way and stay close to the process. Many innovators have been shocked to discover their designed sports car turned into a box with wheels when they left decisions to a less than informed purchasing manager or substitute construction supervisor. Watch the baptism of your creation throughout the process without stepping on toes. Be the cheerleader for positive change and incorporate the team to bring the change.

Charles Robbins is the author of many computer aided design textbooks on the World Class CAD website.

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How to Create Paintings of Love Using Mental Imagery

2012-02-06T02:32:32Z

Love comes in many forms: human, nonhuman, objective and abstract. But all reveal the deeply felt and intertwining elements of love that captivate and enthrall us. Through your imagination and the use of mental imagery you can create exciting, heartfelt and stimulating paintings of love in it many vicissitudes.

We seek love hoping to be enveloped by its entanglements. We welcome the closeness and interaction that comes from someone we love. We find ways to express its meaning. We sing songs of love and write poems to our beloved. And we paint pictures that express our longing, our vision, the special meaning of love and above all else the belief in its transformative powers. No wonder it is a favorite theme of artists.

MENTAL IMAGERY EXERCISES FOR LOVE PAINTINGS

The Art of Complimenting – Tips

2012-02-03T05:42:30Z

Compliments are a form of expression that will get you a very long way if you know how to use them properly. Everyone loves a sincere compliment simply because it shows that you care, it shows that your employees have done a terrific job and that maybe they have done actually more then you have asked of them.

A compliment shows appreciation and caring and is not something that should be thrown around gratuitously just because you feel like it.

Here is what you should keep in mind when complementing.

Be sincere – a compliment will go a long way if it is said with the correct tone of voice and in the correct manner. Look the person in the eye and tell him or her that they are doing an excellent job and that if they keep it up that way their dreams are only a step away from being fulfilled.

Be precise – if you decide to compliment someone do it regarding only one specific task so they know you are referring only to them and only on one aspect at which they have excelled. Be precise and be nice at the same time – if you yell a compliment like a drill sergeant yells an order I am sure it does not have the same effect. Good Job you maggot! will not do at all.

Make it public – the best compliment you can offer to someone is in public.This is the way they know that they are appreciated and other people know that also. A compliment in public can not be any more powerful than it all ready is.

This is what you should do when complimenting so they will have the maximum effect.

Adrian is the editor of this article. He also writes for http://www.officefloormat.net/. This is a website where you can find out more about the best office floor mat.

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Creativity – Instructions Not Included

2012-02-01T23:27:39Z

This article was inspired by a dialogue that I had with someone who commented on one of my blog posts. The post was about the resources that were required for Creativity. The person was looking for a definitive manual, a list of everything that they would need and the steps that they would need to go through. On reflection, my reply was probably less than helpful, but in a roundabout way I indicated that no such thing existed.

I still maintain that this is the case and if anyone tries to sell you such a manual then beware, however what they really needed was something to learn from, perhaps some case study material for a situation similar to theirs.

Putting together a creative system is a little like putting together flat pack furniture but without the instructions. If you have a reasonable skill level and knowledge of how such things are assembled then your furniture will grow out of the pile of pieces. If you are at the other end of the spectrum then you will be screaming for the instructions!

But what if the instructions do not exist, simply because every time the furniture is built by different people the result is different (but still a perfect piece of furniture)? What you need then are not instructions but an example of how the pieces fit together and a list of the tools required so that you can construct your unique item of furniture.

This is why we have components and tools to help you use creativity in business but the instructions are not included.

Derek Cheshire is an expert, speaker, consultant and facilitator in the areas of Business Creativity, Innovation and Idea Generation. He is creator of the Innovation Toolkit, and co creator of workshops such as Bite Sized Creativity, Creativity as a Business Tool and The Idea Factory.

Receive regular updates on Business Creativity and Innovation by visiting http://www.creative4business.co.uk and filling out the ezine sign up form.

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Creative Notions

2012-01-31T08:06:45Z

Many people mistakenly believe that only a selected few can produce a steady flow of creative genius. That’s not true in any way. The reality is, creativeness is pretty much like a muscle that must be exercised to naturally give out good results. If you do not practice on your creative thinking, this ability will pretty much atrophy into extinction. But keep working on it, and this ability will shortly come to you in a snap.

So how does one release their creative thinking? Well, the very first thing is to become a human leech. We don’t mean people should suck the blood out of everyone – we are pronouncing that you need to suck up as much information and knowledge you’ll be able to find. Read everything available – bad and good, and keep your intellect open to the infinite chances of the universe. The more that you know, the more you’ll be wanting to know, and the more your wonder will be exercised. Gear up to be staggered by tiny facts that add a little bit of colour into your life.

Concentrate on a creative activity each day. Yes, it is an effort. Even doodling is a creative activity. Do not let anything get in your way. Mindlessness might be a creative activity, but for individuals who are only starting to unharness a small amount of creative thinking in their lives, it is useful and inspiring to have clear proof, that, “hey, what I am doing is getting somewhere.” So why not try it? Practice drawing for just 2 minutes everyday. Bring out your old camera and start snapping pictures anywhere you can find. Keep a book and make a point to draft in it as much as possible. Another cool idea is to write by describing something with all five of your senses. Try and avoid obscure adjectives like “marvelous,” “amazing,” and “delicious.” Before you realise it, you will have built yourself a miniscule portfolio, and you will be astonished by the expansion you have undertaken after assembling all those artistic endeavors. Who knows, you may basically take to liking those things which you do every day. Pretty shortly, those things will turn into a part of you and you will be hooked on these creative exercises. Think out of the box — or do not. Often, inhibitions are basically a great thing. Restrictions discipline you to work within your resources. All this permits you to be more ingenious. Creative liberty is great, but restrictions impose discipline. Try some new things everyday and let your experiences broaden your point of view.

Explore a new district in your area. Spend an afternoon in a museum to which you have never been before. Charm somebody on the bus. Open up to the people around you. As you thrust yourself out of your comfortable area more and more every day, your sense of excitement grows, and so does your zest for life.

Give it some thought. When was the last time you did something you had never done before? If it has been a while, I tell you, you have been missing a lot of experiences that could add to your individual growth, emotionally, psychologically, physically, or spiritually. Why not try bungee jumping today? Not merely will you learn, but you’ll also have masses of stories to share, permitting you to practice your storytelling abilities and making you the life of the party.

Embrace insanity. Not actually to the point of admitting yourself into the psychological ward. As John Russell once recounted, “Sanity eases, but insanity is more interesting.” Precisely! Each creative thought was once assumed insanity by other “normal” folks at one time or more. Fortunately, that did not stop the creative geniuses from standing by them. The thing is, reason or being ordinary confines folks to think in routine. Re-think limits. Creativeness is actually breaking thru barriers.

Yes, this comprises the bizarre and the downright unusual. I don’t say that you yourself should develop a creative character. That might go haywire. An illustration of a creative character would be George Washington, who frequently rode into battle exposed, or James Joyce, who wrote “Dubliners” with beetle juice for a very strong fear of ink, or Albert Einstein, who was afraid his cat was a spy sent by his rival (or in thinking imaginatively in this situation, the term could likely be “archnemesis.”)

It is important that your creativeness does not get you detached from the physical world fully. I’m hoping this tract has galvanized you to start to think outside your “limits.” If you follow these steps pretty shortly you will be living a life full of fascinating journeys. Letting your creative thinking run wild will cause a new zest for living life.