1. Keep a Journal. You will get to know yourself. Find out when you feel most inspired and when not. Then maximize the inspiration.
2. When creativity calls, be ready. Got an idea in the middle of driving or in a shower? Do not expect the idea to stick around to acomodate your schedule. Pull over, get out of the shower – you can always take a shower later. The same idea, however, will not call again. ( if you absolutely cannot pull over, use the modern technology to record you idea, or remember the thought that triggered the idea, repeating the idea over and over in you mind also healps!)
3. Change your environment once in a while. It does not have to be a getaway to the spa to ignite your creative genious – a different place or situation you have never been before, a new company, a new kind of food will do. Be adventurous!
4. Have confidence in your ideas. Do not expect others to believe in your ideas if you do not think they are important. Chaces are, your creative ideas will need a few backers to come to fruition – be the first one.
5. Say hi to as many people as possible: you never know who has the right story to inspire you. When people talk to you at the register, talk back. Some may be crazy, other geniouses – all stories are different and fresh.
6. Be courageous: have the guts to be cretive and to tailor your life to achive your creative potential. If you encounter a mistake at your creative process, have the courage to start all over! Being stubborn also helps.
7. Travel. You will be in akward situatons, act in unexpected ways, and embarass yourself communicating in a language that is foreign. Nothing like a trip to the unknown to shake up your reality!
8. Ditch the routine. Let me guess, you probably have one! Some routines are important, some are not. Going to work – yes. The way to get to work – no. Change it up and you may discover a new way to look at things.
9. Have a hobby that you are inclined to be good at. Do not try to force yourself to learn electric guitar when you are clearly bad at music – this will only stress you and our mind out. A hobby is not meant to please enyone but yourself. Find something that you feel productive and talented at – it will give your mind ease and let it focus on the problems that require creativity even if you are not aware of it.
10. Give your mind a vacation. Meditation works, shower, singing in traffic – whatever takes your mind off the overdrive that can be caused by the digital world, stress at work, family, personal life or creative block. Your mind knows when it needs for a break, trust it when it is stuck. When you hit a wall, change it up, do a midless task such as washing dishes or laundry. You will be surprised how productive the mind can be after a little breather.
Images: Temporary whiteboard dry-erase drawing at Harvard Innovation Lab by Jerrie Lyndon
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