Creativity - The Secret to Letting it Flow

By Vishal | No Comments

How often have you heard people say ‘I am just not a creative person’? Creativity is the power to create something and that power exists in each one of us. It is not for the artists, music composers and the craftsmen to own. Creating a report can be a creative exercise if you don’t decide to stick to a given, preset template. So can a proposal, a letter and a new dish.

So if you are the kind of people who believe that creativity is a trait that people are born with and that if you don’t have it, you will never be able to be creative, then you are in for a surprise. Each one of us has a creative side in us. Over the years based on the environment that we have been brought up in, the external people in our lives, our own ability to take risks and exposure to certain activities, accentuates or suppresses the trait in us. By the time we are able to understand the meaning of the word, the trait has been evolved or been inhibited.

But there is no reason to fret because it is in your power to ensure that it resurfaces and then you can enjoy the exhilaration that comes from creating. Surprisingly, creativity comes from a certain discipline. A discipline that tells you to set aside a certain time to try and be creative. There are likely to be times when creativity does not come in and you are totally blank. It is at times like these that the discipline needs to be practices the most. Perseverance to stick to it is what will finally break the deadlock.

This obviously does not mean that you sit in a room thinking of a creative way to solve a problem or write an article for days and days together. There are techniques that allow you to break through such periods, only to realize that the creativity juices flow with a vengeance and like never before.

The key lies in the fact that you need to let go of all the inhibitions and preconceived notions. All prejudices and statements that tell you that it should be done in a certain manner need to be thrown out of the window. Most people know that the magic lies in letting go but are not able to do so. This is primarily due to the fact that the conscious mind has so many layers of prejudice and experiences that have been formed over the years that it does not allow the mind to flow. It holds on with the need to control, suppressing creativity in the bargain.

One of the best techniques to break out of this imbroglio is to distract your conscious mind with some other activity. Take a nap or a shower. You can also go for a long walk, doodle for a while, have a chat with a friend, watch the television for a while. Activities like these do not need too much of concentration and allow your subconscious to work while you are busy with something else. This should obviously be done after spending a considerable amount of time struggling with the challenge at hand. This allows for the problem to get internalized in the mind allowing for subconscious processing.

And viola! You may realize that when you get up from the nap or end your walk you will have a ready solution to your problem or be ready to start penning down your articles or write the poem you have been thinking of!

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