Creatively Putting It Together

We have spent the last few days talking about “creativity” and now it’s time to put some action to our discussion.

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to do a minimum of one creative thing by the end of this week. It doesn’t need to be big. It doesn’t need to be lavish. It doesn’t need to be expensive. And remember, there are no “have-to’s” so you may choose to excuse yourself from the exercise. Just remember this: you’ve probably already gotten creative in how you are handling the past few weeks. This exercise should be a snap for you.

Now, creativity can be manifested in just about every activity – yes, every activity. Tonight, as you finish your work or school day, or while you are thinking about your evening meal, take a look at everything you plan to do for the rest of the week and next weekend. Before you get caught up in another activity, write it all down – make a list, if you like working from lists. Under each “to do” item, write out how you would normally accomplish the task.

Once you have the next few days itemized, go back to your “how” details for each item. “How” could you accomplish it differently? If you normally wake up the kids with a holler, what about bursting into song instead? If you are set to do some necessary grocery shopping, take a different route and pay special attention to the lawns and gardens of the “new” homes on your route. (You might find some new ideas for your own yard or flower boxes, if you have them.)

Open up your mind to new possibilities. In that fresh, wide-open space you have created in your mind, innovative ideas will emerge. Just like outer space, your mind abhors a vacuum. It wants to be filled. Actually, it needs to be filled – and ideas are great space-fillers.

Spend the next few days filling your mind with new “input,” and fully experience where the journey takes you.