Aspire to be creative

It is a sad and untrue fact of life that many people believe only a very lucky and talented few are able to produce creative works seemingly at will. Like anything, creativity needs work to build. You wouldn't expect to win a bodybuilding competition without working out at the gym would you? Creativity is very much the same. It needs exercise to grow or it may disappear altogether. Exercise your creative ‘muscle' and it will be there immediately.

How do you do this then? Creativity starts in the mind, and this is the muscle you need to feed in order for the part associated with creativity to grow, and the food your brain loves best is information. Ingest as much as you possibly can because the more knowledge you have, the more you'll want. Read. The more you read, the better. It doesn't matter what you read, whether good or terrible. If you read both, you will more readily recognize the difference. Your inner child's sense of wonder will make you amazed at both the tiny facts and the enormity of the Universe.

Exercise your sense of adventure every day. You can start small, for example go for a drive or a walk and explore somewhere near your home you've never been before. Have a meal by yourself in a café or restaurant and talk to strangers whilst you're there. When you get sufficiently brave, you could even try chatting someone up on the bus. If it does fails miserably no problem. Simply get off at the next stop and call a taxi! Day by day, getting slightly more out of your comfort zone, you'll find you have more of a sense of fun, adventure and indeed, life. Abseiling or parachute jumping may not appeal right now but why not try something new for a change? It will give you something to talk about, you may meet some friends, but one thing is for sure – you'll be mighty proud of yourself and rightly so. If it has been a long time since you've had a go at something new then you're missing out. It will make you grow whether in terms of your mental, spiritual or emotional state.

What is more interesting – a ‘normal' person or a slightly ‘insane' one? By ‘insane' I don't mean someone who's been admitted to the local mental hospital but as a famous quote from John Prussell says “Sanity calms, but madness is more interesting”. Do you know of any ‘normal' person either now or in history that has come up with a truly creative idea, of made a startling scientific discovery? Thank goodness the ‘insane' people had the conviction to stand by their ideas and beliefs. ‘Sanity' rhymes with ‘banality' after all, and restricts free thought ‘outside the box'. Joking apart, a creative mind is a wonderful thing only if not taken to extremes. Yes, creativity can break down barriers as if they were never there, but alongside this can come some extremely odd and eccentric personality traits. Take for example, George Washington who was known to enter battle naked on occasion, or Albert Einstein who honestly believed that his pet cat had been sent by a rival scientist. So, you can see, although I'm not saying that a creative mind isn't a wonderful thing, don't let it take you out of the realms of reality

This article was written to help and embolden you to start ‘thinking outside the box', that is, do not be imprisoned by what you believe your limits to be. Take on board at least a few of the tips I have given you and you will soon be having adventures that you would not otherwise have dreamed of. Starting to think more creatively will release your passion for living life to the full.