Have a Creative Outlet

Do you have a creative outlet in your life? 

You may be lucky to work in a creative field that stimulates your mind of creativity but there are some who find it a lot harder to get that innate creativity.   

When I was young, I assumed that creativity was all about your ability to:

paint

draw

sculpt

dance

create music

But it is about a those and a whole lot more.

And that’s why we all need a creative outlet — it's not to simply create things — but to allow ourselves to fully express our true selves. We allow our own inner light to shine through in our creations.When was the last time you sat down and colored? Why don’t we do that kind of thing anymore?

I finally realized that the only thing that allows my mind to completely "go quiet" is writing. Yet it still has taken me years to recognize that I could actually cultivate this habit. I grew up with voices in my head that said creative activities were for kids and not a productive use of time.

The point is to provide a structure from which to view the mind from the same perspective each day. The activity was the same, so the nuances of the mind revealed themselves. Creativity thrives in this environment.

listen, Just like the body needs sleep in order to function optimally, the mind also needs rest. Mobile phones, social media, and the internet,  have virtually blocked easy access to this vital necessity.

White noise or down time allows the thinking mind to take rest so that new neural connections can be made and new ideas formed. I can’t tell you how many problems I’ve solved by holding a pen or pencil. The simple act of letting go of the grip of conceptual mind seems to magically release a flood of insights. A creative outlet invites this experience. It’s possible to train the mind to do this through meditation practice, but I find that keeping my hands busy making art can also achieve the same result.

And it’s fun! It is so fun to create art! Or write. Or dance or draw.

But you have to get out of your own way.

We are creative beings. As technology reaches into the farthest reaches of civilization, we are becoming a planet of consumers. The opposite of consumer is a producer: someone who creates.

Though I’ve been writing my entire life, I’ve recently committed to writing on a daily basis.

I have a challenge for you. Because creating can be a solitary endeavour, I’d like to invite you to share your creative acts and commit to 30 days of practicing whatever your form is — whether it is painting, doodling on cardboard boxes, pressing flowers, woodworking, photography, writing poems, sewing puppets, baking cupcakes, making soup, carving pumpkins…

Getting through the mud is tough, but once you manage to break through it, it is so miraculous to finally be able to bloom. There’s a flow that starts to happen and your intuition seems to guide you to things that start to really energize you and make you feel inspired and excited about what you’re doing. You start to feel more in-tune with your own inner truth.

The inner challenge is this: create something every day for 30 days. Are you in? Leave a comment or hit reply to let me know. I’ll be posting your daily updates on my Instagram account and Twitter. Join me there!