There is power in confession, especially when it comes to releasing the grip of creative fear. The little, niggly “fear rushes” you feel when you are close to the truth can be almost paralyzing, and serve as an invitation to distract yourself from the source of the fear with things that are breezy and light. The rub? Fear avoidance is fun for a bit, but it also keeps you doing the “running man” in the same spot for ages - while your creative self expression growth gets … [Read more...]
5 Ways to Sharpen your Creative Edge
August 7, 2014 By Leave a Comment
For a creative edge to stay sharp requires attention. Notice I said attention, not work. The little mindful things you do to stretch your imagination, open your heart and shift how you see yourself connecting in the world are the real sharpening tools, and show you exactly where your creative edge lies. Sharpening it takes mindful action. To help crack open your defenses and habits to challenge yourself in a meaningful way, rather than max limits through sheer force to expand your … [Read more...]
Creativity Kick-Start: Review Old Ideas to Spark New Inspiration
August 4, 2014 By Leave a Comment
Inspiration is a beautiful, mysterious gift. It’s an unpredictable, illuminating and altogether tingly experience that sneaks up on you in interesting ways. While inspiration catches your eye and motivates your heart in the moment, what happens to that insight beyond the moment? Some ideas catch on fire right away and have a mind of their own. Other ideas stall, become frustrating or soon feel sticky or clunky, along with your creative drive. It’s easy to jump to the conclusion that in order … [Read more...]
What Does your Creative Caricature Look Like?
July 31, 2014 By Leave a Comment
When you take a moment to tune in and think about it, you have a vision of what your creative self, or creative caricature, looks like. Is it strong, sturdy and super hero-esque? Colorful, whimsical and playful? Royal and confident? Let’s not forget silly, giggly and mischievous… You can also have a few unique creative caricatures that show up throughout the day on different projects or with specific clients, friends or family. Is there a “normal” amount? … [Read more...]
Creativity Kick-Start: Change a Part of your Routine
July 28, 2014 By Leave a Comment
A routine can be a double-edged sword at times. While it helps you focus creative energy and sustain momentum, it can also stall your creative flow when the routine never changes. If you’ve hit a wall and aren’t exactly sure when it started, why not mix things up and change part of how you approach the work day, personal time or relationships with others? Small, Mindful Changes Stretch into Big Awareness Huge sweeping changes may sound appealing when you want to shake loose … [Read more...]
3 Simple Tips for Listening to your Creative Gut
July 24, 2014 By 2 Comments
The creative gut is an interesting creature. It runs on intuition and is a natural part of you. Yet, over time, you might learn or decide not to trust it. Between crushed expectations, negative experiences with someone close to you or old patterns you took on from family, your creative gut can lose the upper hand - and you don’t even realize it. Your inner truth becomes harder to sense, and what you really want to see can be hiding behind a super foggy mirror. This makes … [Read more...]
Creativity Kick-Start: Ask for Help When Creative Frustration Strikes
July 21, 2014 By 1 Comment
Creative frustration is not a four letter word, even if it feels like it. The “stuckness” simply offers you an opportunity to see the truth behind a challenge by finding a fresh perspective. New insight can come through hard work, connections, luck, faith, meditation or simply walking away and taking a breather. However, when your go-to inspiration tools fall flat, along with your belief in yourself, it's easy to toss-up your hands in frustration and walk away from what you’ve … [Read more...]
Does a Creative Impulse Follow a Plan or Purpose?
July 17, 2014 By Leave a Comment
A creative impulse is intoxicating. The rush of inspiration you feel in your mind and body lights you up, offering a body buzz that sends endorphins sky high. It’s dreamy, exciting and fun all at the same time. When the initial feeling passes and your body settles down, sometimes the mind can come barging in with an agenda of it’s own. It’s not trying to ruin your fun on purpose, it sometimes just let’s the ego drive the bus instead of the heart. So when you … [Read more...]
Creativity Kick-Start: Take Photos to Expand the Creative Eye
July 14, 2014 By Leave a Comment
Your creative eye is a window into yourself, whether you realize it or not. Lifestyle, family, relationships, personal highs and lows all play a part (sometimes subconsciously) in what you see as beautiful and inspiring, negative or depressing. These are the real tools that shape what you see as picture-worthy and inspiring, acting as a connection point to your inner creative sense of self. That’s why a creative eye does not require lessons, artistic parents or an … [Read more...]
Clearing Out Weeds in your Creative Garden
July 10, 2014 By Leave a Comment
A creative garden is the space you set up to play with new ideas to see how they grow. It’s like an incubator for cool ideas and inspirations you want to simmer a bit longer. The seeds you plant could be for your business, career or personal life - whatever feels intriguing but doesn’t require immediate action. The class you were thinking of attending or developing? It’s a seed in your creative garden. Your latest passion for biking? It’s in there too. Thinking of trying … [Read more...]