Two Steps Anyone Can Follow for Unlocking Creativity

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Creativity is what we use to find the next, best great idea. However, it’s not always something that just pops in your head or is ready at your beck and call. Creativity is a skill set that needs time for development.

As entrepreneurs and business owners, we’re always pushing out information and then sucking up so much of it to try and grow our business that we often overlook setting aside time to unwind and allow real creativity to sprout. We overlook the fact that we need some downtime to really absorb all that’s going on around us.

…if your mind is cluttered with to-dos… there isn’t much room left over for inspiring ideas…

Personally, I think it’s crucial to anyone’s success to find tools and habits that allow you to nurture your inner guidance and inspirational system. Think about it – if your mind is cluttered with to-dos: trying to improve sales, dealing with employees, stressing about bills, etc. there isn’t much room left over for inspiring ideas. This is where developing habits for personal inspirational time will help you find your next “big” idea or an amazing solution to a problem you were facing.

You can liken this time to the “Aha!” shower moments. It never fails that some of my best ideas are always in the shower. Many other successful people, for instance Jack Canfield, co-author of the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, can attest to this “phenomenon” as well. In that moment, your subconscious takes over and your real genius creates amazing ideas.

Now, imagine doing this on purpose in a way that allowed you to nurture the best of your ideas. Over the years, I’ve found there are two essential ingredients to unlocking your best creativity.

#1 – Make Room For New Ideas, aka “The Purge”
In order to receive, you have to make room for new ideas. I do this daily by following Julia Cameron’s tip in the Artist’s Way of writing out three pages of whatever comes to mind. I consider this my daily purge. I used to do this by hand, however, I found an awesome online resource that lets me type it out at 750words.com. If you’re a writer, you should definitely check it out.

#2 – Be Available for New Ideas, aka “The Reception”
Just about everyone has heard the expression, “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink.” In our busy times of digesting information, we rarely take the time to actually absorb it and allow this information to foster new creative ways of doing things. We’re getting plenty of water, but we’re not taking the time to drink. In a hyper-competitive world, taking 15 minutes a day of alone time could be the edge you needed to stand out from your competitors.

Just find someplace private and peaceful where you can be alone with your thoughts and see what emerges. Don’t use this time to focus on worries, but rather on positive ideals and expressions of gratitude. It’s lot more difficult to create something good when you’re coming from a place of negativity and worry.

Do these two steps everyday, or as often as you can, and you’ll start to notice it’s easier and easier to find your inner inspiration and creativity.