Creativity is both a way to discover your higher purpose and an expression of your existing connection to your higher purpose.  Creativity is vital for success in every part of life.  If you’re feeling stuck or uninspired, here are some ways to kick start your creative genius. 

Create the right environment
This will be different for everyone.  Some people need complete silence and solitude; others need crowds and noisy activity.  Go with whatever works for you.  Include some visual stimulation in your creative work space.  This could take the form of some art work, “knick-knacks”, inspiring posters or pictures.  Set the scene with candles, fragrant oils, indoor plants or waterfalls.  You may prefer light, bright and airy with an open outlook or dark and secluded where distractions can be reduced or eliminated.  Try rearranging your work area – a new spot for your desk can give you a whole new perspective.

Journal
Journaling can be both a creative activity in and of itself, and a way to clear blockages that may be interfering with your creativity (see the article on resistance).  Journaling does not have to be just free writing.  You can use pictures and other creative mediums (a lot like scrap booking).  Think about including drawings and diagrams.  Mind mapping is a good technique for your journal.  Begin by writing your idea or problem in a circle in the centre of the page, then spider diagram it until you get a breakthrough.  With this type of brainstorming technique it is important to put all ideas down without judgement or censorship.

Get moving

• Visit a museum, art gallery, or craft fair – get inspired by the creativity of others.
• Get away for the weekend – you will be rejuvenated by the time out, impacted by the immersion in nature and stimulated by the change of routine.
• Take a class – in painting, drawing, writing, singing, craft – anything!  Just get around others who are willing to learn and be inspired.
• Clear out.  Have a massive de-clutter at home.  Go through your cupboards, donate unwanted items to charity.  Clean out your desk and tidy your drawers.  Reorganise your creative work space. You will be amazed at how this makes room in your life to receive something new.

Input
Expose yourself to new people, new places, new foods, new ideas.  Read a variety of fiction and non-fiction books, watch “arty” movies, listen to music outside the realm of your normal taste.  Try new activities that challenge your limits – have you ever been rock climbing, abseiling or hang gliding?  Tackle regular activities in a different way.  For example if you ride a road bike, go trail riding on a mountain bike.  Take a different route to work.  We are creatures of habit and tend to take the path of least resistance, settling down into a routine that makes life easy.  Mix things up a bit, change them around, do new things to get new input and see what effect this has on your creative output.

Give it time
In our busy lives we are often so preoccupied with the multiple tasks that need to be accomplished each day that we don’t set aside time for creative pursuits.  Schedule a block of time for creativity and allow yourself to engage in some creative activities without having the expectation of  an immediate result.  Sometimes the creative process that you have begun will bubble away on the subconscious level for some time, and inspiration may come through in random unrelated moments, like while you are in the shower or out walking.  Be sure to have a journal or notepad handy to capture any unexpected moments of inspiration. Try to schedule creative activities for your times of peak performance.  Do you do your best work first thing in the morning, or during the later afternoon?  Get to know your own body clock and discover what works best for you. Persist over time.  Realise that it will take more than one creative session to release the powerful creator within.

Some other ideas:

• Relax – use techniques like grounding and meditation to get you into a good space and change gears from the fast pace of every day life.
• Dream – if you can dream it, you can become it.  Day-dream, use your imagination, visualise.
• Integrate – if you have two opposite ideas, can you do both? Is there a new way to bring them together?  Can you merge something old with something new?
• Fail – if you are not failing, you are not trying anything new.  If you try and fail, you’ve learnt one more way it doesn’t work – what’s next?  Move on quickly to the next idea.
• Play – be childlike, have fun, enter into the world of fantasy.
• Be curious – ask:  Why? How? What’s missing?
• Trust your intuition – go with your “gut feeling” and inspiration.  See where it leads.

Got more ideas to add?  Leave a comment below, I’d love to include your contribution.