Creativity is Living in the Now

“You’re very creative.”

You said it before to someone. Probably several people have said it to you.

People collectively think of creativity as something we are born with. That’s probably partly true. But no matter how well I was born to shoot basketball hoops, if I never did it, I’d be awful at it when I tried. Even if I didn’t have the innate talent of another player, practice would no doubt make me better. Creativity works the same way.

Remember, practice is the key to unlocking your creative potential. It’s not about innate talent but about the effort you put in. You have the power to shape your creativity through consistent practice.

I remember when I was a kid being told that we were born with the brain cells we have, many die off, and what is left is what you’ve got. It doesn’t necessarily work that way. The brain is constantly rewiring itself, but we must excite it to do so. It’s not the cells, it seems; it is the rewiring that makes all the difference. This process is called neuroplasticity. In simpler terms, neuroplasticity is the brain's ability to reorganize itself by forming new neural connections. You’ve probably heard of it. It’s basically saying that the brain is not hardwired as I was taught in school, but is more moldable, like plastic. New brain roads are continually being developed if the brain is stimulated. Neuroplasticity does several things if we tease the brain to do it. By opening new pathways, fresh ideas emerge. We become more open-minded and receptive to varying perspectives. As these pathways are strengthened, we become more confident because these new things become easier. It’s like shooting that basket. If you get out of your head, you almost don’t have to think about it. The body and mind do it.

There are several things you can do to increase your creativity through practice.

Don’t be so hard on yourself. Allow yourself to brainstorm when you write. Brainstorm ideas. Brainstorm prose. Let yourself flow. Let yourself make mistakes.

Write as much as you can, read as much as you can, but do other creative or problem-solving hobbies. Take creative walks. Let your mind wander as you do. Explore other creative expressions: pottery making, music, photography, painting, coloring. I’m reading a book on how coloring relaxes your mind, takes away stress, and makes you more creative.

Approach everything and every new project as though you were starting over like a beginner. This means approaching each new project with a fresh perspective, a willingness to learn, and a curiosity to explore new ideas. No matter how successful you are. Try new things in your writing. Try new recipes. Try learning new skills. Study new subjects. Watch a documentary. All of these increase the pathways in your brain, which provide the building blocks for creativity.

Part of being creative is noticing things. Really noticing things. Make a point of looking at all the things around you. Concentrate on your individual senses and see what is in your environment that you hadn’t noticed before. Keep a journal of your experiences. Writing things down puts another pathway into your brain and creates strong memories that you can later incorporate into your writing through characters, activities, or descriptions.

Solve puzzles. Read books with mystery, thriller, suspense, romance, action, or horror elements. Look at your work. Don’t write; brainstorm, get ideas, and write them down for new plotlines and patterns that you can incorporate. Think about how you can add symbolism or incorporate your theme to a greater extent. Make everything a curious puzzle. All these things work your brain's “muscle” and make it more creative.

Get feedback from others, collaborate with others, and brainstorm with others. Hearing other points of view opens your mind to new possibilities and options. Relish your discussions with your editors and your agent. Exposure to other people’s viewpoints and thoughts stimulates new ideas in you.

Change your environment. Sometimes, working in the same place makes your work stale. I have multiple places I enjoy writing, inside and outside, in a car or on a plane, in airports, and different houses in different cities. When I’m not writing, I’m walking in the woods, taking the dogs out for a stroll, planting a flower, and other things that give my mind a break, throwing my thoughts from my conscious mind to my unconscious where new things can build.

Relax more. It’s hard to be creative when the pipes are closed with stress. Meditate. Take time to reflect. Shut your eyes and think about your work without typing. Think about the whole picture. Think about parts. 

Do things that calm your mind. When you’ve been working a bit, take fifteen minutes and do something different. That momentary step away from your work will unclog the blocks, and the words will flow when you sit back down to write.

Read voraciously and in all genres. Open your mind to new thoughts. Fiction and nonfiction, poetry, short stories, essays, movies, plays. Play video games. All these things give you new mental stimulation. They hit you differently emotionally and intellectually. They provide you with material for your work. They spawn connective thoughts. They incite memories of your own. The more you experience other stories, the better your own will be.

Write every day, if possible. The more you develop that writing “muscle,” the better and faster it will perform. Being creative takes practice. To practice, you must show up. Sit down and write something you want to write. Play with it through a child’s eyes. Enjoy it. It’s not work. Make it fun.

Get enough sleep. I’ve found that when I don’t give myself the necessity, not luxury, of sleep, I am not as creative as I might be. To function well, your mind must be at rest. I use the analogy that it is difficult to see the bottom of a deep pool of water when the water is rushing. You want the water to be calm and at peace. When your mind is like that, you can go deeply into the pools of your unconscious.

Creativity is not something that you sit down and do. It is a lifestyle. It is the way you conduct yourself throughout the day. It is the activities that you choose to do. Creativity is living in the moment, every moment. When you’re in that zone, there is no past, no future, only the present. Creativity comes from living totally in the present without distractions. Living. That’s the best way to practice creativity and infuse it into everything you do.

Yes, some minds are born for creativity better than others, but we can all be more creative no matter what we were given at birth. We can build our creativity through practice simply by living creatively.

Engage in activities that challenge your thinking, incite your emotions, broaden your perspectives, challenge your points of view and beliefs, and develop skills that encourage your brain to work more flexibly and imaginatively.

By incorporating the ideas and strategies I’ve outlined here, you can increase your creativity simply by living. Every moment of your life becomes an expression of yourself, which is the ultimate creative act. Following some of these suggestions that I employ daily in my life, you’ll not only improve your skills at generating new and innovative ideas, but you’ll also find great reward and fulfillment in the creative process.

Don’t say others are creative. Say you are. Realize that, like anything, creativity comes from practice. Make a choice. Living in the present. Observing the world around you as it happens. Make multiple creative choices throughout the day. Make your life one continual choice to be creative. Put yourself on that proverbial ball court. Practice creativity. It will change your life, work, happiness, and financial rewards.

Practice creativity by living in the now. Become one with your world, your work, and yourself.