Get Creative

I think we all have the capacity to be creative. For some, it seems to come easy. We look at someone and think, wow! They put out so much fill-in-the-bank. They must be so creative! I wish I was more like them.

I’ve been there. I watch tiktok videos and am so impressed with the content some people seem to come up with constantly. I certainly am not creaative enough for that app.

Or am I?

What do we need to do to tap into our creativity? How come when we were kids, it seemed so easy to create all kinds of things? As kids, we could create whole other worlds. Our imagination seemed to know no bounds. As we grow older and bcome self aware we start to lose that creativity.

I think middle school can start to kill creativity and imagination. That is about when cliques start to form and other kids can start to look at you if you are too “strange” for them. We start thinking we’re weird and we just want to fit in or be cool.

And we fall out of practice with creativity.

But we can get it back. Now that I’m old, I’m getting to the point that I only care what a few people think of me. And they accept me for all my weirdness. I’m learning to re-embrace my quirkiness and finding my creative spark again.

The thing with creativity, much like vacation time at many companies, if you don’t use it, you lose it.

So, how do you get it back? You start using it. It’s going to be hard at first. And you’ll have setbacks. And days you will kick and scream and fight it but stick with it. Because it will come back.

Often I find myself not feeling creativity but once I sit down and start editing photos or writing, the ideas start flowing. I’ve read many articles and interviews from different writers and they all same the same thing… just do it.

Every. Single. One.

Writers aren’t more creative or imaginative than the rest of us. They just make time for writing. They set aside time every day and write. Even when they don’t feel like it. The same thing goes for photographers. Or painters. Or whatever.

Do you go to your job and want to do that every day? I don’t but we do it because we made a commitment. If you want to find your creativity again, you need to make the same commitment. Set aside time each day for whatever creative endeavor you want to do.

Wake up 30 minutes earlier and start writing, drawing, or whatever it is you want to get into. Not a morning person? Use your lunch hour or your commute home (may not work for all activities but you could sketch or write on a bus or train).

Find some time each day to practice your craft.

What creative endeavor are you going to start doing each day?