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Crank up your creativity

Pamela Allardice
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
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Crank up your creativity
Remember that feeling from childhood of being completely absorbed in something, like building a sandcastle or practising handstands?
 
Pamela Allardice
When you’re juggling a hectic schedule and never-ending to-do lists, it’s easy to get bogged down. If you could do with a booster shot of creative juice, try these ideas:

  • 1. Write a soap opera
    When life is not going according to plan, it’s satisfying to enter a world where you can control what your characters do and say. Keep a notebook or open file on your computer, kick off with the first idea that comes into your mind – then see where it takes you. For example, George Georgeson might have been the boss at work, but he wasn’t at home. Only last week, the rest of the Georgeson clan … or Laura yawned and looked out of her window, across to the abandoned lot next door. A movement in the grass caught her eye …

  • 2. Meditate – with a twist
    According to traditional Chinese medicine, if your body’s flow of qi, or energy, is blocked or stagnant, different organs, including the brain, will not function optimally. This harmonising meditation sequence helps rebalance your female (yin) and male (yang) energies. Sit quietly, with your eyes closed. Inhale and imagine that the power of the earth is flowing up through the soles of your feet, like water from an underground spring. This is yin, or feminine energy. Continue to visualise yourself inhaling this cooling, steadying force for 1-2 minutes. Next, visualise the sun overhead and feel its warm rays falling on the top of your head. This is yang, or masculine energy. Imagine the yang energy beaming all the way down your spine, in parallel to the cool yin energy flowing upwards. Hold this image in your mind, continuing to rhythmically breathe in yin and exhale yang for 5 minutes.

  • 3. Peace, by piece
    Remember that feeling from childhood of being completely absorbed in something, like building a sandcastle or practising handstands? Many personal growth and life-coaching techniques are based on this idea of focusing attention on one thing, and so allowing yourself to become lost in the present moment, instead of being distracted by some past or future event. The reason that jigsaws are so conducive to finding inspirational solutions to problems is that your conscious mind is completely absorbed in the task of finding the next right-shaped piece. This allows your subconscious mind to range freely on a much deeper level – you will be surprised by the left-field thoughts and ideas that suddenly pop into your head.

  • 4. Bash something
    Sign up for a class in an activity that will give you a physical jolt, such as self-defence, kung fu, kick-boxing, wood-chopping or mosaic-making. However flat and jaded you are feeling mentally, there’s something about letting fly physically, whether it’s with a hammer, an axe or your fists, that is intensely liberating – which in turn opens you up to thinking of a different take on any problem.

  • 5. Knit one, pearl (of wisdom) two
    Knitting’s calming effects come from the repetitive rhythms of needles, yarn and hands: these all induce the classic ‘relaxation response’ of lowered heart rate and blood pressure, which increase mental alertness and relaxation and help you get in touch with your creative side. If you’re a novice, visit your local craft shop to find out about beginner’s classes or knitting groups. Perhaps most importantly, such groups weave together people from all backgrounds, providing support, ideas and friendship: check out www.ravelry.com.

    Your Say: How do you get your creative juices flowing? Tell us below...


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