How many times have you had a really creative idea but you talked yourself out of doing it because you worried what others might think? How many times have you thought there is a very creative person inside of you but you just aren’t sure how to access her? Or, maybe you’ve simply thought the creativity gene was not one of the tools you got in your life belt?
If you have a child or spend any time around kids no doubt you experience a level of creative abandon you envy. That’s because young kids have yet to be taught that wild imaginings, going against the flow or challenging too much is bad news.
The fact is, research shows that preschool children exhibit higher levels of artistic creativity and aesthetic expression than older children. You’ve probably never heard of the “4th grade slump” but it’s real – by 4th grade children’s creativity stalls or plummets. More homework, more focus on academics and the idea of there being only one right answer to many teachers questions could be one explanation for this.
Darya (Dasha) Zabelina, an NSF Graduate Research Fellow studying Psychology of Creativity conducted a study where she has once group of people write an answer to the prompt, “You are 7 years old. School is canceled, and you have the entire day to yourself. What would you do? Where would you go? Who would you see?” The other group had the exact same instructions. The only difference was that the first sentence of the prompt was taken out and they were to answer as if they are in the present day, 18-20 years old.
Both groups were asked to be as specific as possible, and wrote for 10 minutes. After this writing prompt they completed a creativity test. You probably won’t be surprised by the results. The group who “traveled back” to their 7 year old selves performed much better on the originality aspect of the test – their responses were more novel than those of the “adult” group. What was even more interesting was that those people identifying themselves as introverts benefited from “the childhood manipulation” more so than did the extraverts. What does this mean for those shy among us? Perhaps just thinking of yourself as a kid can help you let go, and access your underlying creative potential and run with it.
Zabelina points out that this does not mean that younger children have higher levels of creativity than adults because let’s face it, being older often means having more self-discipline, impulse control, and more skills and knowledge which are all necessary ingredients to engage in truly creative work. (Some exceptions apply.) The key takeaway from this study is that in order for us to be more creative and express that creativity on some level we have to be willing to shed our constrains and inhibitions by tapping into our 7 year old spirit.
So, what are some ways you can tap into your 7 year old spirit and let your creative juices flow? Here are my best tips for accessing AND expressing your creative side.
1. Go back to an image you have of yourself as a 6 year old. (Pick a good memory.) Now, imagine being able to talk to that person and share an idea or a project you are working on with her. What would she tell you to do? Would she tell you to go for it and see what happens or hide your idea in your desk for fear of what someone else might think or that you might get it wrong? Tap into the part of her who still believes everything is possible and take direction from that.
2. Dance. You’ve probably heard that famous saying, “dance like no one is watching”. That’s what my 3 year old daughter does. She calls it her “move” and she does this jump, kick, thing that she thinks is the greatest move in the world. She’ll stop in the most random places, the pool deck, the library, the grocery story, you name it and say “hey guys, check out this move”. When I dance with her the last thing I am thinking about is what someone else is thinking. I dance because it feels good and it makes me laugh. Dancing is a creative expression and it creates creative momentum. It’s hard to go back to dull and rigid and predictable when you just spent an hour going crazy on the dance floor.
3. Set a timer for 10 minutes and respond to one of these prompts: (1) If I could speak to my 8 year old spirit today, this is what she would say to me…(2) In my creations, I intentionally wish to express…
4. Find a problem that needs solving. Get your mind working on alternative, creative solutions to problems you or someone else has been stuck on. If you are in business for yourself and you have a problem that’s been hanging you up, move the problem out on front of you, detach from it, and come up with as many solutions as possible. Creating psychological distance allows you and in fact, demands that you be more creative in your thinking.
5. Tell a joke or tell a story without notes.
6. Take new route to your office, the gym, your friend’s house. Get out of the ruts.
7. Play music. Those who play musical instruments are better at associative thinking.
8. Go to sleep - REM enhances creative problem-solving and you may even wake to the answer.
Many of us stand in awe at other people’s artistic achievements and ingenuity while at the same time failing to nurture our inner innovator. Get out of your head and live creatively.
If you want to discover and practice even more ways to tap into your creativity so you can create your own masterpiece either in your business, body, relationships or your work, join me and my friend Sandy Grason for our next live Mojo Retreat. www.MojoRetreat.com.
This video, another great from TED, is worth the watch. On it Tim Brown, CEO of the innovation and design firm IDEO, talks about creativity and play.
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Yes! Something told me to click on your tweet link to this article. Good on me for listening. I’ve been creatively stuck on my coloring book. I put the project down and went on with my life until I felt like picking it back up. So yesterday it felt more fun to write a welcome letter to the people who would be holding the book in their hands. I put a small doodle at page bottom too. It was so cute. Wrote the letter just like I was talking to a friend.
I let go of “it” – whatever that was, and simply got silly. I like to laugh and be entertained. Those moments are always the best for me, the most memorable. Like I totally remember your story about how your daughter was born. Loved that. In fact, I think people in general just want to laugh and be entertained.
Anyway, I’m proud of my coloring book letter. My point is everyone has creativity and creativity can come back if it’s been laying dormant or you’ve not seen it. I think it’s always there. Maybe it’s about putting the right lens on to see it. I’m going to do some of the things you suggest. Sounds like great fun!
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