When was the last time that you produced a truly creative idea?

Employers and customers want new ideas that are creative, innovative and novel.  They need people that can generate unique solutions.

Why should you care?  Well, most of us want to grow in our careers and businesses.  We want to produce better results for ourselves and our families.  You do this by standing out and being a top performer.

If its been awhile since you came up with an ingenious idea that was impressive to others, then it is time for you to get inspired!

Finding Inspiration for Creative Ideas

Chance is always powerful. – Let your hook be always cast; in the pool where you least expect it, there will be a fish.

~ Ovid

If you want to produce creative ideas, then you need to be fishing for them.  You’ve got to intentionally do things that arouse your brain and generates creative thought.  Ideas don’t just spring out of nowhere.  They are born out of certain types of mental stimulation.

Have you been suffering from your own version of writer’s block lately?  Do you feel dry and discouraged?  If so, then you need to engage in some mind stimulating activities to jumpstart your creative juices.

Five Ways to Inspire Truly Creative Ideas

1.  Set an Artist Date

The Artist’s Way is a book about creative recovery.  In it, Julia Cameron recommends the Artist Date.  She describes it as follows, “The Artist Date is a once-weekly, festive, solo expedition to explore something that interests you. The Artist Date need not be overtly ‘artistic’– think mischief more than mastery.” 

You don’t have to be an artist to benefit from an Artist Date.  The idea is to spend some time alone doing something you enjoy to loosen up and stimulate your mind.  Spend it at a museum or taking a pottery class or going to a movie or watching a sunset.  Do something you enjoy that is inspiring.  Do it weekly and do it alone.  I’ve found this to be very helpful.  Here are 101 Artist Date Ideas to get you started.

2.  Attend a Seminar or Retreat

I recently attended a day and a half seminar related to my career field.  I talked with other professionals, heard presentations and mingled socially.  I do this annually, but I should probably do it more often.  It is incredibly mentally stimulating.  I always walk away with new ideas and directions to explore.

Whatever your interest, there are others out there that love the same thing.  Find these people and start congregating with them.  I’m a bit of an introvert so, I kind of have to force myself to engage in these group settings, but afterwards, I’m always glad I did.  They are definitely mentally stimulating.  Be sure you take copious notes because the ideas will flow and you’ll lose them if you don’t record them in some way.

3.  Get Outside and Read

I get some of my very best ideas when I take a lawn chair to the prettiest park in town and sit outside reading a great, thought-provoking book (here’s some I like).  If you have a properly equipped netbook or iPad you could even read free motivational blogs (like this one) while at the park.  Whatever the material, this is definitely a technique that works for me.

The combination of nature’s beauty and the mental stimulation from the book seems to make my mind race.  I always take my notebook so I can scribble down my ideas as fast as they pour forth.  This is absolutely one of my favorite ways to generate truly inspiring and creative ideas.

4.  Sit Still and Be Quiet

Solitude is a lost art.  There is so much “noise” in our world today that our minds get overwhelmed.  It may not be stimulation that you need.  It may be quiet time to give your mind a rest.  Brains that are overstimulated tend to lock up like a computer.  The only way to reboot is to get away from all the hustle and bustle for awhile.

Depending on how overstimulated you’ve become, you may need an hour or a week to fully refresh and rejuvenate your brain.  The key is to let your mind unwind.  You’ve got to break your addiction to constant input to give your mind time to think.  So, leave Facebook, the iPod, television and your mobile phone at home.  Find the quietest and most peaceful place possible and just relax.  Do nothing for as long as it takes.  You’ll find your creativity coming back to you.

5.  Go On an Purpose-Driven Adventure

Going someplace new and exciting is a great way to get your mind churning again.  There are a ton of great adventures that can help you regroup mentally.  One of the reasons that our minds grow stale is because we lack purpose.  The adventures I suggest were specifically selected to help you rethink how you are spending your time.

Once you reconnect with a solid purpose in your life, you’ll find that your creativity will return.  It goes along with the old saying, “Necessity is the mother of invention.”  When you have the proper inspiration, your mind will deliver all the ideas that you need to accomplish the mission.  You’ve just got to find a task that your brain can sink its teeth into.  A purpose-driven adventure might help.

So, what do you think?  Are you going to try one of these ways to generate some new creative ideas?  If so, which path will you follow?  Leave a comment and let me know.

Achieving outstanding results is something we all desire, but that we often find very elusive.  We come up with fabulous ideas, get our hopes up and then experience a big let down when it doesn’t turn out like we imagined. 

Been there, done that.

Over the years, I’ve come to realize there is one thing that stands out as the difference maker when it comes to outstanding results.  It is creativity.  The more creative your idea and your implementation of that idea, the better the outcome.

Unlock your creativity to achieve outstanding results

Many of you right now are hanging your heads and thinking, “But, I’m just not that creative.”  We are all creative.  It is our nature as human beings to imagine things that don’t exist and then to work that idea into existence.

People imagine homes before they create (or build) them.  We envision in our minds how the living room will look before we rearrange the furniture to create that look.  All of us fantasize about our vacations before we create the actual experience.

We are all creative.  We create all the time.  We just need to get out of our familiar ruts and add a little flair to our thinking.  We need to dream a little bigger in a lot more vivid color!  We need to put aside our doubts and skepticism and let our minds run wild!

How do we do this?  I’m glad you asked! 

Here are some tips to help you achieve outstanding results by unlocking your creativity:

1.  Practice creativity in the mundane tasks of life

We’ve all heard that if you want to be good at something practice, practice, practice.  Well creativity is no different.  As adults, most of us have stifled our creativity to the point where it is almost dormant.  If you want to awaken it, then you have to let it out of the box.

Start exercising your creativity in the mundane tasks of life to liven things up.  Look for imaginative ways to spice up things like doing the laundry, getting ready for work and cooking your dinner.  This practice will make it easier to summon your creativity when you really need it.

It might feel a tad uncomfortable at first, but that’s just because it is new to you.  Don’t let that hold you back.  Let the cat out of the bag!  Give your creativity the freedom to come alive again and you’ll be amazed at how it can help you.

2.  Rearrange your life to gain a fresh perspective

We are such creatures of habit!  When you look at life through the same lens from the same vantage point every day, you seem the same things.  You never get a different view.

Do you remember as a kid hanging upside down and looking at your living room or your backyard?  I used to do this and I was always amazed at how it made everything look so different.  I saw things I hadn’t seen before.

We need to find ways to see things differently.  If you want outstanding results in your marriage, then find a way to see your spouse in a new light.  If you want outstanding results in your business, then find a fresh way to see your customer’s needs.  If you want to win with money, then seek new ideas to change your attitude toward it.

Turn things in your life upside down and create a fresh perspective to achieve new and outstanding results!

3.  Stimulate your mind with a free flow of ideas

Get some people together and start letting the ideas fly.  I find that this really stimulates my thinking.  I’m able to build off the ideas of others and see insights that seemed hidden before.  The results I get from this are usually significantly better than what I generate alone.

I’m not that fond of the term brainstorming, but that’s essentially what’s involved.  The point is to generate free flow thinking and to let your creativity go off in any direction it wants.

It never ceases to amaze me how this unlocks thoughts and ideas I never knew I had.  You don’t have to come up with all your creative ideas alone.  You just need to take advantage of this type of group think to get outside of your normal patterns of thought.

4.  Do some hard work or exercise to break down the walls

One great way to overcome a mental block is to engage in some rigorous physical activity.  Get your mind off of it for awhile with some landscaping, exercise or anything that works up a serious sweat. 

I often find that the answer will just pop into my head right in the middle or shortly after such a session.  I guess the distraction, release of stress and additional blood flow all help my brain to open up to more creative thoughts.

Whatever the reason, I know that some good, hard, physical work is often just the help I need to achieve an outstanding result.

5.  Know when to make a big change to really stir things up

At times, we can become so entrenched in patterns of negative and unproductive thinking that none of these tips will break our minds free.  In that circumstance, you are going to have to take drastic steps to rekindle your creativity.

Depending on the situation, you may need to take an extended break or make an even more permanent change to force yourself out of your rut.  It is amazing what a week long vacation can do to refresh your attitude, but if this isn’t enough then you might want to think about moving, changing jobs or taking a sabbatical.

Don’t be afraid to take drastic steps.  It could be the best move you’ve ever made!  I’m reading a book right now about a family that unplugged from society to sail around the Caribbean for nine months.  Now that is a big change that will really stir things up!

6.  Be prepared to capture your creativity when it occurs

At first, it is likely that your creativity will come in short bursts when you least expect it.  Arm yourself with a notepad and pen to record creative thoughts when they occur.  This is a common habit among inventors, writers and other people that rely on their creativity daily.

Creative thoughts will come and go.  When they come, they are often so vivid that it is hard to believe that we could ever forget them.  However, in my experience, I find that recalling these thoughts even a few hours later is sometimes impossible.

I’m a strong believer in writing them down in as much detail as possible as quickly as possible.  This ensures that you won’t lose what could be a gem of an idea.

Creativity will help you achieve outstanding results

You can seriously improve your life by exercising your God-given creativity.  However, it often takes some effort to get your creative juices flowing again.  Give the tips above a try and I think you’ll be pleased with the results you get!

What do you do to achieve outstanding results?

Photo by jaeWALK

Creativity is the true starting point for all accomplishment in life.  I supposed Pablo Picasso knew a little about creativity.  In 2006, one of his paintings sold for over $95 million in an auction at Sotheby’s.  How did he create such masterpieces?  He was a rebel of sorts in his day.  He liked to challenge the status quo.  He pushed the envelope of people’s comfort zones with new styles of art that hadn’t been tried.  He was a creative genius!  It takes guts to be creative.  You have to be willing to put the result of your creativity on display for others to admire and criticize.  Of course, creativity is the source of all innovation.  We need to nurture our creativity to live life to the fullest.

Creativity seems to breed creativity.

We have to use it or we lose it.  Are you being as creativity as you could be?  It seems we all have a knack for creativity when we are kids, but then we tend to lose it as we grow older.  We become stifled.  We worry to much about what other people will think.  We suppress our creativity and then we wonder why we aren’t achieving much in life.

I challenge you today to rekindle your creativity.

Today, I want to share with you some excellent ways to spark creativity in your life.  This is for your own good.  Go do something that takes you outside your comfort zone.  Get in touch with your inner child that loves to finger paint, make mud pies, and dance in front of an audience!  Take a risk!  Show the world what you are made of!

1.  Observe the creativity of others and copy what they do.

This is a secret of creativity that many successful people use.  You didn’t think that all the great ideas in the world were original ones did you?  The idea that creativity is 100% original is a farce.  Many great artists had mentors that they learned their techniques from and then added a twist to make it their own.  Find someone that is doing something highly creative that you like, learn from them, and then add your own creative genius!

2.  Begin by creating your own space for creativity.

You need a creative project to get your juices flowing.  A great place to start is to find and customize yourself a work area for your creative projects.  You need a place that inspires you.  The act of finding and creating such a space to your liking will help you reconnect with your creativity.  Here are some excellent tips that will help you get started.  Go to town!  Be creative and make it a place you love to be.

3.  Work on creative projects during your best period of the day.

Are you an early bird or a night owl?  If you aren’t sure, then do a little experimentation.  You will likely find that there is a period of the day where your creativity flows more easily.  You can then further enhance this natural time of creative genius with various types of stimulation.  For instance, I like to read inspiring books just before I write.  For you, it might be listening to great music or watching a movie that fires you up.  The key is to catch your mind at its peak and then to stimulate it to a crescendo!

4.  Pursue ways to open your mind to new ways of thinking.

Creativity flourishes where thinking is unrestricted.  There are many ways to open your mind to new ideas.  We tend to be creatures of habit even in the way we think.  However, by pursuing new experiences, we can open ourselves up to creative thinking.  Try doing something you’ve never done before.  Read a book that expresses opinions different from what you commonly hold.  Daydream about the impossible.  Build or create something from scratch.  These techniques can expand your thinking and get your creative juices flowing.

5.  Let go of your fear and take a chance.

One of the biggest obstacles to creativity many of us face is fear.  We fear that we will be criticized or that we will make a mistake.  I’ll admit that it takes courage to express creativity.  However, there are also great rewards that come from being creative.  The sense of accomplishment and meaningful contribution is enormous.  Where would we be if creative geniuses like Thomas Edison, Ben Franklin, and Alexander Graham Bell had been too afraid to express themselves?  We can’t be certain that our ideas will be accepted, but it is worth the risk!

6.  Explore online resources for igniting your creativity.

As you know, the Internet is a goldmine of resources.  Well, guess what?  There are a ton of excellent sites that can help you rekindle your creativity.  One technique I found that I especially like and use quite often to assist me in the creative process is called mind mapping.  It is a fantastic way to help open yourself up and let the ideas flow.  When you use mind mapping, write down ideas as soon as they occur to you.  Don’t worry about organizing your ideas.  That comes later.  The key is to quickly capture your ideas and to let your creative thinking flow.

7.  Set a creative goal to achieve to keep you going.

Write down a creative goal that you dream of accomplishing.  You need a purpose for rekindling your creativity.  Maybe you want to write a book or a blog.  Maybe you want to redecorate your house or create a handmade masterpiece.  There are any number of possibilities.  The key is to have a specific reason in mind for pursuing this goal.  This will help keep you engaged even if the process is difficult.  Depending on how long you have let your skills in creativity lay dormant, it may take awhile to revive them.  A goal will keep you focused.

Don’t let “good” sense rob you of your creativity!

It is easy to let that negative little voice in our heads talk us out of our creative pursuits.  It might remind you of how your last endeavor didn’t work out or of how someone in your past told you weren’t any good.  Don’t listen to this voice.  You have to work through these things.  The tips in this article will help.  Once you’ve had some success, you’ll thank yourself that you pressed on.  Who knows?  Maybe one day in the future one of your masterpieces will sell for millions of dollars!

In what ways do you stimulate your creativity?

Photos by oddsock and Lil Erna