CREATIVE CHANGE: Friends

Hector is one of my most important friends. Though I rarely see him, he is still vital to my life. Why? Because he is one of my most inspirational friends. This is not one of those, "he's been through the ringer so he is inspirational" type stories. Hector is a go-getter. He is an image of carpe diem. He is one who follows his inspiration with abandon...always.

Every time I sit down coffee or beer with Hector, I walk away ready to create. At times it is a simple situation of being inspired by someone who follows his dreams. Other times it is an issue of him demanding that I create and not accepting any excuse I prepare for him.

If your creativity is waning, surround yourself with inspirational and creative people. Surround yourself with people who will not only inspire you but demand creativity out of you.

Surround yourself with friends who will not accept any excuse you give, no matter how good the excuse is.

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Tell me, on one sentance, about the most inspirational person in your life right NOW.

*CREATIVE CHANGE INTRO

CREATIVE CHANGE: Intake

The saying goes, "Garbage in; garbage out." Creativity can be reapplied to this saying. If your creativity output is lacking, take a look at your intake. Are you listening to the same music over and over? Find a new artist and see if your creativity does not take a new jolt. Try an entirely different genre than your usual and see what new ways your creativity is sparked. Listen to some more creative podcasts (search "spoken word" "TEDTalks" "IndieFeed" or "The Moth" to get started)

Do you only read a certain kind of book? Mix up between fiction and non-fiction, leadership and fun, self-help and trash. Browse more magazines. (you don't HAVE to read every article)

Watch a more artistic movie (I think you're supposed to call them "films").

Change your intake of things and see whether your creative output doesn't begin to change in return.

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What are your most inspirational intake?

*CREATIVE CHANGE INTRO

CREATIVE CHANGE: Environment

All the changes we need to make in order to see our creativity return are breaks in the rut of routine so many of us find ourselves in. If you are looking at what you do and see a lack of the creativity you know is within you, one of the first changes you can try to make is ENVIRONMENT.

The environment and atmosphere you exist in have incredible impacts on our creativity. There are certain places you exist in that squash any remaining breath of creative air you might have, and there are others which are like pulling a little tank full of compressed creativity to your nostrils. Find the latter places. 

More often than not, your office is NOT a creative place. Your bedroom is not a creative place. Your home is not always a creative place.

Change your environment for a few minutes on your lunch break and breathe in the possibility of creativity in the midst of your day.

Change your environment for a couple hours and set some fresh creative roots.

Change your environment or a weekend or a week and reboot your creativity all-together.

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What are your most creative environments?

*CREATIVE CHANGE WEEK INTRO

CREATIVE CHANGE: Process

Creativity is an ethereal animal it seems. There are times it is strong and heavy on you, while there are other times it seems to avoid you like an newly broken up ex. When we want creativity to flow, we more often than not expect to wake up creative one day. We expect a breath of fresh air to flip the switch in our brain back over to "creative". It rarely works.

You have to make changes in the creative process if you want to see a change in production of creativity. 

This week is dedicated to the things we need to change in order to get back to the creativity we all love and crave. All the changes are part of a process. Creativity may be an inherent gift, but maintaining creativity is a process.

What non-exercise do you wish would keep you fit

Seems natural to say I wish eating made me fit. I also wish drinking coffee, reading books, preaching sermons, writing blogs, and driving a Scion made you fit. ----------

What non-exercise activity do you wish made you fit?