Monday, June 2, 2014

Mondays in June – The Plan

You might remember that I gave a short presentation at the Philadelphia Artist Doll and Teddy Bear show in May on creativity. It’s one of my favorite topics of exploration. There have been a couple of people who wondered if I might be persuaded to review my main points here on bearbits. While I am no expert, I do enjoy reading about ways to encourage creativity and ideas and I don’t mind sharing with you what I have learned over time.

The focus of my talk was how to encourage and generate ideas and how to keep going during those times when you feel stuck or feel like giving up. If that sounds like an interesting topic to you, then maybe you will pick up a few tips from these posts.

What I thought I would do is start out posting on Mondays in June and see how far along I can get. I would like to keep my posts short and sweet. It seems like a good plan right now but one never knows how these things will turn out. So while it is my intention to keep to a regular schedule, I can also foresee the possibility of unexpected blog posts preempting the posts on creativity.

Anyway, let’s get started and see how it goes.

The title I gave my presentation was Creativity, Ideas and Inspiration: Getting Where You Want to Go.

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Over the years I have read a number of books on creativity. Some were great and some were just average. There is a lot of information on creativity out there in the world and it would be impossible to tell you everything I read.

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What you’ll find here is a brief look at a few ideas that might help you generate lots of ideas and keep going in the face of obstacles.

Let’s begin, shall we?

Do people ever ask you -

Where do you get your ideas?
What inspires you?
Isn’t creativity a gift?

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Was your mother artistic?
How can I be creative like you?
Are you on acid or something?

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Believe it or not, I have been asked all these questions at one time or another. That last one had me doubling over with laughter! But, it told me that people really are curious where my ideas come from. Surely some of them must be drug induced right?

What many people fail to realize is that everyone is creative in one way or another. What eludes people who don’t think they are creative is the fact that we all have the capability to be extremely creative.

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It isn’t limited to art, artists & artistic endeavors. Creativity is necessary for us to survive, to grow, to change, to adapt, to improve, to be happier and possibly even to live longer.

I think most people would love to have a bucket load of ideas just waiting for them. Having a bunch of ideas can be like standing at the rim of the Grand Canyon looking over a vast landscape populated with opportunities. Exciting and scary, nerve wracking and invigorating.

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So how do you go about getting lots of ideas?

First of all, you cannot sit on your backside and hope they will come knocking on your door.

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You have to pursue them in whatever form that takes. You have to overtly decide that you will be more creative, that you will pursue new ideas. In other words you need to

choose creativity.

This is an idea put forth by David Kelly is his book Creative Confidence. If you have even a smidge of interest in reading about creativity, this is one terrific book you really should read.

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If you make the choice to be creative, it doesn’t mean that you will automatically become creative or more creative any more than saying you want to become a doctor and you will automatically become a doctor. What choosing creativity does for you is that it focuses your efforts

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and you will know that even if you meet challenges and obstacles, you are on the path. If you choose to be a doctor, you know that you will have lots of classes, labs, studying and much practice ahead of you.

And once you have chosen creativity, you find yourself looking at things differently and becoming more aware of details and the ordinary becomes extraordinary.

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Not only will you look at the world around you differently, you will look at yourself differently. It’s a step towards confidence. Having confidence is one of the most important aspects of creativity.

There it is. One step that you can take towards generating more ideas.

Have a very creative Monday!

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12 comments:

  1. Thank you SO much, Ginger. I'm off to buy my copy of "Creative Confidence!"

    Hugs,
    Cheryl

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Cheryl,

      You're welcome! I think you will enjoy the book!

      hugs,
      ~ginger

      Delete
    2. Do you think that creativity crosses the line to thinking outside the box at work and would this book help in that realm? I need to start thinking outside my little box at work and would love some pointers. Thanks for sharing and getting me started toward more creative thinking. - Carol

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    3. Hi Carol,

      Absolutely on both accounts! Actually, this book focuses on business situations and provides examples of people who discovered abilities that were useful in their job situations. I think you will be able to utilize the information in the book to your advantage. Let me know if I am correct! That would be helpful to me too!

      Good luck!
      ~ginger

      Delete
  2. Sounds like a great book! We think we should buy it so we can teach LT things...

    Hugs

    Jack, Boo & The Clan

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Jack, Boo & The Clan,

      Go for it boys - and give 'em that sweet look you have and maybe they'll give you a break on the price!

      hugs,
      ~ginger

      Delete
  3. This sounds like a very interesting topic Ginger,, I need to hunt out that bok.
    Hugs kay

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Kay,

      It's a really good one if you find a copy to read!

      hugs,
      ~ginger

      Delete
  4. Replies
    1. Thanks Lynda! It's an interesting topic - so much to learn!

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  5. An excellent start Ginger. I look forward to the next few Mondays.
    Alan

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Alan,

      I hope that I can impart some useful information!

      Thanks,
      ~ginger

      Delete

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