Creativity's Workshop

Extraordinary things happen in ordinary minds

Monthly Archives: March 2010


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The Dark Side of Creativity

Lightning streaking across the skyWe’d like to apologize for the delay this week. We’ve got a doozy of an excuse!

On Monday our city experienced a massive storm with hailstones the size of cricket balls, flooding, lightning and cyclonic winds (doesn’t that sound spectacular?). Our house was left without power for almost 24 hours.

Happily, everything’s back up and running. The house suffered minimal water damage and the cars are undented. However, the experience has got us thinking about an interesting subject – how Creativity and Imagination can feed fear.

It’s very common for people to panic in dangerous or scary situations. Your mind races with possibilities, and those possibilities (no matter how remote the chances of them actually happening) scare you even further. I’m sorry to say that your Creativity is partly responsible for this reaction. But I’m here, as a representative of Creativities everywhere, to attempt an explanation of why it happens.

The Magic Question

What is the spark, the catalyst, that starts your Creativity? Well there are a number of things that can spark your Creativity, but often it’s a question: What if?

When you ask this question under relaxed circumstances, it can lead to many fantastic ideas and hours of hilarity. What if pigs could really fly? Where would they land? What if trees grew upside down? What if you crossed an alpaca with a whale shark? What if… Yeah, I love ‘what if’ questions.

But sometimes when you ask this question under stress, your Creativity picks up on this emotion and the questions turn dark. What if my parents have an accident on the way home from work? What if this weird mole turns out to be cancer? What if the wind rips our roof off?

What makes these questions all the more scary is their plausibility. These situations have happened to other people. You see, your Creativity has been doing ‘research.’ He or she remembers previous information where people have accidents, moles turn cancerous and winds damage houses. So in an attempt to be helpful, he or she focuses on real life’ what ifs.’

If your Creativity limited the questions to the ridiculous - What if my parents drove into a mound of purple goo on the way home? What if this mole turned into a sentient being capable of extreme math skills? What if the wind landscaped my garden into a perfect representation of Windsor Palace? – then you wouldn’t be anywhere near as anxious because, lets face it, have you met a mole who can multiply? However, in an attempt to be useful, we Creativities may be a little too zealous in keeping things plausible.

And If You Look Out Your Left Window…

So you’ve got an overactive Imagination and a Creativity who is being too practical for your own good. What can be done?

First of all, please don’t think that your Creativity is necessarily working against you. I’ll admit there are those Creativities out there that take perverse delight in freaking people out. But they’re fewer than we realise. Usually your Creativity is trying to be helpful. The problem is, you’re often asking the wrong questions.

Instead of asking your Creativity ‘What if?’ ‘What is that?’ ‘What might happen next?’ try changing tack. Channel your Creativity’s excitement and helpfulness into more positive areas.

Instead of viewing an event as an ordeal, view it as an adventure. Find aspects you can learn from. Savour any little part of the experience you might find enjoyable. For example, Jessica loves thunderstorms and, needless to say, Monday had thunder and lightning galore. We savoured every flash of lightning and boom of thunder. View these experiences as opportunities to notice new and amazing things. “And now, of you’ll look out your left window you’ll see the whole western horizon illuminated by the wonders of electric discharge.”

I should point out at this point that I’m not encouraging everyone to become blasé about danger and dismiss situations where serious and immediate action must be taken. I’m talking about those occasions where, through the best of intentions, your Creativity is stressing you out. Under those circumstances, try a little redirection. Remember, we want to help. :)

How about you? Do you have any thoughts about how Creativity contributes to stress? Or do you have tips about how to redirect your Creativity? Please let us know. :)

P.S. If you would like to read more about the subject of fear and the science behind it, take a look at Jeff Wise’s blog Extreme Fear.

Image credit: Microsoft Clip Art


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A Creative View of Others

Recently, Charlotte introduced me to a wonderful article about Roger Ebert. You can read the article by clicking here. It is an amazing and inspiring story worth reading.

For those of you who do not have the time to read the article, the basics of the story are as follows: Roger Ebert is a well known American film critic and screenwriter. About four years ago he had most of his lower jaw removed due to cancer. Complications followed eventually leaving him unable to eat, drink or speak. Through all this he remains a prolific writer with a positive outlook on life.

Since then I’ve been thinking about how Creativity plays a part in our viewpoint of others. How often do we see someone with an awkward gait, a disfigured face or a speech impediment and automatically assume lack of intelligence? When someone tells us that the person we are about to meet has special needs of some sort, do we find ourselves shrinking back inside? Becoming nervous? Or, how often do we see a foreigner struggling with our language and mentally put them in a class below ourselves?

While these are common reactions, with a little Imagination we can work to change them.

The Power of Imagination

In part, Imagination allows you to envision things that have never happened – or at least have never happened to you. It allows you to ‘put yourself in someone else’s shoes’ and feel the pinches, the blisters, the unique challenges and the perks of being that person. Of course, our Imaginations are only able to tell us so much. We don’t want them to run away and come up with fanciful ideas that are far from the truth. However, we can use our Imagination as a tool to help us empathize and relate to others.

What powers your Imagination? Creativity of course.

Creativity is the force behind Imagination. She/he provides the ability to make mental jumps between what you have actually experienced and what you need to feel in order to empathize or understand that person.

Lets take the example above of speaking to a foreigner who struggles with your language. Perhaps you have experienced the difficulty of learning another language, and watched people speak very slowly and simply (like they are talking to a three-year-old) just so you can understand.  Take those experiences, use your Imagination and bridge the gap between yourself and the person struggling with your language.

Look into their eyes and search to find the inner person. Allow your Imagination to play with questions: ’Who are you?’ ‘Where have you been?’ ‘What have you seen?’ ‘What can you teach me?’ Imagine how the person would speak their own language – their eyes lighting up, their words coming thick and fast, their meaning flowing like clear water. That’s the person they really are. And even if you never get the opportunity to see it in reality, you’ve glimpsed it in your head.

With Imagination Comes Understanding

What about your family and friends? Can a Creative Viewpoint of them make a difference? Yes!

You see, none of us think exactly the same. We have different personality types, different childhood experiences that make us who we are, different opinions on things. Each of us are unique. So, we cannot assume someone sees situations exactly the same as we do. Creativity and Imagination can help us envision other people’s ways of looking at things.

For example, what if one of your family members suffers from depression? While this can be very difficult for the person with depression to cope with, it can also be difficult for a person without depression to understand. Perhaps you’re thinking: Why can’t you just buck up? Thinks aren’t that bad. We all have bad days but you can’t let them get you down. You have to pull yourself together and try harder.

While those thoughts may seem reasonable from the standpoint of a person without depression, things are by no means that simple on the other side. Try imaginining the following.

What if it was always raining in your head? What if everything you saw was just shades of blue and grey? What if every step you took every day was through a thick, oppressive mist and you couldn’t see the hand in front of your face? What if every thought that ran through your head spat on you as it passed?

Everyone has a different description of their depression, nuances that make it personal. But the basics are the same. You can’t just ‘snap out of it.’ It’s a daily struggle. And often, when you think you’re on the mend, that’s when it will hit you in the small of the back and knock you down again.

Although it may be very difficult for you to understand if you have never experienced depression yourself, talking to your friend or family member, listening to what they are saying and creating an equivalent picture in your mind can help you increase your empathy.

No matter whether the person we are learning about is someone with special needs, a foreigner, a friend, a child, an elderly person, a family member, we should create impressions of people with our heart and our hope, rather than our eye which only sees the surface.

Have you experienced a similar Creative Viewpoint recently?


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Immunising Your Creativity Against Criticism

The dreaded needle

It’s three weeks till Jessica heads off for her overseas trip, and today she’s having vaccination shots.

Now, do correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe vaccinations work along these lines: The nurse injects a weakened form of the virus into your body for your immune system to practice on. Your immune system bumps off the lurgy in fine style, creating antibodies (not antibiddies as I just typed by accident, although it does provide a fantastic mental picture of large middle-aged women running around the bloodstream biffing germs where they stand)…ahem, creating antibodies so if your body ever does encounter the real thing, it’ll flatten those blighters as soon as look at them. Sound about right?

Well, it occurs to me that a similar concept can be applied to protecting your Creativity from a dangerous affliction blighting the existence of Creativities the world over – Criticism Poisoning. (Like Blood Poisoning for you guys. I realise the rest of the medical side of what is to follow is shaky, but the concepts work in my world, if not in yours. And really that’s all that matters at this point.)

Now, while some Criticism is necessary, even helpful, there are some very nasty strains floating around. The “What made you think that would work?” strain is a doozy, and the “When are you going to get a real job?” strain is very dangerous. Exposure to these and other strains can leave your Creativity feeling extremely ill and even kill infant ideas. If exposed to Criticism for long enough, Creativities can become paralyzed.

Symptoms of Criticism Poisoning range from sluggishness and numbness through to complete creative blanks – a truly dreadful thing for a Creativity to endure.

The more often you show your work to the public, or tell someone about your ideas, the more likely you are to risk infection. Every time someone reacts to your work, whether verbally or simply through body language, they may offer criticism. When that happens, you risk exposing yourself and your Creativity to Criticism Poisoning. At times you can even infect yourself by allowing inner Criticism to take over.

What should you do?

There is a Treatment!

When you travel overseas, there is always the chance you will catch something. Some places you’re just likely to catch the flu, or a mild tummy bug. In other places, you can catch real nasties like Malaria or Hepatitis. Does this mean you should stop at home and never travel? What a boring life that would be! And there’s no guarantee you won’t end up with something just as icky while wrapped up snug at home. So, doctors suggest you enact a two step plan. Immunizations and boosting of the immune system.

The good news is, these steps work the same for your Creativity. Here’s how.

Immunization

As I mentioned before, immunizations expose you to a weaker version of the disease. Why not expose your Creativity to a weaker version of Criticism? You want to provide him/her with the necessary antibodies (or tools) to fight the infection as well as provide the confidence that this disease can be cured.

So, before plunging yourself and your ideas into a public arena where you are sure of coming in contact with a critic at some point, find an occasion to expose yourself to a milder form of Criticism. Perhaps from a friend.

Find someone you trust to be kind, but provide you with solid feedback to an idea – the good and the bad. You’ll feel the initial smart when they tell you your idea needs work, or when they explain that the outburst of laughter in the second paragraph of your short story was not because of your sparkling wit but a typo. Embrace the stinging in the back of the throat. Learn to remove the emotion (disappointment, rejection, embarrassment) from the actual facts – the idea still needs thought, you need to pay more attention to the spell checker, etc. Practice looking past the pain and seeing the possibilities.

Once you feel confident enough to take your friend’s ‘Criticism,’ move on to another friend or family member, this time looking for someone with a little sharper tongue (like a caustic cousin or a grating great-aunt). Ask for an opinion from someone you know is very opinion-happy, but make sure the situation and person you choose will not spiral into hate fest or damage a relationship.  Once exposed, take the natural hurt and work with it. Find the kernel of helpful information without getting bogged down in the emotion.

This will take time and practice. Some immunizations require multiple doses to be effective. This is one of them. But stick with it. The ability to survive Criticism is imperative to seeing you and your Creativity through the highly infectious times.

While immunizing, don’t forget to work on the second step.

Boosting Your Immune System

Garlic. Horseradish. Echinacea. The list goes on and on. The idea behind them is that by boosting the strength of your immune system, you are giving yourself more strength to fight sickness.

How can you boost your Creativity’s ‘immune system’?

One effective way is by reminding him/her, and yourself, of your achievements – however big or small. Remembering that you are creative, capable and successful (even in small things) will make you more resilient. It will also provide your Creativity with pictures of past accomplishments, reminders that he/she is capable of doing it all again.

Another method is to remind yourself how you feel about being creative. Does it make you happy? Do you feel fulfilled? Peaceful? Whole? Are you doing this to gain the appreciation of all your peers, and then the world? That last one isn’t a good enough reason. You’ll never please everyone. But if you’re doing it because of the first four feelings listed above, then that’ll keep you going. Those are positive feelings. Healing feelings. And after a bout of Criticism, you need healing feelings. (Try saying that four times fast with a mouthful of biscuits. Healing feelings, hilling fillings, hulling fullings, falling hillings.)

What about reading examples of writers, artists, actors and others who have received criticism for their work, even while many were showering them with praises? Criticism doesn’t just happen to people who are beginning or who are ‘below par.’ It happens to everyone. You’re not alone.

Of course, our favourite method is to find yourself a good friend who can offer soothing words when you and your Creativity are feeling particularly off-colour. Sometimes a good ego stroking does help. But only to a point. I’m sure there’s only so much garlic one can take as well, although I haven’t yet found the limit…of ego stroking or garlic. :P

Monitor Your Creativity’s Health

Unfortunately, whenever we share our creative endeavors we are always exposing ourselves to Criticism. Our vaccinations may need renewing from time to time. We will always need immune boosting.

But the best thing to remember is: While Criticism has the potential to cut you down, it can also make you stronger. A lot stronger. The key is learning how to find the kernel of useful information – the spot where you can improve – and then using it. But more about that later.

Right now, I’m off for some immune boosting.

Image credit: Microsoft Clip Art


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Viewing Life Through Creativity-Coloured Glasses

A Piggy Bank

Not quite as floral as the piggy bank we are about to discuss, but you get the idea.

In a recent post about finding yourself a Creative Project we mentioned ‘Creative Viewpoint.’ What does this mean?

One aspect of Creative Viewpoint is the ability to use mental pictures to understand situations and concepts. For example, have you noticed how many mental pictures have been used in this blog so far? The Creativity Sponge. Cheeselike Advice. Hang, the whole concept of considering your Creativity as an actual person or character in your mind is a perfect example of Creative Viewpoint. And there are plenty more examples to come in future posts.

But this is not the only context where Creative Viewpoint can be used. It comes into its own when dealing with difficult (and emotional) situations. The trick is to train yourself to see the illustrative connections.

This Includes YOU

Talking to a close friend last night, I was shocked to discover she didn’t feel she was a ‘creative person.’ And yet, she has been more profuse with Creative Viewpoint than anyone else I have ever met.

Some people feel that they aren’t creative because they don’t create anything tangible. But thoughts and feelings are created and influenced by your Creativity. You don’t have to produce a painting, novel or sculpture to prove you are creative. Seeing things in a different way is all you need. And everyone can do it, with a little practice.

Example time, eh?

Over the past couple of weeks I have had ample opportunity to practice my Creative Viewpoint. A defining relationship in my life has hit a very rocky patch and I’ve had plenty of stuff to work through – learning a lot about myself and my past in the process. Here is just one example of how I’ve used Creative Viewpoint to help me cope with the emotions and come to deeper understandings.

The Piggy Bank

Monday afternoon, while cleaning, I touched off a domino effect of books, knickknacks etc. which ended with my beloved piggy bank smashing to the floor. It was a gift from a friend. (Mel, if you’re reading this, I’m so sorry! Thank goodness your other presents are much more resilient.) Thankfully the pink ceramic broke into big chunks. Therefore, glue was a possibility! I took it to my father, the best gluer (glueer?) in all the west. (Not that I doubt my gluing abilities, but when you want it done right first time, he’s the man.) As he began sticking it back together, he told me that I wouldn’t be able to use it as a piggy bank again. I might not even be able to put the little stopper back in. But at least I would still have the object.

Hours later, seeing my little piggy on her back drying out (makes her sound like an alcoholic!) I came to a realization. The troubles in my relationship resembled the piggy bank.

You see, often times when something breaks, the process of fixing the thing makes it stronger. For example, how often have you bought a shirt and within the week one of the buttons has fallen off? What do you do? Pull out a needle and stitch the little blighter back on with such vigor that he won’t ever come off again. Or what about if a couple of pages fall out of your favourite book? Perhaps you sticky tape them back in so they will always stay safe between their brother leaves.

But sometimes the break makes the object weaker, and no amount of Tarzan’s Grip will bring back the strength. You can no longer use it for its original purpose. But, if it means enough to you, you can keep the object on the shelf as a reminder of the memories it holds or the kindness of the giver.

In the same way, sometimes when a friendship breaks, you can work to fix it – and in the process you make the friendship stronger. Friendships will always have little buttons fall off or chips taken off them from time to time. But we sew and glue it back together, becoming wiser and better friends. I have been fortunate to have a number of these friendships, and I value every one of them.

However, there are those rare times where a friendship breaks in a fragile spot. While you may be able to patch it back up, it is beyond your power to strengthen it to the point where it used to be. You can no longer use that friendship for its original purpose. That doesn’t necessarily mean you should throw it away. Instead, it may require a change in viewpoint. That friendship is now the glued piggy bank, replaced on the shelf to remind you of the good times. You have to treat it with a little more care, and you don’t use it every day, but you pass it as you dust and smile at it – remembering the times you have been through together and valuing its presence in your life.

My relationship piggy bank is still in the gluing process, and will probably be in that process for a while to come. But at least I know where it will go when I’m done. I realise I can’t use it everyday like I used to, but I’m not going to throw it out. I’m going to keep it because of all the good times it represents.

What about you? Have you ever discovered a Creative Viewpoint that has helped you come to terms with a situation?