Oct 26 2008
Creative Practice Tips: Exploring Creative Expression
4 ‘baby steps’ on the path to authenticity and creative expression:
1. Discover completion - think about something that you began and didn’t finish. I coached one client that reported that she had started some knitting many years before - six or eight years as I recall. And never finished it. She would think about it from time to time and even get it out of the box and look at it but just could not bring herself to work on it. For her it symbolized her stuck place of expression. We discussed the options of motivation to complete the project and finally decided that what would work would be to unravel the item and start a completely new project with the yarn.
2. Giveaways - think about some way that you have a gift others could appreciate and offer it to them. Singing at the nursing home, creating a resume for a friend, helping your neighbor with designing an herb garden plot, teaching a class for creative young people - these are examples of ways to get unstuck; to take off the garment of self-consciousness and reveal a caring for others instead of holding a stance of safety and protection of self.
3. Create rituals of gratitude - What things in your life are you most grateful for? How can you expand on the possible ways to express your gratitude? A creative home decorating project is a way to celebrate your home, for example. Creating your own personal greeting card for your loved one’s birthday or anniversary is another simple example. You could likely make a list of 20 ways you could show your love and gratitude for life. And most of them would be ordinary things you have done before. The difference is to make a ritual of it, to notice and cherish the action as a part of who you are. Creativity is not something that you will one day accomplish - rather it already exists in the every day things that are unique to your being, the things that flow from you so naturally that you often forget to notice them. Simply take off the disguise that says ‘there is nothing special about me and my life’.
4. Plan an outrageous adventure - set an intention, with courage and determination, to do something that seems to you very out-of-the-box. Perhaps a dream from childhood or maybe something you have admired and loved about someone else might prompt an idea. I am a belly-dancer and over the last 3-4 years have heard countless people express to me a desire to try dancing. Several people come to mind that have mentioned this several times yet never ventured to one class. Of course, they may be trying it at home with a DVD for all I know, finding the joy of fully expressing something that really resonates with them. What is that thing that you have always wanted to try so badly that it almost embarrasses you to say it aloud? Sky-diving? Riding a Harley? Being a red-head? Learn to tango? We are not talking about life-changes here. Just one simple adventure that is out-of-the-box. Taking off one layer of inhibition and finding a little joy underneath.
I hope you will experiment with at least one of these. I invite you to share with me what you discovered and how it has expanded your sense of creativity. I would enjoy hearing of your adventure story.
This article appeared in the March 08 ‘Coming Alive’ newsletter along with an article ‘Are You Wearing Your Disguise?’
Cynthia