Men-id believes everyone wants to be creative, including you. If you’re a blogger, you’ll want to come up with brilliant ideas for your articles. If you work in marketing or advertising, you’ll want to come up with brilliant concepts that will attract lots of customers. If you’re an artist, you’ll want to come up with a variety of ideas to create stunning masterpieces.
But we often feel like we’re not creative. Others always seem to have brilliant ideas and big projects, but not us.
However, you should know that creativity can be trained. There are several things you can do to improve your creativity. Here are 10 of Men-id’s favorite ways to increase creativity:
1. Read In Depth
Whatever your area of expertise, reading can help you become more creative. Go to the library and find a book that doesn’t cover your area of expertise. Read deeply. Why not just read a book in a field you’re passionate about? By reading about other areas of expertise, you’ll gain new information that can inspire you to be even more creative.
2. Try New Activities
Another way to keep your brain active is to try something new. Whether it’s salsa dancing, fishing, swimming, or finding a new hobby, learning new activities can broaden your perspective and broaden your creativity.
3. Talking to Strangers
Perhaps as children, we were warned to be wary of strangers. But as adults, we don’t need to be afraid to talk to strangers. We naturally connect with people who are similar to us, share similar mindsets, dress styles, hobbies, skills, and even professions. This can stifle our creativity – and make us feel like “everyone is the same.” Try making new friends. Chat up a stranger in the cafeteria. Say hello to the person next to you on the bus or train.
4. Don’t Use the Main Idea
One way to get creative ideas when you’re stuck for inspiration is to sit down with a blank sheet of paper and write down at least 20 ideas that come to mind. Then, cross out the first ten, as those are usually too commonplace.
5. Experiment: Don’t Be Afraid to Fail
We’re often afraid to try new activities or things because we’re afraid of failure . But there’s no shame in failure. As a child, you failed countless times learning to walk, talk, or ride a bike…but now you’re an expert and proficient in those areas! The path to success often requires many failures.
6. Create Connections Between Projects
Are you currently stuck in the middle of a stalled project? An effective way to boost your enthusiasm is to combine two different projects. For example, let’s say you’re a writer stuck between two stalled novel plots. Try combining one of the characters from story 1 with the plot of story 2. You’ll become more creative and re-energized to finish the project.
7. Take a Different Perspective
If you work in a creative field like blogging or writing novels, it’s easy to get bored. Try taking a different perspective. Maybe try writing a blog post from someone else’s perspective? Darren Rowse, owner of ProBlogger, once did just that in his post, ” 5 Things You Should Know About My Dad the ProBlogger .” He wrote the article from the perspective of his then-1-year-old son.
8. Do Your Homework
This may sound a little strange. Yes, doing housework isn’t particularly creative. But physical activities like sweeping, mopping, washing dishes, etc. will allow your mind to wander freely. You’d be surprised how many ideas you generate when you’re not at your desk.
9. Use Different Media
If you’re a writer, try drawing. It doesn’t matter if you can draw or not—just use simple images. This can force you out of your comfort zone, allowing you to encounter new challenges and experiences. If you’re a graphic designer, try sculpting out of clay. Don’t limit your creativity to just one medium.
10. Wishful thinking
Wondering is essential for sparking creativity. During the day, look up and let your thoughts wander, asking yourself, “If only I…” You can also think about your project at night before bed. Daydream! Often, creative ideas come when you’re half-awake and half-asleep. Don’t force creativity; give it time to flow naturally.
Those are 10 ways to boost creativity. Which one worked for you? Share your thoughts in the Men-id comments section below.
About the Author
