Jumpstart Your Creativity (8 page)

Remember too that your fear of being wrong is a surefire way to kill your creativity. Suspend your need to jump to conclusion or solution. To this end, Sir Anthony Hopkins, while answering questions during his second visit to
Inside the Actor's Studio
(original airdate 10-15-2007), shared the following after discussing the importance of keeping the creative process of acting in perspective relative to the rest of the world, and getting your ego out of your acting so your best work is possible.

None of this is important. The other cynical thing I will tell you which is shocking. If none of us ever acted again in a film, the world would not come to a stop. If I never went on stage or made a film again. So on. Who cares. And that's a great freedom to know that. I just take it easy and think about what's to be will be. I've got this thing that helps me, Today is the tomorrow I was so worried about yesterday. So
think your best. Unfold. Let go. If you want it, it will happen. Just surrender. Because it has nothing to do with you.

Of course Sir Anthony Hopkins acknowledged this was true before he was a famous actor, as well to counter the criticism that “This was easy for him because he was so successful already,” and he emphasized that you must work hard and keep honing your craft, or as Morgan Freeman once said, “You have to keep working, dancing, keep your feet moving.”

So remember to release your need for perfection (Release Step), and accept your humanness. Be humble about your approach to the creative process if for no other reason than to reduce your stress or anxiety from any feelings of performance anxiety or negative self-talk.

Be accepting to the potential of the creative process, the fact that it may take a few meetings over time, and the reality that you will never have the perfect team. When working in groups, be sure to touch base with each participant as soon as possible from the beginning and listen for their level of buy-in to the process and its intended outcomes. Listening to yourself and to others is critically important to the Accept Step.

Getting started is one of the challenges to having productive and effective creativity time. Too often people tell us, “We don't have time to sit around and be creative.” Sadly these folks miss the point altogether. Research and practical experience tells us there is a sweet spot in terms of time dedicated to
creativity. Too large a block of time and people won't participate; not enough time and people feel rushed, shortchanged, and become critical of the creativity process or critical of the quality of the outcome.

The best time frame for a Play Zone is sixty to ninety minutes. The next challenge you will face is distractions while trying to focus on your single problem, especially in the first ten to fifteen minutes of the creativity period. When tasked with trying to be creative, either individually or in groups, adults tend to struggle with “not having all the answers” and their need to jump to conclusions or jump too quickly to a solution.

To reawaken your own creativity, you should take time to:

• Read books, magazines, articles

• View videos

• Listen to speeches

• Watch speeches from TED conferences

• Subscribe to creative channels on YouTube such as “Thinkr”

• Enroll yourself in Google alerts for topics you want to follow

• Explore the hundreds of ProjectX contests online

• Sign up for Adult Enrichment classes at your local college

• Research
Amazon.com
and review recommended book reading lists

• Study improv comedy

• Participate in “open mic night”

• Journal your thoughts

• Doodle or draw

• Paint

• Do yoga

• Ride a bike

• Go for a long walk

Use your DVR or TiVo to record television shows such as:

•
Whose Line is it Anyway?

•
Drew Carrey's Improv-aganza

•
How Things are Made

•
Invention Hunter

•
Shark Tank

•
CSI

•
House

•
Breaking Bad

•
Big Bang Theory

•
America's Got Talent

•
Chopped

•
CashCab

•
Million Dollar Remodel

•
How Do They Do It?

•
How the Universe Works

•
Invention

•
MythBusters

•
Pitchman

•
Why Didn't I Think of That?

Research these shows on Hulu.com, Netflix, Amazon Prime, or VideoOnDemand.

Engage all of your senses. Squeeze clay between your fingers. Try cooking a new recipe. Listen to your favorite music; change your radio preset stations in your car every other week for variety. Play with Legos. Look at websites of companies that are heralded as creative—Apple, Zappos, Legos, Whole Foods, Salesforce.com, Amazon, Tencent Holdings, Natura Cosmeticos, Reckitt Benckiser Group, Ecolab, Activision Blizzard, Pixar, Proctor & Gamble, L'Oreal, Schlumberger, Alcon, NetApp, Juniper Networks, and Chipotle, to name just a few.

Check out blog sites:

• Blog.creativethink.com

• AccidentalCreative.com

• IdeasonIdeas.com

• 99u.com

• CreativeSomething.net

• CreativeGeneralist.com

• Idea-sandbox.com/blog

• blog.guykawasaki.com

• 52Projects.com

• InnovationManagement.se

• Gapingvoid.com

Download apps on creativity:

• Creative Whack Pack

• Dr. Babb's Idea Lab

• Brushes

• Paper

• Bebot

• WriteRoom

• Whrrl

• Artnear

• Postino

• iTalkRecorder

Look up Pinterest pinboards. Check out Digg, Reddit, and LinkedIn news.
Kickstarter.com
has hundreds of projects. Check out Kiva.org. Read Bill Clinton's book,
Giving
, which lists hundreds of nonprofit organizations and causes around the world. Read Dave Lakhani's
Power of an Hour
. Visit
TimFerris.com
for inspiration, intrigue, and innovation. Go to
www.creativitylaunchpad.com
to take your creativity to a whole new level.

Commit to tolerating the discomfort and the ambiguity of the creative process longer to create the best ideas and solutions and to leverage opportunities. Commit to take action, no matter how small or big. Be present, especially when working within a small group. And finally, focus on the outcomes, the results, and the benefits of persevering through the creative process.

Now identify the problem, desired outcome, or challenge statement with which you want to apply the C.R.E.A.T.E. Plan. Take a few minutes to complete this plan so you can move forward in powerful, positive ways with your creative process. Under each section, simply write down the specific, timely actions you must take to achieve success in your creative process.

My Goal Statement
(desired outcome or challenge). (For example, solve the clean water shortage in Sub-Saharan Africa.)

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Commit with Confidence and Courage

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Release Expectations

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Embrace Play

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Accept

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Take time

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Engage

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The first five things I must do to set myself up for success are:

1. _____________________________________

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2. _____________________________________

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3. _____________________________________

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4. _____________________________________

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5. _____________________________________

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I commit to myself that I will use the C.R.E.A.T.E. Plan to prepare for my next creative process on or before ____________________ (Date MM/DD/YYYY).

You may also download this plan at
www.creativitylaunchpad.com/jumpstart
.

WORK IT

Take time to think about each aspect of your life that would benefit greatly when you apply a little creative thinking to it.

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What specifically would be the value or benefit to you and/or other important relationships in your life from applying a little creative thinking?

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Which of these are urgent AND important enough to start working on right away? How will your life be different
if you simply focus a little time, effort, and creativity in this area of your life?

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