Spark Your Creative Flame

Creativity can be priceless, especially in this day and age when competition is so keen and practically everyone has some form of decent education. Creativity can set you apart from others, make you all the more valuable because you're able to contribute new and interesting ideas. Anyone can create a PowerPoint presentation, but what will make your pitch stand out from the rest?

Sure, you've had your sparks of brilliance, but how can you maintain a healthy store of creativity so that you're consistently performing at your peak?

First of all, you have to be very clear about what you're passionate about. Create and work on your mission statement. Let your principles guide you in almost everything you do. Knowing what your passion is gives you focus; it helps you decide when to say "Yes" and when to say "No". It cuts through the pandemonium of thoughts to light up which ideas work best for you.

Next, you must develop a system or technique of catching your ideas. So many thoughts pass our minds each day; how many good or potentially great ideas have you lost simply because you didn't have a way of recording them? Carry a note book everywhere you go, or use an audio recorder, or a PDA. Pen your ideas down, no matter how banal or silly they may seem at the time. When your creative well is dry, you can pull these out, throw them into the pot, give them a good stir and see what comes up! Many great ideas come from combining a few common things.

You can also keep your creative flame burning brightly by regularly engaging in creative "rituals". These are activities that massage or incite your creative energy. You must find out what works for you, but for me personally, I love going for a short walk, seeing the greens, starting off-the-wall conversations with friends to see what comes out of them, or forcing myself to laugh. The idea is to do something that knocks you off the pattern of ordinary life, that challenges you to come up with the most ridiculous, impossible things you can imagine!

And always do more than you're expected to do! If you're asked to come up with 3 names, think of 7! If you're asked for 5 designs, come up with 10! If you're asked for 2 alternate versions, give them 6! This practice trains your mind to always seek out more ideas, more solutions, more ways of doing something. Over time, your mind will be able to spontaneously spit out great ideas!