Kickstarting your creativity

Do you find it hard to get started doing art or other creative endeavour, or even getting started on a large project? Do you find everything else to do, except getting started? Even cleaning the house seems to come first and even though being creative is so important to us.

And this is doubly important to me to get going more on art - one of my New Year's resolutions.

When it comes to getting into the creative spirit, some would have us believe that all we have to do some doodling - that is supposed to get the right brain stimulated enough to get us started.

If you're like me, that doesn't work.

Okay, here are some ideas that I find really do work - perhaps not every single time, but they do work more often than not:

- Schedule time to do your art with another person, then you are motivated to get started, and not to find other stuff to do instead

- Play background music - music facilitates creativity and can help you hold your attention on a project longer than if there is no background music. (for a bit more info see my blog from last month)

- The kind of music you listen to while creating matters. Hard rock or metal may provide too much excitement, while impressionistic can help with free-flowing ideas, and classical will benefit special perception. Country music will stir up memories and emotions, chants or drumming will lower your pulse and help provide a calm environment.

- Go for a walk or a drive. The visual stimulation helps kickstart the creative ideas. I used to find my drive home from my office was the best time for processing issues and finding solutions.  And if you listen to music at the same time, you will notice even more benefits.

- Sing or hum - Singing and humming uses both sides of the brain at the same time.

- Move, dance, drum, conduct .....try one of these and see how you feel.

Hope I've given you some inspiration here. Really, the cleaning will still be there tomorrow, so try one of these ideas to get started on that project.