Einstein once said that ‘creativity is intelligence having fun’. When you think of creativity, what comes to mind? Is it great works of art or literature? Innovative solutions and new ways of thinking? Being more adaptable and not repeating past mistakes? Mindfulness for creativity is one way to grow the brain you want, whatever skillset you seek to develop.
Bringing a fresh perspective to any situation or relationship is harder than it seems. Unwittingly you get easily trapped in habitual responses, which limit your options. There are four stages to creativity:
- Preparation – gathering a range of ideas, generally messy and random
- Incubation – do other things while your brain organizes itself
- Illumination – the ‘aha’ moment
- Verification – the reality check.
They require different parts of your brain – a balance of freedom and constraint on thinking – and a balance between different brain networks.
Women in midlife are highly creative. The transition of menopause seems to bring about a ‘rebirth’, a coming home to yourself. Many start their own businesses, write novels, or start new hobbies. It is a great opportunity to use the wisdom and experience of your first 40 plus years to consciously design the next part of your life the way you want.
How mindfulness for creativity helps
The relationship between mindfulness and creativity is complex but generally positive. It seems to improve the skills and habits of mind that support creativity. Mindfulness can:
- Help you learn to observe and attend to various stimuli consistently
- Reduce poor habitual patterns of thinking and responding
- Decrease stress, which can make creative thinking more difficult
- Increase awareness of thought patterns, which helps with the ‘illumination’ stage
- Strengthen your self-compassion and reduce your critical judgement of yourself, important skills as the creative process is not always smooth
- Balance brain networks for perseverance and resilience
- Reduce your fear of being judged
- Increase your capacity for open mindedness.
Mindfulness is associated with empathy, improved concentration, and with the ability to change perspectives. Stopping your habitual reactions is part of the crux of creativity.
Five ways to train your brain for creativity
- Take up some regular meditation – there are plenty of short, guided practices here. Try keeping a journal of your thoughts and feelings about the practice, so you can get used to observing your mind and noticing habits and patterns.
- Identify an activity where you can ‘find flow’. Something that is so absorbing that you remain in the present moment, without distraction. It could be a sport, or a hobby. The engagement is part and parcel of creativity as it enhances concentration.
- Choose non-doing. Use the STOP practice to help you retrain habitual reactions. Often just stopping will give your mind time to produce new options.
- Try something new or challenge yourself to do an activity you normally do but in a new way. Again you might want to keep a journal and note down your thoughts and feelings.
- See the blogs on beginner’s mind and non-striving, for other ways to use mindfulness to cultivate creativity.
Curiosity and openness to experience are integral to mindfulness for creativity. And it is not just about innovation. Your awareness of your self and your relationship to your world can improve your stress, health, and wellbeing.
In a world full of distraction, and increasing unpredictability, being able to be creative and adaptable is a core life skill.
Mindfulness for creativity is simple, but not easy. It takes time, but you can literally teach your brain to balance its thinking networks better. Try this practice to help bring kindness to your mind and thoughts. It is 11 minutes long.
Mindfulness tip: mindfulness helps you be more adaptable and flexible in the face of multiple distractions and uncertainty.
