Give yourself a 12" length of fishing line

Don’t try to nurture your creativity, start doing it. The word trying is to be avoided at all costs. Trying implies the possibility of failure, it implies that the action might take place sometime in the future. Trying expresses a lack of belief, commitment, confidence and passion. Although I have never watched Star Wars I love the Yoda quote:

“Do. Or do not. There is no try.”

Instead make a decision that you want to bring more creativity into your life and just start. Make a plan and start now.

Any new project can be daunting. In her book ‘Bird by Bird’ writer Anne Lamott tells the story of an experience her older brother had many years ago. She describes how when her brother was 10 years old, he had to write a report on birds. He had been given three months to write the report but he had procrastinated and now the report was due in just one day. He was sitting at the kitchen table, close to tears, when his father approached him and said:

“Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird.”

Time can be an issue, most of us have busy lives. We might already feel overwhelmed with all the things we have to do. This November I joined the 30 Day Challenge ‘Screw Work Let’s Play’ organized by John Williams and Selina Parker. They introduced me to the concept of Microblocking. With Microblocking you block out short periods of time every day, maybe as little as ten minutes. You decide that during those microblocks of time you are going to stay totally focused on your project, without any interruption. You might be amazed how much you can achieve in such a short amount of time as long as you commit to your microblocks and stay focused.

When you first start it is very likely that the results are not going to be perfect. Anne Lamott talks about ‘Shitty first drafts’. Perfectionism only gets in the way of following the creative path. She explains that “Almost all good writing begins with terrible first efforts. You need to start somewhere. Start getting something – anything - down on paper.” This approach applies not only to writing but to any creative project.

In their book “Creative confidence” Tom and David Kelley say that the lesson that you need to start and accept small failures along the way was brought to life for them by a story in the book “Art & Fear”. The book tells the story of a ceramics instructor who, during the first lesson, divided the pottery class into two groups. The first group would be graded based on the quantity of work they would produce during class. The other group was graded based on the quality of one specific piece of work that would represent all they had learnt in class. The end result was quite astonishing and counterintuitive. The students in the quantity group produced the best pieces of work simply based on the fact that they threw pots nonstop during each session and therefore honed their skills much more than the students in the quality group.

Sometimes we need a little help to boost our confidence and to find the courage to really commit and to make a start. On her Facebook page Anne Lamott tells her favourite story which led her to give each of her writing students a 12" length of fishing line. She said that about 25 years ago she heard the following story about a research project done at a university on the East Coast of America:

“The people in the study had never been able (or maybe willing) to walk alone. The researchers discovered that if they attached a rope from one end of the room to the other, helped people get to their feet, and put their hand on the rope, the people with autism would hold on and walk across the room. Over time, the researchers used thinner and thinner rope, with the same results. People would hold on to the rope, walk across the room. The researchers put up laundry cord, twine, and then eventually fishing line, which is basically invisible. But people would still take hold, and walk across the room.

The truly inspired part of the study was that the researchers found that they could cut the fishing line into 12" lengths, hand people a piece, and people would STILL walk alone across the room. What a wild, victorious skill.

And that is why I always used to give each of my writing students a 12" length of fishing line.”

I would like to leave you with a quote from E. L. Doctorow (also from Anne Lamott’s book ‘Bird by Bird’):

“Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can see only as far as your headlights but you can make a whole trip that way.”

Anne says that she finds this is also a good metaphor for life. It is also a good metaphor for nurturing your creativity. So, make a start even though you don’t quite know where the journey will take you. Take it bird by bird with your fishing line in your hand. Start, fail often and enjoy the ride.

What’s your (creative) story?

Yesterday I attended Karen William’s workshop “What to do when everyone is selling the same as you”. During the workshop Karen presented three strategies that can help you to stand out in your business. One of these strategies was to know and share your story. This made me wonder: What makes a good story?

Always happy to watch a great TED talk I discovered Andrew Stanton’s talk: The clues to a great story. Andrew Stanton is an American film director and the creator of animated movies like Toy Story, Finding Nemo and Wall-e.

So, why are stories so important and how can they help us to stand out in the business world? I would like to start with a quote from Andrew’s talk. He described that the American Children’s television host Mr Fred Rogers always carried the following quote from a socialworker in his pocket:

 “Frankly there isn’t anybody you cannot learn to love once you heard their story.”

We are wired for stories. Stories help us to connect, to find the common human thread. Stories help us to remember and to learn. Stories give meaning to our life. We love the hero’s journey, the struggle and the resolution. Stories heal. Stories light up our brain, they help us to feel empathy.

Andrew identified the following elements which make a great story:

1)   Make the audience care, emotionally and intellectually.

2)   Give value. Make it worthwhile for your audience to invest their time.

3)   Create anticipation and curiosity. Make your audience wonder how the story might end. Make them want to stay with your story through to the end.

4)   Use the unifying theory of 2+2: humans are problem solvers, don’t give all the answers (don’t give 4, give 2+2), let your audience do some of the work.

5)   Give your story structure: beginning, middle and end.

6)   What is the underlying theme to your story? Know your ‘punchline’.

7)   Who are you? What drives you? What’s your hero/heroine’s story? What challenges have you overcome? What have you learnt on the way?

8)  Add the secret sauce: Inspire wonder.

9)   Use what you know. Truth is authentic and creates meaning.

And finally and most importantly: Enjoy telling your story. It also helps if you like the main character of your story which in this case is you.

Telling your story will not only help you to stand out in your business it will also help you to clarify the big questions for yourself: Why am I here? What am I meant to do with my life?

I like to finish with a quote by the Dalai Lama:

“To be born at all is a miracle. What are you’re going to do with your life?”

What is your creative story of wonder? Go, inspire yourself, inspire the world. 

Mind Mapping for Creativity

For many years Tony Buzan, the inventor of the Mind Map, has been a passionate ambassador for the use of mind mapping to increase creativity. I remember buying my first mind mapping book and admiring the beautiful colourful structures. Lacking confidence in my drawing skills so far I have been hesitant to use this tool. However, when I started writing this blog, I found mind maps very useful in gathering my thoughts and giving my writing structure. I have adapted the mind mapping system for my own use and even though it still lacks the creative flair it’s a move in the right direction for me. You can start wherever you are and improve your skills on the way.

I recently watched Tony Buzan’s Ted Talk “The Power of the Mind to Map” in which he explains why mind maps are a fantastic tool for creative thinking.  He asked the audience to think of a mango. He then enquired how the participants’ brain processes the word ‘mango’. Although we still don’t do know exactly what the brain does, it transpires that everybody seems to get an image, quickly followed by further associations. He explained that imagination and association are the primary language of the human brain and that languages are still important but secondary in comparison. He describes how children can play with each other even when they do not speak the same language. I can vouch for this myself as I remember very well a family holiday in Italy when I was five years old. I played very happily with a group of Italian children for a couple of days and language definitely was no barrier for us.

Tony Buzan demonstrated the effect of using a mind map on expanding our creative potential by describing an experiment involving young children. He explained that creativity can be measured by using very simple association tests. A little boy was asked to think of ideas for the use of a paperclip. In ten minutes he generated four ideas. The experimenters then explained to him how he could use a mind map. They tested his creativity again, this time asking him to think of the use for a rubber band. This time, with the use of a mind map, he generated twenty two ideas in only ten minutes. Tony Buzan reported that at the end of the exercise the little boy looked up with a big smile and said “I am a genius”. Tony Buzan maintains that we all have the capacity to be geniuses provided we use our brain in the way it actually works. Our brain is capable to make infinite connections which gives us the scope for infinite creativity.

In my last blog post I mentioned ‘creativity scars’ and that sadly many people collect these kind of scars as they grow up. Tony Buzan tells the very poignant story how he observed a little girl having her creative spirit crushed by her mother. He described how he was travelling on the tube and how the train was going faster and faster, so much so that he feared they would crash any moment. In front of him was a mother with her young daughter. He overheard the little girl saying to her mum: “Mummy, it’s going so fast we can go into tomorrow and then we can tell Daddy what’s going to happen.” He said that he was very astonished that this little girl was capable of this very creative thought. However, sadly, he then heard the mother reprimand her daughter by saying: “Don’t do that again. That’s stupid. Think properly.”

Tony Buzan concludes that we all are scientist, poets, artists and that we still have the childlike quality within us to daydream and produce infinite connections. We can all capture fresh news ideas tapping into our creative potential.

Mind Mapping is not only useful, it is fun and our creative brain likes fun.  Towards the end of his talk Tony Buzan waved a bundle of different colour felt tip pens and said that his wand was much more powerful than Harry Potter’s wand.

Make time to rediscover the magic of colour, daydreaming and your precious imagination. Do some mind mapping to ignite your creativity. 

What the Wizard of Oz can teach us about creativity

Do you remember any “creativity scars”, any specific incidents in your life where you were told that you had no talent to make art, music, sing or write? In their book “Creative Confidence” Tom and David Kelley quote the expression “creativity scars” as used by author and researcher Brené Brown. I certainly can remember more than just one of those incidents where I was made to understand by either a parent or a teacher that I had no talent for something I loved doing and those memories feel very much like scars. Those memories had a long lasting effect on how I saw myself as a non-creative person and what I thought I was able to do. So, why is it so important to heal our scars and start nurturing our creativity?

Steven Kotler begins his Forbes article “Creativity: The secret behind the secret” with a reference to a 2010 survey run by IBM’s Institute for Business Value in which over 1500 Chief Executives were asked what they thought was the most important leadership competency for this new millennium. The top answer was creativity. Creativity is going to be the most valuable quality for a successful business. Yet creativity is also the quality which has been most neglected in our education and our lives. It is time to recognize that creativity is an essential part of our humanity not just to create more business success but also to access a deeper experience of happiness.

The graffiti artist and creativity speaker Erik Wahl writes in his blog post “Rediscover your Fearless Creativity” that “the truth is that creativity is in all of us”. He also says “Creativity is everywhere and in everyone who has the courage to rediscover their fearless artistic genius”.

Now let’s bring in the Wizard of Oz story and the lessons this story has to offer us in relation to our creativity. Erik Wahl is also the author of the book “Unthink” in which he used the story of the Tin Man as a parable of what happens to us when we do not honour our own innate creativity:

A young woodcutter falls in love with a girl and they intend to marry. They’re dreaming dreams of living in a beautiful house he is going to build. Unfortunately the girl’s mother is not too happy about her daughter’s plans as she doesn’t think the young woodcutter will make a suitable husband. So she goes to the Wicked Witch of the East and pays her a handsome sum to ensure the marriage is not going to take place. The witch wickedly puts a curse on the woodcutter’s ax, the very tool the young man is going to use to build the dream house. As the young man starts his work, each time he attempts to cut down a tree, the ax switches direction and attacks him. The first time this happens his arm is seriously wounded. The only person he can find to help him is a tin smith who crafts a new arm out of tin for him. On and on the story goes, each time the young man attempts to cut down a tree he loses another part of his body until his entire body has been replaced by tin, his heart included. Without a heart, he is unable to feel love for his fiancé. He is stronger than ever and efficiently cuts down tree after tree having forgotten the original purpose of his work which was to build a future home for the girl he loved. One day a storm breaks out, it rains hard and endlessly. This is a disaster for the Tin Man, his tin joints rust and stop to function. He is left deep in the woods unable to move. Fortunately one day Dorothy comes along with Toto and the Scarecrow. They are able to rescue the tin man and he joins them in order to find a heart and rediscover who he really is. (Whitehouse Motion Picture created a short movie about the Tin Man Story called “Heartless: The Story of the Tin Man).

When we shut out our creativity, we lose touch with the very heart of our being. We are unable to fulfil our full potential and live the kind of happy and meaningful life we are meant to experience. If we have neglected our creativity we need to start a journey of rediscovery.

In the comments section to Steven Kotler’s Forbes article a reader wrote that “The most important words for any creative individual are, "what if I ...?”.

What would happen if you really believed that you have untapped creative potential? What could you do differently?

Erik Wahl reminds us that every one of us is “a one-of-a-kind artist, capable of producing a one-of-a-kind work of art, every day. Be a whole artist. Mind and heart. Logic and emotion. Strategy and soul.” 

Opening up to vulnerability and uncertainty

Brenè Brown’s Ted Talks about Shame and Vulnerability have been viewed millions of times. In addition to researching vulnerability Brenè Brown is also the author of the two books “The Gifts of Imperfection” and “Daring Greatly”. Her main message is that we need to get away from the misunderstanding that to be vulnerable means to be weak. Instead we need to understand that our vulnerability is actually the birthplace for love, connection, joy and creativity and the tool for creating meaning in our life.

She explains that we live in a culture of scarcity where nothing is ever enough. We are so involved in the search for the extraordinary that we forget to value the gift of the ordinary moments in our life. She explains that, in order to avoid the pain of vulnerability, the first thing people do in the mornings when they get up is to put on an armour of protection: an armour of seeking perfectionism, of numbing emotions, of judgement, of ‘busyness’. However, the sad truth is that when we try to numb out the potential negative emotions we might also shut out the positive emotions.

According to Brenè wholehearted living is the antidote to numbing out life. It is to show up in the world and do the work you are born to do whilst being vulnerable, trusting what emerges and being open to the possibility of failure and of being hurt. It is also helpful to surround yourself with the people who will fully support you when things go wrong and remind you that you showed courage and you tried and that that is all that matters. She stressed that in order to practise vulnerability we need to exercise gratitude, honour the ordinary in our life and allow ourselves to fully experience the emotions of joy and love.

With regard to creativity, she says that it is important to live a creative life. She summarized her thoughts about creativity in her book “The gifts of imperfection”:

1)   There is no such thing as a creative person and a non-creative person. The only distinction is that one person uses their creativity and the other doesn’t.

2)   The only unique contribution we will ever make in this world is born of our creativity.

3)   Only by being creative can we cultivate real meaning in our life.

When asked how she copes with criticism she said that she has learnt to have profound respect for herself and everybody else out there who is facing vulnerability and uncertainty being ‘in the arena’ and doing their work and that she does not respect comments from people who stand outside the arena looking in. With ‘being in the arena’ Brenè refers to a speech by Roosevelt:

 “It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly.”

It’s not easy to be vulnerable, to show up and face uncertainty. It feels safer to bury your creativity inside. However, Brenè says that in her view you can either make this world a better place or a worse place. By nurturing your creativity you most definitely will make this world a better place for all of us.

You can read Brenè’s full blog post ‘To live a creative life’ here.

The right kind of passion can make you more creative

In order to be successful and happy and nurture your creativity it’s really important that you understand why you want to do something. Scott Barry Kaufman PH.D., cognitive psychologist, is interested in the development of intelligence, creativity and personality and he says that there is an essential difference between obsessive passion and harmonic passion. Obsessive passion will decrease the potential for creativity whilst harmonic passion will greatly increase your creative potential.

Scott describes how children are naturally enthusiastic, they want to learn and create. They do what they do for the joy of doing it, they are intrinsically motivated. When you do what you want to do for the value the activity has for you even without any external reward, you are relaxed, you feel in control and you are likely to be in a state of flow.

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi studied extensively the state of flow which he found has the following qualities:

1)   You’re present in the moment, you’re focused and concentrated.

2)   You have a sense of ecstasy, being outside everyday reality.

3)   You experience great inner clarity.

4)   You feel that your skills are adequate to the task.

5)   You are in a place of serenity, in a place where you’re not thinking about yourself or worrying.

6)   You have a feeling of timelessness.

7)   You’re intrinsically motivated, you do what you do for the love of it.

When you are following an obsessive passion and you’re extrinsically motivated, you pursue an activity for the external reward you hope to attain, this could be money, fame, fortune or praise/recognition. Research has shown that extrinsic motivation often is a sign of low self-esteem and an unstable ego. You hope that the reward will make you a better, more worthwhile person and for this reason the reward can become more important than the actual activity. You feel that you must do something because it will give you the desired outcome irrespective of whether you enjoy the activity or not. In the long term this can lead to feelings of stress and being controlled by the activity you so strongly feel you need to do. In this state you are not able to do your best work, fulfil your potential and nurture your creativity.

The conclusion is that, in order to unfold your creative potential, it is best to concentrate on the activities you love doing and to allow yourself to get immersed in the experience. When you are in a state of harmony within yourself and follow your natural passion you effortlessly tap into your authentic creativity and new ideas can flow into your consciousness.

Develop a Growth Mindset for Creativity

Carol S Dweck, Ph.D, professor at Stanford University, discovered in her research into success that whether we achieve our goals or not depends largely on what kind of mindset we have. She distinguishes between a fixed mindset and a growth mindset.

With a fixed mindset you believe that success comes through innate talent and you don’t believe that skills and ability can be developed through effort and dedication. You are afraid of taking on challenges and trying out new things because there is a risk of failure and when you fail, you fear that you will be judged by others as not being smart. When setbacks block your way you don’t have the resilience to learn and carry on. You probably are more likely to say “I can’t do this” and stop trying altogether.  This is the mindset that would have you say, “I’m just not the creative type and I never will be, I’m not born that way”.

The growth mindset is all about wanting to learn. You know that talent can be developed over time with effort, practice and dedication. You accept setbacks as part of the journey and always ask yourself “What can I learn?” and “What can I do differently”. As you’re ok with failure you’re resilient when things don’t go the way you wanted and you continue on your learning journey. You’re happy to take on challenges and try things you haven’t done before. You’re happy to be a beginner and not look smart.

To be successful and achieve your goals it is vital that you adopt a growth mindset. Recent brain research has shown that our brain is ‘plastic’, it can change and new connections can be formed at any time. It’s never too late to rewire your brain for creativity. Science has shown that it is possible but you have to believe that you can.

Carol Dweck identified four steps to develop a growth mindset:

1)   Listen to your inner voice and recognize when you are in a fixed mindset.

2)   Recognize that are free to choose your mindset.

3)   Get into a dialogue with your fixed mindset, reply to it with a growth mindset (e.g. Respond to “I can’t do this!” with “Yes, I might not be able to do it yet but I can learn how to do this with patience and dedication.”)

4)   Then listen to your growth mindset voice and take action.

As children we might have been praised only when we produced good results. It has been shown that for a growth mindset to develop it is important to praise effort and dedication irrespective of the outcome. Therefore, make a commitment to reward yourself for your efforts and your continued dedication to develop and nurture your creativity. Say to yourself “I might not be creative yet but I can learn and learning can be fun.”

You can test your current mindset on Carol Dweck’s website.

The Creative Genius inside

Yesterday I attended the NLP conference event ‘From Modelling Excellence to Being Excellent’ with Michael Neill. I have been following Michael Neill and his transition from NLP to the Three Principles for a while. I read, I listened, I watched, I could see what qualities the people who are involved with the Three Principles have and I wanted some of these inner qualities of calm and clarity. Somehow I just couldn’t quite ‘get it’. Yesterday a crack opened for me and a little bit of this ‘it’ got in.

This is my understanding of the Three Principles:

In 1973 Sydney Banks, a Scottish welder living in Canada, had an insight into how the Human Mind works and he called the three fundamental building blocks of human experience: Mind, Consciousness and Thought.

The principle of Mind is the guiding principle behind life. This guiding principle has been given many names, the quantum field, the field of infinite possibilities, infinite creative energy, God. This guiding principle ensures that an acorn always grows into an oak tree and that when we cut our finger, the wound will normally heal without us having to do anything other than to keep the wound clean. This guiding principle is working in the universe 24/7 and we have access to this field of all possibilities when our mind is quiet and open to insights and fresh ideas.

Consciousness allows us to be aware of our own thinking and how our thinking is creating our reality and experience of life.

Thought is the paintbrush with which we create our life experience. We think and then we feel our thinking. We can never not feel our thinking. When we have good feeling thoughts we feel good, when we have bad feeling thoughts we feel bad. Thoughts just come and go if we let them. At any time we are potentially just one thought away from a better feeling thought.

The beauty is in the simplicity of the system. There isn’t really much we have to do other than to be open, curious and allow our mind to calm down enough for new insight to come in. If we do there is clarity and the next step will reveal itself effortlessly. The path appears and all you have to do is show up and take the next step. And trust the process.

When our mind gets cluttered and we feel stressed, depressed, bored or any of the other negative states of mind, all this tells us is that our thinking is off, we have cluttered our connection to the infinite genius inside and if we don’t take our thoughts too serious, they will pass and fresh new thought will come in, clarity will be restored. It’s a self-correcting system. It’s our mental immune system.

Michael said that he has noticed two fundamental human problems:

1)   People don’t understand that they are feeling their thoughts. They think that there is something outside themselves that makes them feel a certain way and that the outside reality needs to get fixed. He says that there is nothing there that needs fixing. It’s just thought seeming real, very real at times.

2)   People underestimate the power of the mind, they cannot see their own potential. He called this our inner genius.  

Where this road is taking me I have no idea yet and that is ok. I know the next step will appear and then the next one. I don’t have to control this process, I don’t have to get stressed. All I have to do is to trust the process.

If you like to explore the Three Principles here are some links you can follow:

Michael Neil, the Inside Out Revolution.

Jamie Smart, Clarity

Damian Mark Smyth, Do Nothing

The Three Principles Movies.

Sydney Banks

Creativity loves Constraints

In a presentation at Stanford University Marisa Mayer, President and CEO of Yahoo, said that ‘Creativity loves constraints’ as too much freedom can make creativity unfocused. Writing this blog I certainly find that there is truth in her statement. The white blank page can be very intimidating and sometimes it helps just to write down a sentence to have something to start working with.

In her book ‘A Crash Course on Creativity’ Tina Seelig describes how time restriction can be used to open up creativity. She mentioned how she, unconsciously, used the tool of creative procrastination when writing her book. The less time she had available to write her book the more focused her mind became and this helped her to accumulate enough creative tension to take action and put her ideas on paper.

Many people find deadlines very helpful for getting projects done. If there isn’t an externally imposed deadline it often helps to set a firm deadline for yourself and write it in your diary. It’s important that you really commit to keeping to your deadline. In order to get into good writing habits for this blog I’m using this tool otherwise I could easily continue endlessly doing just a little bit more research before I feel I have enough information to write anything at all.

A great example on a constraint put on creativity is the six word memoir. Apparently Ernest Hemmingway is reported to have made a wager with other writers that he could write a story in six words. This was his story: “For sale: baby shoes, never used”. Only a few words but they are very expressive and emotive.

At sixwordmemoirs SMITH magazine runs a whole website where people can publish their six word memoirs. Three of my favourites from this website are:

-      “Look out! Happiness is contagious”

-      “I need a Mental Health Day”

-      “Time flies when you are having kids”

       

Tina Seelig mentions in her book that she uses the six word memoirs methods to stimulate her students’ imagination on the first day of their creativity course when they are asked to introduce themselves to the group.

I thought this would be a really good exercise to practice a little bit of creativity. I wondered how I could sum up myself in only six words. Here is my six word memoir: “Heart wide open capturing life’s wonders”.

Now it’s your turn to flex your creative muscle. Set a timer to 10 or 15 minutes and imagine how you would like to be introduced in 6 words to your guests on your 100^th Birthday Celebration. 

When Blue Sky Thinking meets Empathy or Why Creativity is important

Maybe creativity seems to be a luxury of life, nice but not necessary. Sir Ken Robinson believes creativity is as important in life as literacy and numeracy. And the older I get the more I believe this too.

The story of Doug Dietz demonstrates this beautifully. Dough Dietz is a principal designer with the US company GE Healthcare and for more than 20 years he has been designing diagnostic imaging equipment like MRI scanners. When he participated in the executive education program at Stanford’s Design School (d.school) he decided to look into the experience children and families had when a child had to have an MRI scan.

He quickly realized that the experience was awful. The children arrived crying and scared, the parents were stressed wondering how they would get their child through the experience. 80% of the children had to be sedated. Doug had felt very proud about the technical achievement of designing a MRI scan but now he was shocked how much of an ordeal families and children had to go through. He made a firm decision to change their experience for the better.

He gathered a very diverse team which included children and child development experts to help him create innovative ideas. He wanted to understand what caused the children’s anxiety. He looked at the process of having a MRI scan from the children’s perspective. He quickly realized that the whole process was cold, dark and threatening. He also realized that the answer was to use imagination which children have in abundance.

As a result of the blue sky thinking process the MRI experience was completely transformed. Instead of having to go through the scary ordeal, children entered a jungle adventure or a pirate island, a cosy campsite or a nautical adventure. Doug explained how he was talking with the parents of a little girl who was having a scan in one of the new scanners and he described, with tears in his eyes, how the little girl came back after the scan trying desperately to get her mother’s attention because she had this burning question: “Can we come back tomorrow?”.

Doug described the amazing results after only one year of the new MRI scans being used: in one year only 2 children had to be sedated, waiting times were reduced because more children could be scanned in a day and customer satisfaction went up to 92%. He said that all these results were very impressive but what really meant the world for him was the fact that he had improved children’s experience of healthcare. He had taken out the stress and created a fun experience instead. In addition, one of the healthcare professionals told him that she had been reminded why she had become a healthcare professional in the first place.

If you want to see all the amazing MRI scan designs I urge you to watch Doug’s tedtalk. It’s a very emotional talk and it will touch your heart.

Doug finished saying that when you design for meaning good things will happen. He also said that even though the work is serious and important “if you’re not having fun it’s half your fault.”

Being creative is very important, it has meaning and it makes our life experience better, richer and more fun. Best of all, we can all be more creative. All that is needed is our decision and commitment to develop and nurture our creativity.

How are you going to be a little bit more curious today? What can you do or see differently today to spark your creativity?

Let your Tortoise Brain come out to play!

Ever wondered where Creativity comes from and how to get more of it?

Creativity is not a talent or an ability we have or don’t have, it is however a special mode of thinking. This I learned today from watching a brilliant presentation by John Cleese. Within little over 30 minutes he demystified creativity in a way that makes this precious quality accessible to us all.

He explained that we can function in two very different modes of thinking. The closed mode and the open mode. It very much depends on which of those two modes of thinking our brain operates whether new ideas flow freely or not.

In the closed mode creativity is simply inaccessible to us. Sadly most of us spend a lot of our time in closed mode. We are in this state when we try to get things done. We think fast and decisively, we feel active, maybe slightly anxious or tense, the adrenaline is flowing. There is purpose to what we do, we want to feel in control, maybe we feel impatient. This is not a state where we are receptive to humour. It is also a state where we can easily feel overwhelmed and stressed. Tunnel vision can be a sign of this thinking state.

The open brain function shows very different qualities. Here we are playful and relaxed, expansive and contemplative. We are curious and open to explore, in a sense very childlike. We laugh and have fun, we can see the big picture. If you want to generate new ideas, this is the place to be. Here our natural creativity can emerge from the unconscious mind.

John Cleese further explains that there are 5 factors that help us to access the open thinking mode for creativity:

1)   Space – Create a quiet oasis, a tortoise enclosure for your slow thinking brain, away from the hustle and bustle of daily life. Make sure there aren’t going to be any interruptions. Switch off the phone, close down the internet, find that quiet place.

2)   Time – Set a clear beginning and end time, 90 minutes works well.

3)   Sit with your problem – Give yourself time to ponder the problem, sit with it calmly, explore, play with it.

4)   Be confident in your playfulness – Accept anything that comes up, no judgement. Anything goes, there are no wrong answers at this stage.

5)   Humour – The fastest way to access the open mode. Allow yourself to giggle and have fun.

Will you get that aha moment within the 90 minutes? Maybe, maybe not. It might come later, unexpectedly. John Cleese says, provided you ponder your problem long enough, the idea will come up as a gift from the unconscious. The most creative people are often those who give themselves maximum pondering time. Don’t run with the first idea that comes up. There is more gold to be found, wait!

The challenge is this: when we sit down for our pondering time, our brains can trip us up. The brain gets hyperactive with all the things we have to do. Just wait, the brain will calm down eventually. Of course, the more you practice this, the easier it gets.

If you want to watch John’s full presentation, here’s the link.

If it works for John Cleese, it will work for you. The world is waiting for your creative contribution!

When will you let your tortoise brain out to play?

How to stop the Inner Critic and create a calm Inner Mind

Walking across the fields yesterday I came across this recent victim of last week’s autumn storm. A tree that for many years had seemed to be strong and firmly rooted could not withstand the force of the wind. It made me think how this can be a metaphor for our own life. How strong, grounded and flexible are we when life’s adversities blow our way? It is a fact of life that not everything goes to plan all of the time. Stress is a common problem most of us struggle with, more often than we want to. The result is that we feel overwhelmed, confused, exhausted. We work hard but achieve very little and feel like a hamster on a wheel.

On the contrary, with a calm inner mind we can achieve so much more, we use our time more efficiently and we have much more fun. We also have much better access to our own creativity. The good news is that it’s possible to achieve this resourceful state. There are some tools like deep breathing which can bring some instant relief. In the long run however, it is necessary to make a commitment to practice a calmer mind on a regular basis.

So what’s preventing us from having this desirable calm inner state? Where does the inner chatter come from, the inner critic, the doubts, the criticism, the fear of failure?

Timothy Gallway in his book ‘The Inner Game of Work’ explains that he discovered two distinctive types of Self, Self 1 and Self 2. Self 1 is our inner critic, the internalized voice of others, our parents, our teachers to name but a few. Self 2 on the contrary is our natural self, our inherent potential for learning, growing and enjoying life. He discovered that when we manage to calm down Self 1 and trust the natural resourcefulness of Self 2 change can happen more quickly, more effectively and often without much less effort.

What actually happens when Self 1 appears on the scene? Self 1 is not entirely bad news, its intentions are good if not always useful. Self 1 wants to keep us safe and out of trouble. In evolutionary terms this makes complete sense.

Think about our hunter-gatherer forefathers who had to face danger to their life on a daily basis. They needed a safe, fast and trustworthy mechanism for survival. This is our fight or flight mechanism. In a dangerous situation you don’t have to think, your body gets mobilized immediately to either run or fight and incredible resources can be released in a very short time. In 2009 the Scientific American printed an excerpt from Jeff Wise’s book “Extreme Fear: The Science of our mind in danger” which describes the incredible strength with which Tom Boyle, Jr singlehandedly lifted a car to free a cyclist trapped underneath (here is the link to the article: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=extreme-fear-superhuman). These superpowers can be extremely useful in the right circumstances.

Evolutionary our survival mechanism is much older than our newer analytical prefrontal cortex and it is alive and working within us in the same way as it does for our cat and our dog. Unfortunately our survival mechanism does not only kick in when we are in danger of our life but in all kinds of other situations that are not really dangerous. Like giving a presentation or going to a networking event promoting your business or writing a blog (don’t I know!). The inner critic gets alert and tells you: “You’re not good enough”, “They will laugh at you”. “You’re just going to embarrass yourself.” Better not to do it, not yet anyway. Better to do another course first or read that book, gather more information and then, maybe, I will be ready.

Whenever our brain interprets something as a threat to us, and this can be an imagined thread as our brain cannot distinguish between a real or imagined event, the survival mechanism is triggered, every time. Being in flight or fight mode is not conducive to thinking with clarity, making logical decisions or generating great ideas. In fact in the survival mode we have limited access to our prefrontal cortex and our responses are automatic and run unconsciously. We only have access to patterns of behaviour already stored in our memory. If last time you wanted to get that important but daunting piece of work done, instead you checked your emails or your Facebook page or got lost in following endless links on the worldwide web and that made you feel much better, calmer and more relaxed, you will be very tempted to do exactly the same thing again next time you sit down to get to work. You’re out of danger, you’re safe.

For better or for worth, we are stuck with the older parts of our brain and the survival mechanism. However, there are several ways you can avoid the activation of the Amygdala and the Flight or Fight response when it is not necessary for our physical survival. When we are relaxing, the Amygdala is calm, it cannot be any other way. That’s why it is so important to make time for relaxation on a regular basis. Relaxation can be achieved in all kinds of different ways depending on what works for you individually. It can be meditation, yoga, listening to relaxing music, going for a run, a walk in nature or cooking a meal.

It is worthwhile to make sure we stay out of the flight or fight mode most of the time. Only in a calm, relaxed state do we have full access to all our mental resources. Timothy Gallway, the inventor of the Inner Game, created a very simple formula to express the effect of amygdala activation on our performance. He came to the conclusion that performance is the result of our internal potential minus interference from Self 1, the inner critic. He said that by quieting down Self 1 as much as possible and trusting Self 2 we can achieve our maximal potential, with ease and enjoyment.

You might ask yourself what is this Self 2? There was a time when you and your Self 2 were one and the same. Just look at some of your childhood photos, when you were entirely yourself in a free and unconstraint way, following your natural desire and interest, fully absorbed in the moment. This Self 2 is still well and alive within you.

Gallway says that focused attention is the gateway to our Self 2. When we pay full attention to what we are doing, without straining, in a relaxed way, we fully access our Self 2 and our natural resources. He also reminds us how important it is to have clarity about what we want to achieve and to observe how things are without judgement, as a neutral observer. With this neutral relaxed focus we screen out the doubtful Self 1 voices. We are in creative flow.

When we access Self 2 we are relaxed, we learn faster, we have full access to our mental resources, we achieve more, we work more efficiently, we produce better quality work, we connect better and we have more fun. This creates a state of harmony with our inner nature. We benefit and the world around us benefits as we can give our best.

Wouldn’t it be good to be in Self 2 mode more often?

Here is what you can do:

Over the next week, try the following:

1)   Become aware of your Self 1 voice, the inner critic.

2)   Realize that this is not the real you, which is Self 2.

3)   Make a decision to fully trust your Self 2 potential.

4)   Give your full attention to whatever you do.

5)   Become a neutral observer, cut out the judgments.

6)   Make regular time for relaxation.

7)   Notice the difference.

8)   Commit to accessing Self 2 as often as you can.

I find that Timothy Gallway’s Inner Game concepts could potentially be life changing. It will require some commitment and some practice in order to help build new neural pathways in our brain to build a fast and reliable access to Self 2 whatever we do. In my next blog posts I will introduce you to further ideas from the Inner Game.

So try the Inner Game and have fun!