10 Exercises That Will Improve Your Creativity
Creativity is important in any field, from business to art. And while some people seem to have some natural talent for creativity, it's something that anyone can learn and improve with exercise.
Creativity isn't just coming up with novel ideas or new products on your own. It's also about being able to see the value in things others might not notice right away. It's understanding how creativity works and understanding the power that comes from personal creativity.
Creativity is just like any other muscle in the body and needs to be strengthened through daily exercise. When you put creativity into practice every day, you build mental muscle and your creativity mindset.
Creativity Mindset
When you have creativity as a mindset, you're able to see creativity everywhere. You may see something that inspires an entirely new idea or product. Or maybe your creativity is sparked by something as simple as a conversation with one of your family members over dinner. Creativity isn't only something you can practice on a piece of paper or canvas. It's a way of thinking that can apply to everything in life, from business deals to your daily habits.
Learning Creativity From Others
Many successful creative thinkers have written innovative books about their approach to fostering a creative mindset. Learning from their experiences can help you identify techniques that resonate with you, to help feed your creative subconscious.
Speaking with other creative thinkers and even running brainstorming sessions with the right tools, can also help you shift to a more creative mindset.
Success Comes From Creativity
Creativity is one of the most important skills a person can have. It's what allows businesses to come up with new ideas and products and stay ahead of the competition. That's why CEOs are always on the lookout for people who are creative because they know those employees will be an asset to their company.
Being creative isn't just important for businesses, it's important for people in all aspects of their lives. Creativity allows us to think outside the box and come up with new solutions to the never-ending supply of problems.
Improving Your Creativity Through Exercise
Many creatives commit to exercising their creative muscle every day to break through their fear of running out of ideas. So whether your creativity is one of your hobbies or it's something you hope to make a career out of, creativity is something that can benefit you in any scenario.
10 Exercises to Improve Your Creativity
So how do you become more creative? Find exercises that will strengthen your creative muscle. Like the gym, you want a collection of exercises so that you can rotate them and not get bored.
Here are ten exercises to get you started. There will be a bonus 11th exercise at the end.
1) Take a walk outside
A quick escape from your desk for some fresh air and exercise will help you be more creative, as well as provide clarity on what you're working on. As you walk, try to observe your surroundings and think about how they can influence creativity. Try thinking about how creativity is linked to nature, and what you could do with the knowledge. Is creativity inhibited by a lack of stimuli? If so, creativity can be found in even the most mundane objects.
2) Write a list of things that annoy you
By identifying and writing the things that bother you, you can see patterns and common themes. This can help you come up with new ideas for products, services, or ways to solve problems. Next time you're in the shower, sing out your annoyance to yourself. You may find an idea coming to you within minutes.
3) Play with the lyrics to your favorite song
By playing with the lyrics to your favorite song, you are opening up your mind to new possibilities and breaking out of your comfort zone. Music exercises a distinct part of your creative muscle, so it's important to tap into creativity in every way possible. By changing the words of your favorite song, you are adding a layer to an old tune, which will open up your creativity. How? 1) Listen to your favorite song and focus on the lyrics. 2) Change one word at a time and sing it to the tune and see if it sounds good in your head (if not, change another word). and 3) See how many original phrases you can come up with for this song by changing one word at a time until you can't think of any more.
4) Create a video montage of your day
When you film your day, you are capturing memories. This can be a fun way to document your life and to see how your creativity manifests itself in your everyday life. By editing the video, you are also exercising your creativity by coming up with creative ways to tell your story.
For example, you could choose to film only certain parts of your day, or you could use music and graphics to add an extra layer of creativity to the video. You could even tell a story with your video montage. By experimenting with different ways to film and edit your videos, you will improve your creativity skills.
5) Write about what scares you and why it scares you (or write about what doesn't scare you)
One way creatives sharpen creativity muscles is by writing about what scares them and why it scares them (or writing about what doesn't scare them). The act of exploring the scary things in life can open up new avenues that otherwise would not be explored because they were too fearful. The person has to think creatively in order to get past these fears and write something original about it for this exercise- which will help with creativity overall!
6) Play games that require creativity, such as chess or Scrabble
Many creatives commit to exercising their creativity muscle by playing games that require creativity, such as chess or scrabble. Playing games can not only keep your mind sharp but also can help with problem-solving and even decision making.
7) Do something that makes you laugh, like watching comedy videos on YouTube
Many creatives find they need to be in a good mood in order to be creative. So if you’re struggling with a creativity block, one way to get past it is to do something that will make you feel good. When you’re feeling good, endorphins are released, and this can help to stimulate creativity. Laughter is a great way to release endorphins.
Watching comedy videos on YouTube is a great way to lift your mood and exercise your creative muscle. When you laugh, it opens up your mind to new possibilities and helps you see the world in a new light. Humor sparks creativity.
8) Draw something you see every day but never really looked at before, like an old shoe or an apple
When you're looking at the world around you, it's easy to take everything for granted. We see the same things repeatedly and they become mundane. But what would happen if we took a closer look? If we really examined the objects and scenes that make up our everyday lives, we'd be surprised at how much creativity is hiding in plain sight.
That's why artists often recommend drawing something you see every day but never really looked at before. It forces you to inspect, to explore all the little details that make up your surroundings. This exercise helps train your creative muscle to see possibilities everywhere.
9) Exercise your brain with a puzzle
Puzzles help to exercise the creative side of your brain by forcing you to come up with new ideas and solutions. This is a great way to break out of any ruts you might be in, and it can also help improve problem-solving skills.
How does it work? A puzzle is a structured form of play. We are not just looking for the right piece, but thinking about where that piece goes in relation to all the other pieces. We have to think outside the box because there may be more than one solution to a single puzzle.
10) Make crafts out of old things lying around the house
With creativity, one of the best ways to get the juices flowing is to simply start making things. You can start with something as simple as making a craft out of old things lying around the house. This helps you tap into your creativity and come up with new ideas. It also helps you get into the habit of being creative on a regular basis.
Bonus Exercise For The Adventurist
11. Put on some music that makes you happy and dance around for five minutes in your living room while no one's watching.
Dancing in your living room is a great way to get your creativity flowing. It's a fun and easy way to let loose, and it can help you come up with new ideas. Plus, it's a great workout! Dancing can help you become more creative because it loosens you up, allows you to be more playful, and gets your body moving. When you're more relaxed and your body is energized, you're more likely to come up with creative solutions to problems.
Creativity is all about breaking free from the chains of judgment. Too often, we judge our ideas before we explore them fully. We ridicule them, criticize them, and dismiss them as foolish. This type of thinking kills creativity. It’s much better to simply look at an idea objectively, with no judgment or preconceived notions.
If you can get into the habit of dancing like nobody is watching and not judging yourself, you find that your creativity will blossom. You will be more willing to experiment and take risks.
Conclusion
If you don't commit to improving your creativity, you will struggle to keep up with the demands of work or school. By committing to creativity exercises that consistently hone your creativity, you will excel at creativity tasks long after you have finished your creativity exercises.
In this post, we've provided 10 creative exercises for creatives of all levels and interests to try out today! If one of these creativity exercises resonates with you more than the others, let us know in the comments below so we can help bring it into focus even more clearly for you in a future episode.
