Be Creative - wikiHow

It takes a lot of hard work to be a Lazy Trainer. 

In order to reach a goal of being able to do something the quickest and easiest way you have to devote a lot of time and effort to the process in the beginning. It is not unlike writing a computer program that will eventually save millions of man hours. In the beginning it takes a lot of hard work, creative thinking, and effort to save all those hours. 

When I switched from training animals to writing about it I was prepared for the effort of learning a new way to be lazy.

My real dream in the beginning was to be able to write really good fiction. Needing income to support the horses still in my stable meant I needed more immediate income, so I set myself the goal of learning to write non-fiction and selling it. A much easier task than doing so with fiction.

Now that I've figured out some good Lazy Trainer ways of generating income with non-fiction I am determined to learn how to write those good stories I wanted to tell in the first place.

To which end I find it very interesting that when I have a real need for something all sorts of things happen to direct and fuel my efforts. This particular article seems to be one of those things that pertains to my goal of following Victoria Lynn Schmidt's Book in a Month program through until I've have a book that's been prowling around in my head DONE!

Be Creative - wikiHow

How to Be Creative

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit
Can creativity be taught? That’s a question without a simple yes or no answer. Creativity may not be able to be taught directly, but what what you can get better at is frequently aligning the circumstances of life which foster the greatest chances for true creative expression. Creativity is not like a lightning strike, but more like something which manifests itself inside those who learn to foster it and create the right conditions for it to prosper.

Steps

1. Ruthlessly limit your selection of tools to only the most vital. The more limited your set of tools is, the more creative the output will be. Having a limited set of vital tools forces creativity and really challenges you to use what you have to produce the desired results. As a byproduct, you’ll get incredibly good with that small set of tools and refine your use of them to a point you can literally do anything you like with them. You’ll be far sharper than someone who merely dabbles with a larger set of tools. Learn How to Be Resourceful.
2. Don’t listen to feedback, keep following your own path. The problem with asking for feedback is invariably the feedback will be given infused with that person’s preconceived notions of what the outcome should be. Others will unconsciously push you in a direction that they see as best. This is done with good intentions, however it actually hurts your internal creativity. Now this is different than sharing your work - by all means share, but listening to feedback is not a good decision if you want to truly find your own path of creative self-expression. Once you're finished with your creative work, whatever it may be, then you can listen to feedback. Just don't let criticism (even the constructive type) stifle your creativity during the creative process.
   • Keep in mind that people will generally display resistance to your idea, because good ideas change the existing dynamic, and people, for the most part, like things the way they are. When you present something that challenges the status quo, many people (friends, relatives, co-workers) will feel threatened.[1]
3. Having a routine is actually not a bad thing. Routines are positive if they reinforce a healthy, creative consciousness and negative if they destroy that. While breaking your routine once in a while to force new ways of thinking is good, what if growing/learning/experiencing new things was built into your routine as a given? The people who get stuck in a monotonous existence and speak negatively about routine have simply not developed a routine that puts them on a path of internal growth. The key is to discover creative rituals that put you in a more creative mindset.
   • Many writers not only have a minimum number of words they must write each day, but they also have almost superstitious requirements for the circumstances under which they write. The 18th century German writer Friedrich Schiller, for example, kept rotten apples at his desk and soaked his feet in a tub of ice water while he wrote![2]
   • Set aside a block of time each day to foster your creativity. Kick the session off with a creative exercise or ritual that triggers a flexible state of mind. Whether it's meditating, freewriting, listening to a particular song, or rubbing your lucky rock--do whatever gets you "in the zone" and set a daily goal (e.g. one sketch per day, 1000 words a day, an invention or song a day).
4. Let go of perfectionism. Your natural output uninhibited by concern for creating something correct or incorrect will always produce creative results. There are limitless paths to achieve creative success; there are so many shades of gray. Imperfection is human, and sometimes the most creative artists leave mistakes unfixed on purpose. Nature itself is beautifully imperfect. Many try to be so perfect that they scrub away what made their work special in the first place. In a world saturated by overproduced, unnaturally perfect, and clean - the unpolished is the most creative and in many cases most inspirational.
   • Work on the "bad" ideas – even if you are only coming up with what you feel are "bad" ideas, you are still being creative, so develop them, and it could turn into a great solution!
5. Ignore trends. If you want to be truly creative, you absolutely must ignore trends. Block them out - pay zero attention to them. Trends are the polar opposite of creativity. In many forms of art (especially music) the masses of artists are following whatever the hot trends set forth are. Then there is the other, smaller group of artists that are pursuing their own path and not really paying attention to external trends in their form of art of choice. There is certainly more money, fame and instant notoriety for following trends, but most of what is popular is hardly creative. If you want to make something truly unique, trends are irrelevant. Looking inside yourself is where you will discover a greater wealth of creativity than available in any hot trend. Here are some more suggestions for insulating yourself from trends:
   • Don’t watch TV, don’t listen to the radio, and remove the vapid elements of popular culture from your life. These things aren’t bad for you in moderation, but they are great at normalizing your thoughts with the rest of society, and do not foster true internal creativity. Realize everything that you experience, every piece of content you consume plays a role in shaping your personality, even if at a subconscious level. It is all influence one way or another. You are in many ways a product of your experiences and stimulus. In one sentence, your creative output can be thought of simply as a personal interpretation of external stimulus. The best part about this is you get to control the input.
   • Don’t try and fit into a genre. Actively trying to fit your art or work into a genre is severely limiting and a detriment to its quality, if creativity is desired. Don’t try and write for a genre, don’t try to follow trends within a genre, in fact don’t even consider genre when working. Labeling it in a genre is a necessary evil for people to be able to find your work, and you will probably have to do this - but it shouldn’t be something that crosses your mind when trying to work. Genres, styles and methods don’t matter for creativity and originality.
   • Spend a lot of time alone. You don't have to be anti-social, but many people find their creativity really starts to open up when they are removed from others and able to have quiet focus for their creative work.
6. Ignore the past. Want to be really creative or original? Ignore or forget the past, ignore what the world has created up until this point. Sometimes considering the past will make you place a sort of unconscious time stamp on a style. That’s the antithesis of creativity and originality. Create things from within yourself that don’t draw inspiration from what has come previously or even consider it, and you’ll be on a path to creative output. In a creative state of mind, time doesn't exist - a few hours can feel like seconds, a moment can seem to last for hours, and you're completely immersed in the present.[3] Learn How to Live in the Moment.

Creative Exercises

• Think for a half hour a day exclusively on one subject. At first, this might be very hard to do. You can start off by thinking about a single subject for five minutes a day, then increase the period daily until you reach a half hour. At first it is wise to practice this when alone, but eventually you should be able to do it even in the midst of distractions, such as when traveling to and from work.[4]
• Write a letter or speak for 15 minutes without using the words I, me, my and mine. Make it smooth and keep it interesting, so that someone reading or listening would never notice anything odd about it. This forces you to turn your mind outward, and give up the preoccupations and obsessions of your own life.[4]
• Have someone doodle a line for you, then challenge yourself to make a variety of cartoons based on that one line. Don't resort to drawing faces, though - those are usually too easy![5]
• Take a familiar outline and challenge yourself to come up with drawings that could fit within that outline.
• Combine ideas. Choose two random objects, and describe each one in detail. What does it look like? What is it used for? How is it made? Then substitute one object with the other objects description. How can I make object A feel like object B? Or do what object B does?[6]
• Keep a journal, describing everything you do and feel with metaphors. Each day, challenge yourself to come up with new metaphors. (After all, how many different ways can you symbolize brushing your teeth?) See How to Write a Metaphor.
• Write a list of basic questions, such as 'What is your name?', 'Where are you from?', What did you do last Thursday?' Try to come up with at least 10 questions. The more you ask, the better! Whatever question comes to mind, write it down, even if it seems foolish. Answer the questions with song lyrics. (Try not to use the same song too often.)
• Play word association games. It helps to have someone willing to play along, but if no one will, you can do this alone. If you're doing it solo, write down your beginning word and spend 10 minutes or so just saying the next word that comes to mind. Compare the beginning word to the final word. They should be pretty diverse. This loosens up your mind to allow free association of ideas.
• See how long you can talk (and make sense!) without using a common word, like 'and','but', 'the' or 'that'.

Video

Tips

• Spend time around creative people. The most reliably creative people are children. Their imaginations aren't boxed in, and "mind merging" with them can remind you of what it's like to think outside the box.
• Whenever you're challenged to create something, ask yourself: What's the most outrageous, preposterous, and nonsensical thing I can come up with?

Related wikiHows

• How to Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci
• How to Exercise an Open Mind
• How to Freewrite
• How to Be a Nonconformist

Sources and Citations

• TheFutureBuzz.com - Original source of content, shared with permission.

1. ↑ http://www.gapingvoid.com/Moveable_Type/archives/000932.html
2. ↑ http://lateralaction.com/articles/creative-rituals/
3. ↑ http://www.wishfulthinking.co.uk/2006/04/24/creative-flow/
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Dorothea Brande, Wake Up and Live!, first published in 1936 (public domain)
5. ↑ http://creativecurio.com/2008/09/exercises-to-cultivate-your-creativity/
6. ↑ http://www.creativethinkingwith.com/Combine-Ideas.html

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Be Creative. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

Where is the time going?

Time got away from me. I've been writing and somehow didn't remember to write here in my blog.
At least the population in the attic seems to have declined with a constant trap and release program. However, the household critter population increased by one little mommy cat, six kittens and a daddy that's inclined to keep an eye on them. I think there must be a LOT of Siamese in these cats.
There is a cold front due in soon which is a good time to worm the horses. The wormers are good but really cold weather will do a number on any that might resist the lethal effects of the wormer.

Happy New Year

Hope everyone has a wonderful year.

Christmas is past and the New Year looming.
I've got one resolution for the coming year: Do something about my hoarding habit.
Hoarding isn't necessarily a bad thing; in moderation it is even a good thing. Squirrels and other such animals use hoarding to help them survive the winter and other lean times.
Humans have this tendency as well. Some of us just carry it too far. And I'm one of those.
I'm not as bad as my mother who filled an Edwardian (circa 1920) house to its fourteen foot ceilings with boxes of things she couldn't bear to part with, but I do tend to keep far more things than I should.
So I will try to get rid of some of my junk AND not replace it with more junk in 2009.

Doing Our Part

We are certainly doing our part to jump start the economy this week.

We finally got our plumbing issues settled. We are happy about this and the plumbers even happier. They are going to have a good Christmas thanks to our guest bathroom.

We bought a new range because the old one is gasping its last. Since it is a gas stove this is not good. Unfortunately we probably won't get it delivered and installed until after most of the serious baking is done. Rats!

We are enjoying a windy but otherwise pleasant day before the winds reverse and winter returns tomorrow.

Country Living

Once we bought a place from a family who thought living in the country was supposed to be cheaper than living in town. They were dismayed to discover this wasn't true.

It may have been true at one time, but it certainly isn't now. If you move to the country the very first thing that comes to your attention all the services you have to contract and pay extra for. Trash pickup is no longer a bill you automatically pay each month. Now you have to find someone and then pay what seems to be an amazing amount for much less service.

You now also have higher insurance cost because, if you do have a fire, you are likely to lose everything. This is because there are no handy fire hydrants with good pressure and no large nearby fire house with professionals just waiting for your call. I highly recomment all critical documents be kept in fire proof safes. The portable kind are best so if you happen to be home you can get these things out first thing. You might consider doing this with all the small things (pictures etc.) that cannot be replaced.

Then there are the plumbing problems. You have a septic system and it needs to be serviced on a regular basis. This bill always comes in one lump sum instead of a manageable monthly payment the way city sewer services do. When something goes wrong it is all yours. Even outside the house this is your problem.

Then there are the pests. And I don't mean just roaches, mice and rats, though those are also present. As anyone who has been reading this blog knows pests in the country are things like 'possums (looking like super rats) 'coons (we got attitude and we know how to use it) and snakes. I've learned to tolerate non-poisonous snakes, but the rattlesnakes that have been invading lately are definitely not welcome.

All-in-all I have to say country living is neither cheap, nor is it for the faint-of-heart.

Oh, and the myth that country people are friendlier? Only if you mean they tend to know who you are, where you live, and wave as you pass on the road. Otherwise? Well, why do you think they live someplace where the nearest neighbor is a half-mile away? People who live in the country have a low tolerence for neighbors. They get claustophobic if they can actually see another house, much less the people. And, posted or not, you'd better not step on their property without getting permission. Just what do you think those fences are for anyway?

Today's Capture

This morning we have a 'possum in our trap. DH will release it later today.
We have a plumber here trying to find out what happened to the bathroom drains. It was, of course, our guest bathroom and, naturally we had guests when it malfunctioned. I'm very glad that it has turned cold. This will keep any rattlesnakes in their den for now.