Increasing your creativity, when it comes down to it, is a simple mathematical formula.
Now hang on, before you either run for the hills or start snoring at the mention of the phrase “mathematical formula”, this isn’t going to tax your mind too much at all! So give it a chance.
CO = CM – CR
Just kidding, here’s what that really means in English:
Creative Output = Creative Motivation – Creative Resistance
How much you create is how much you want to create minus how much creative resistance you have.
So, to increase your creativity, to create more, you can do one of two things:
1. Increase your creative motivation
We often get so stuck in the analysis of why we’re NOT creating, that we forget how much we love creating and how important creativity is in our lives. Try to imagine if you can, a life without creativity. Picture your life without a single act of creativity. How would that look, what would it be like?
If you’re like most creative people, it would be a kind of living torture. Creating is deeply embedded in who we are and what we do. It’s not a lifestyle choice or an optional extra. Being creative is engraved in our identities and our personalities. We don’t just do creative things, we ARE creative beings.
A great way of increasing your creative motivation is to regularly spend time getting back in touch with how much you love creating, how valuable it is to you, and what an essential part of life it is. Once you do that, you’ll instantly gain all the motivation you need to create.
2. Decrease your creative resistance
Even with a high level of motivation, there’s no guarantee you’ll create freely and abundantly. Why? Remember the formula, your creative output is your motivation minus your resistance. And we always have some form of creative resistance.
Maybe it’s in the form of other people telling us our creative pursuits are a waste of time. Maybe it’s our own negative thinking and inner doubts about whether we have the talent to create. Maybe it’s a fear of failure. Most likely it’s a potent mix of all of these.
The crucial aspect here is we ALL experience resistance to creating. And we always will. If you fight it, it only gets stronger. Your internal resistance to creating is just trying to protect you from disappointment and pain. But you’re strong enough to overcome that if it happens.
Against what may be the most logical approach, the only way we can create even though we’re experiencing resistance is to say “Yes, I’m aware I’m experiencing some resistance, and I know it’s a way of trying to protect myself. But creating is very important to me and I’m going to carry on and create anyway.”
Work on either of these two aspects and you’ll be more creative. Work on both and your creativity will reach levels you might not have even dreamed of!
