Creative Thinking

Virginia Wolfe wrote a whole thesis on having a “Room of One’s Own” in order to be creative.  John Maxwell encourages one to have an assigned space, however small, in order to do your thinking in a quiet place.  Sarah Ban Breathnach writes about a “sacred space”, a little private space to meditate and create.  Many other creative people will have said much the same thing.  Good, we get that and we can find a way.  Now for the next big thing.

How to get creative.  Ah, that is a question and a search.  Not everyone, they believe, is born with a “creative streak” but I tend to disagree with their opinion of themselves.  They may not recognize that certain things they do are actually creative because they may be thinking about music, art, literature or dance.  Baking, cooking, gardening, sewing, knitting, crocheting, puzzling and myriad other activities can also be creative.  Welding, building, sausage making and other heftier crafts also have their creative side.  But all of these things are activities. 

Let’s talk about creative thinking.  John Maxwell talks about shaping and stretching an idea first on your own and then with input from others that you respect.  It is also a good idea to write down, however brief, the idea or thought so it does not run away from you.  I have observed that once a discussion begins it can frequently take side turns which may be a good thing but may also end up having nothing whatsoever to do with the original idea or thought.  Review your note and think about whether or not it was a good idea and needs another go at discussion or perhaps the original outcome is an even better idea.  Only you can know what you wanted with the idea.  Don’t doubt yourself.  Think.

Thinking is hardly ever easy if you want quality thinking.  It literally can hurt.  It can make you sleepless.  It can make you restless.  It can even cause distress.  However it is also satisfying, enriching, rewarding, mellowing, enlightening and just plain fun.

“Learning to write is learning to think.  You don’t know anything clearly until you can state it in writing.”  S.T. Hayakawa