Creative Thinking Outside the Clutter
Over the past five years or so, I’ve developed this passion for writing, which I enjoy expressing through song lyrics and blog stories. At first, my pieces seemed to roll right off the ol’ tongue. But they didn’t for long…the creativity I thought I had quickly dissipated. There were days when I couldn’t come up with an original thought for love nor money.
I figured though, with a little determination, I could weather the storm. So I stuck with it…and by doing so, I found out a few things about how the creative mind awakens…at least the one half asleep between my ears.
I chose the word awakens because there’s a consensus of folks, much smarter than me, acknowledging we use as little as 10% of our mental capacities in our everyday lives. I figure the other 90% might just be lying dormant, deep beneath all our mental clutter. I say…it’s time to set an alarm.
Yes, mental clutter…I’m talking about our habitual thoughts, self-talks, worries, pressures of the day, which by the way, subconsciously dominate probably better than 90% of our focus. It acts as sort of a force field, keeping everything else out, simply by occupying all the time and space.
Our Mental Clutter
I believe God, infinite intelligence, or whatever you want to call it, is not only aware of what we ponder, dream, pray, want and need, but is also diligently trying to get through to deliver the goods. The problem is…it can’t get through the clutter.
I suggest…if you find a way to relax and somehow lose the clutter, it’s void will attract ideas and revelations most important to you as your creative mind awakens.
Have you ever been sitting quietly alert, not really thinking of anything, when out of the blue, the answer to a question you were struggling with earlier pops into your mind…or suddenly a whole new perspective to a problem presents itself? Wow! I could’ve had a V-8! You know what they say…when the clutter’s away, the creativity will play. Well…maybe they don’t…but they should.
Think of the times when you’re most creative. For me, it’s when I’m completely relaxed, care free and alert. Early morning, after a good night’s rest, as I’m enjoying a hot cup of joe, is a prime example. The only problem is…it’s also the time when my autopilot kicks in, instantly transforming me to the service provider I am, five days a week. Necessary and rewarding for the top 10%, but leaves little or nothing for the cluttered 90%.
With that being said, there are many other windows of opportunity throughout the day to let a little sunshine in, you might say. And a little bit goes a long way.
Try this out. Sit still in the quiet and take a couple gentle, deep breaths. Slowly disengage your mental autopilot and begin to clear your thoughts one by one. Allow the peace of the moment to fill its space. Now…just be. As a thought pops in…gently push it away. Now, for the hard part…turn off all the self-talk. Completely relaxed, but alert is what you’re going for here.
It’s amazing to me how difficult this is to actually do. It’s as if my mind is this thought magnet, subconsciously attracting all this useless aforementioned clutter.
As a matter of fact, I believe our minds are indeed…a thought magnet. Therefore, if this is true…it stands to reason that by simply relaxing and emptying our mental clutter, something new, fresh, and completely unexpected has an opportunity to appear.
I have often experienced, in such moments, revelations of missing pieces to life’s puzzle, if you will, flash into my conscience. At other times, I’m left only with the peace of the moment. But for me, that’s exactly where I want to be, because within that peace, is where inspiration and creativity reside…at least in my world.
Your world…who knows?…it may trigger something entirely different. Share your thoughts.
As they say, we only use 10% of our mind. Heck…we could probably do that on autopilot. Precisely.
Meditation is not a way of making your mind quiet. It’s a way of entering into the quiet that’s already there, buried under the 50,000 thoughts the average person thinks every day.
— Deepak Chopra
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Anything is Possible…Anything.
Bill Peak
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Bill, another great posting. I too think my best in the morning, while drinking coffee. If you’ve noticed, all my reponses are in the early morning. I’m usually up before 5 AM, sometimes I exercise a little, but most of the time, I’m completing an assignment for school. I chose this time because my mind is at its clearest and sharpest at this time. Steve thinks I’m making it all up. But I kid you not, I can write at least half my paper in the morning and only 1 paragraph in the evening.
There is lots clutter in my head…all the time….I am constantly thinking about the things that I have to do (this happens during mass too, bad, I know). So what I do sometimes is write it al down (list form). That way, I put it on paper so that it does not occupy my mind and it just feels good to cross it out when I’m done with it.
Thanks again for a great posting. Keep them coming
Sibyl, your words are mine…I understand exactly what you’re saying. I get so frustrated because in the evening when I really have the time to write…I don’t feel like it. I do most of my writing between sales calls while I’m driving…some of my customers are an hour and a half away. Of course, I’m not really writing, I’m recording…ha.
Thanks so much for the comment.
Bill