Creativity Boosters: 10 Minutes to Well-being

Can you carve out ten minutes a day to honor yourself with some creativity boosters?

By nature, we are all creators.  From the time we rise in the morning until the moment we fall asleep, we are crafting our individual stories in this world.  But sometimes those stories need a sharp edit because they become too routine-oriented or uninspired.  Or life may become too hectic to nourish our pure creative impulses.  So, I’m here to give you a little push in a doable ten-minute time-frame.  After all, we owe it to ourselves to elevate our mood, peek in on our imaginations, and bask in the zen benefits of creativity every day.

And please let’s give undue pressure and expectation the heave-ho.  We don’t need to paint a Picasso, compose like Bach, or write a Shakespearean masterpiece.  Let’s just be simple and silly and bask in being alive.

Dive into these ten-minute creativity boosters and let your soul shine.

IMAGINATIVE MEDITATION

Everyone needs quality time to clear the mind of debris.  However, cleansing all thought during meditation may, at times, present a challenge.  Instead, try closing your eyes and creating a dream scenario.  Perhaps you are resting on your favorite beach, listening to the waves, feeling the heat on your skin.  Or maybe you’re a phosphorescent jellyfish floating in warm waters, alone and free.  Or you’re planted in the most serene setting you can conjure chatting with a loved one who has passed.  The possibilities are endless.

Close your eyes.  Escape into your creativity.  Soothe your soul.

ARRANGE SOMETHING

If you look up arrange in the dictionary, you’ll find that it means to place in proper, desired, or convenient order.  I would revise my version of arrange to mean to place in your specific creatively designed order.  After all, “order” and “proper” may mean something different to each person.  So, basically, create a “range” or variation of your own imaginative design.  Here’s a few ideas to arrange and spark your creativity.

1. Books
2. Flowers
3. Spices
4. Photographs
5. Clothes

DOODLE LIKE A CHILD

Do you remember the blissful days of doodling when you were a child?  You may have been bored in a class and so doodled away.  It was a creativity booster as well as a boredom buster.  Why not do it today?  Who knows, things you doodled from childhood may magically reappear, wiggling and squiggling their way to you to offer nostalgia with a smile.

PHOTOGRAPH SOMETHING MEANINGFUL

Grab your camera or your cell phone.  Then, find something interesting even if it wears familiarity’s guise.  Catch a picture of a flower as the sunlight cascades on it.  Snap a colored leaf.  Photograph your child’s unique expressions.  Take a selfie of yourself with a creative glow.  Or take a picture of something meaningful, a token of a dream, or a reminder of a dream come to fruition.

I found this tiny acorn and took a photo of it in my hand over the creek in my backyard.  I thought about how I crafted a novel from a tiny acorn of an idea, and then grew it to reveal the towering love I have for my daughter who has autism. Then, I reminded myself of that power and how one day it would manifest in the world.  As I held the acorn in my hand, I returned to my dream’s origin.

CLOUD CRAFT

Step outside into nature’s studio.  Find a comfy place to sit or recline, and then cloud-craft.  Stare first at the mesmerizing motion of the clouds to achieve calmness.  Then, pick one and liken it to something tangible.  Clouds have a sneaky way of reflecting the earth below in all of its wonder and diversity.  Do you see a dragon?  A dog?  A little girl?

Write what your eye captured on a little piece of paper.  Tuck it in your pocket.  Retrieve it if you need a reminder during your day of one peaceful moment, one creative droplet you gave willingly to yourself.

COLOR

If you have young children, the beauty of coloring is you can do it with them, sharing the creative bliss.  I enjoy sharpening some colored pencils and getting my zen on with my daughter as we brighten up meditative coloring books.  We take time to make comments about each other’s work, and then return to our masterpieces with mother/daughter oneness, relishing in our bright magical world.

SING, DANCE, OR DO BOTH

Even if you feel like your voice isn’t up to the Whitney Houston standard, or your moves lack the grace of Misty Copeland, still, I say, SING.  DANCE.  You can belt out your favorite song and choreograph your signature routine as you do it.  Or you can just randomly start humming and create a tune of your very own.

If I’m feeling down, I channel my inner ballerina.  I took ballet for a decade and then gave it up.  In an ode to my youthful dreams, I imagine myself dancing in a serene outdoor setting and then I pirouette from the soul.  It always shimmies a smile right across my face.

TEACH A DOG A NEW TRICK

If you have a dog, then allow your furry friend to become a part of a creativity booster.  Tap into your imagination and create a random trick.  I spend ten-minute spurts each day trying to teach my dog new tricks.

For example, my lab, Cali, mastered this trick I like to call Dog Head.  I place something on her head and she leaves it there until I say the command, “Give.”  She then rolls it down to her nose and into my hands.

PAINT A ROCK

There is a movement called “Kindness Rocks,” wherein children paint a rock and leave it for another child to find and keep, all in the name of kindness.  Find a rock and imagine it a “Motherhood Rocks” mission.  Decorate it in whatever way you’d like with paint and glitter, a quote, or a simple word.

Now slip it into your pocket or purse and if you need to feel grounded throughout the day, hold it.  Delight in your artistic endeavor.  Or you can leave it somewhere for another mom to wander upon to offer kindness and connection.

FROST AND DECORATE A COOKIE

Buy and store some cookie dough, frosting, and decorative items.  Then, whenever you feel the flight of fancy, adorn them.  Decorating cookies during the holidays serve as some of my most cherished creative memories.  And, of course, the end result will be something to savor.

WRITE A GOOD OLD-FASHIONED LETTER

Spend ten minutes crafting a one-page letter using a (gasp) piece of paper, and (double gasp) pen.  This sort of heartfelt artistry is still manageable even in our era of email and social media.  How much would a loved one treasure finding a handwritten gift from you in the mail?  You will generate feel-good vibes for your loved one and yourself, and that puts creativity to its finest use.

CREATE AN UNLIKELY OUTFIT

This ten-minute creativity booster I nabbed from my daughter, Summer.  She has amazing fashion sense in a very eclectic sort of way.  She can pair clothing items together I never would have imagined because my eyes simply aren’t blessed with her ability.

So, open up your closet, dig in, and search for items that you never would have envisioned together.  Integrate your imagination in the fashion game and step out of what we’ve been taught matches up.  The manner in which Summer’s brain operates allows her to see things a neurotypical mind may miss.

Now, try your outfit on.  You may just be ready to walk the runway, or the fun-way.

DECLUTTER A SHELF OR DRAWER

We live in a fast-paced society and within that rhythm clutter can camp out in our living space.  In order to start a creative endeavor though, you must begin with a blank canvas.  So take ten minutes to clean out a drawer or shelf right down to its bare bones.  Afterwards, only replace what is essential and inspires well-being.

Decluttering opens up space for creativity to flow.  Then, you’ll be primed to create, perhaps choosing one of the ideas from this list.

I hope these ten-minute creativity boosters brightened and inspired your day.  After all, YOU are worth it.  You are a story unfolding in the most dynamic way.

Create, and Boost Well-being.

Feel free to comment about creativity boosters you use to promote well-being.  Also, if you liked this post, you may enjoy reading Creativity is a Gift from the Soul.

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Your moments here matter to me.  Warm wishes and gratitude…always.