#34 How To Reawaken Your Creativity

Intelligence is the ability to learn and solve problems, while creativity empowers us to discover novel solutions and forge new paths. As children, our world is full of new experiences, endless wonders, and problems to solve. However, as we grow older, the weight of rules, routines, regulations, and societal expectations remove real novelty, leading us to forget how to tap into our creative selves.

The question is: How to reawaken your creativity as an adult? The easy answer is to expose yourself to a new environment through travel. However, traveling is not the only way to reawaken your creativity. Here’s why.

Lesson Learned from My First Creative Writing Workshop

Last week, I attended my first creative writing workshop, hosted by the inspiring team at Voices Unleashed (which was a great experience I highly recommend, especially if you find yourself in Bali). The most profound realization I gained from the workshop was that I solve creative problems in a highly logical, non-creative manner.

Whenever I am confronted with a task, situation, or problem to solve, I approach it very structured and systematically. I react and handle things with a sense of calm, and emotions rarely get in my way.

And that’s the catch!

Order Is The Enemy Of Creativity

I act and react like a truly responsible adult - all about logic, analysis, and getting things done with a solution-oriented approach. Even when tasked with writing a fun Haiku poem and explicitly told, “Don’t take it too seriously,” I could not help but focus on the correct number of syllables instead of having fun with the exercise.

Being creative in an overly structured society, where everything is implied - how to look, what to do, what to eat - is incredibly hard. We are constantly bombarded with tailored ads and recommendations catering to our unique preferences. Algorithms operate with complex yet structured logic, striving to bring everything into order.

Amidst this constant stream of guidance, how can we possibly discover new things - and reawaken our creativity - when algorithms seem to pre-select nearly every aspect of our lives?

How To Be More Creative?

Erich Fromm defines creativity as the ability to truly “see and to answer.” To truly see, according to Fromm, means perceiving the world as it truly exists, to letting go of our projections and biases. Our perceptions are shaped by past experiences, expectations, and prejudices, and our brains like to take shortcuts, identifying familiar patterns and filling in the gaps automatically.

This makes us highly efficient and helps us navigate routine tasks without being overwhelmed, providing a sense of orientation in our daily lives.

But to unlock our creativity, we must allow ourselves to observe things as if encountering them for the very first time.

Children and Creativity

As Pablo Picasso famously said:

As a child, everything is a new adventure - seeing, tasting, smelling, and feeling the world with unfiltered curiosity. Children practice creativity every day. Just watch a toddler emptying a tissue box. One tissue at a time, fascinated by the unfolding mystery of each little square.

But as grown-ups, our brains go all practical mode. We know the box holds 90 identical white tissues, and tearing it apart only leads to a mess we´ll need to clean up later.

That’s the big difference. The curiosity to explore.

The Easy Way To Find Your Creativity: Travel

Break free from the familiar routines and go on a journey of exploration.

Travel.

That’s the easiest way. You throw yourself into a world of new experiences and fresh sensations. The novelty of it all will transform the way you see the world.

The magic of traveling is that it allows us, forces us, to slow down. Everything becomes unfamiliar, urging us to pay closer attention. And this is the first step towards creativity. Your awareness becomes sharper as you consciously seek answers to the wonders of the world.

In a foreign land, you can’t rely on your autopilot mode anymore. It´s like being that inquisitive child again, exploring if each tissue in the box is white.

Missing Depth

The essence of travel lies in the art of hopping from one place to another. It´s an incredible way to immerse oneself in new things and cultures. However, traveling won’t always allow you to explore in depth. Often, traveling carries an inherent superficiality and shallowness.

That was one aspect I disliked about traveling. You get to know an area - its good and bad things - and just as you connect the dots and find answers, it’s time to say goodbye.

For some, this is the charm of traveling. As you begin to see the highs and downsides of a place, you naturally embrace the next adventure that awaits.

And though I genuinely enjoyed the experiences, there was always a yearning for something more profound, deeper, grounded experience.

Cherishing My Personal Way To Creativity

I´m known for my organized, reliable, and logical nature. I mostly have my emotions under control and see myself as a reasonable person. However, in my private life, things look a bit different.

I can be fire in one moment and ice in the next. I care deeply, and yet there are moments I ignore everyone around me. My private self can be a delightful chaos, dancing freely to its own tune, unconcerned with society’s expectations.

I love the moments of staring out the window, drifting into my own little world. These are the moments when my creativity reawakens. These are the moments I connect with my creative self and allow my inner child to come out and play.

In these moments, I find answers to almost everything.

The Challenging Path to Creativity: The Art of True Seeing

Seeing things with fresh eyes, as if experiencing them for the very first time. It´s about observing and allowing life to unfold naturally - no rush, no hurry.

Imagine looking at the world through the eyes of a child, free of prejudice, preconceptions, or filters. Just seeing things as they truly are. This is difficult. In fact, it’s incredibly challenging and demands consistent practice, much like anything worthwhile in life.

But I found a way that worked wonders for me, reawakening my creativity like anything else.

Here’s how I do it and how my creative spirit comes alive.

Three Steps To My Creative Self

1. Isolation

When it comes to tapping into my creativity, isolation is my non-negotiable precondition. Escaping the chatter of society, silencing the voices that dictate how we should be and perceive the world. Stepping away from the crowd allows my creative spirit to unfold.

2. In Awe by Nature

Being in nature and watching the natural ecosystem in action never fails to leave me in awe. We all should dedicate more time to gazing at trees rather than staring at our phones. Seriously. Just as the spider weaves its web to entrap its next prey, the world wide web is designed to entrap us. You must go into nature if you want your thoughts and emotions to run wild and free.

3. Slow Down and Observe

I allow myself just to sit and observe the world. I just watch, letting the world unravel before my eyes. Patience is my closest ally. Through genuine observation, I realize that the world knows no boredom; we’re merely numbed by the overstimulation of modern world.

Every day, I find calmness by gazing at a palm tree. And you know what? Every day, I stumble upon something new. Sometimes it’s a subtle transformation in nature, but more often than not, I find answers.

Summary

To reawaken your creativity, break free from the chatter of society, let nature inspire you, and spend time gazing at a palm tree (or any tree).

Trust me, in that stillness, answers will find their way to you. I know this because most of my writings start with gazing at a palm tree.