Fire Up Your Creativity

Find Ways to Spark Your Creativity – and Fan the Flames to Keep It Going
 

Picasso said: ‘Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.’ Mia Botha, Joburg-based writer and teacher at Writers Write (Writerswrite.co.za) loves this quote. ‘We were all that kid once,’ she says. ‘The kid whose drawing was laughed at, or who missed the steps in the school play. All those disappointments chip away at the budding creative within and you learn that it’s better – or safer – to rather not try, than have someone laugh at you. As an adult you have to rediscover that creativity and nurture it.’

She believes you need to give yourself permission to call yourself creative. ‘When I teach business writing I always ask: “Who considers themselves to be creative?”. Out of a class of 10 people, maybe two or three will raise their hands. It breaks my heart that so many people have had their creativity bashed out of them,’ she says.

Mia also believes in redefining what you consider as creativity. ‘Lawyers, doctors, and entrepreneurs use the tools they have in their professions to find ways to create new arguments, procedures, and ideas. Go and find your creative child; be patient and kind and she’ll reward you,’ says Mia.

MAKE TIME FOR CREATIVITY

It’s important to make time for creative projects as they can be useful in helping you relax, recharge, and reflect. ‘I make time for creativity and make something almost every day,’ says Mia. ‘I write daily, even if it’s only for five minutes. Sometimes I draw with my kids or make something to put up on my personal blog, or I cook a new dish without a recipe. If I don’t, I become irritable and miserable. I’m a better person, parent, and wife when I have a creative outlet. Some people find this through exercise; I find it in creativity.’