Cultivating creativity

Is creativity like a veggie garden? Can you saw one day and reap something valuable a little while later? I think so. As many will say, creativity is one of these “organs” that if not used it regularly, may eventually atrophy and dry up all together. Here again, some regularity in the way we exert our “creative glands” should play a significant role in increasing our output. When I worked for Look ski bindings, Jean Beyl, the founder and then owner, used to say: “Observe a frog for a few moments every day, and you'll discover details you’d never suspected existed and could certainly never grasp in just a casual glance.” The same is true of creativity. If you’re stuck on a problem, observe it from a variety of angles. Stop looking at it for a while, then go back to it. Don’t pressure yourself with finding an immediate response, stay cool about it. Repeat the cycle as needed and eventually solutions will crystallize. If golfing, skiing and a lot of other skills and activities are just “in the head” you can bet that creativity stands on the very top of the heap. Be nice to your head, don’t pressure it – just expose it gently and repetitively to the creative task at hand!