How many times have you heard that certain people are just born creative, and other people aren’t? And how many times have you doubted your creativity skills?

 Probably A lot! 

 However, a research conducted by neuroscientists and psychologist at Harvard and Yale, using MRIs and Artificial intelligence – to study which individuals are more creative than others, indicated that creativity is both a result of genetics and experience_ latter suggesting that all of us have the potential to become more creative and one doesn’t trump the other.

What is Creativity? 

But what is creativity? Do you want to create a Creative design,? Is it something that we are born with or can it be increased with experience and practice? Basically, creativity is the ability to generate new ideas and making connections between the existing ideas to solve various problems in every field of life. As Steve Jobs said: 

Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while. That’s because they were able to connect experiences they’ve had and synthesize new things.”

We can find the traces of creativity in human achievements that changed the course of human history, like the invention of the wheel or the theory of relativity. Today, as we see the continuously evolving world, it is clear that creativity and innovation are thriving. They have become the most sought after attribute in every field of life be it medicine, design or marketing, giving us all a more persuading reason to cultivate and work on our creativity. 

How to Nurture your creativity?

If you are someone struggling to ignite your creativity, the first thing you need to remember is that everyone and every brain is different and though all of us have the potential to think out of box ideas, you need to identify what works for you. Here are a few things you might need to get started on your journey. 

Record your ideas

Creativity is about building new ideas from joining existing ideas into new combinations. For doing this, you need to let your train of thoughts wander and then write them down in a notebook or notepad on your desktop and mobile application. This will help you record your raw ideas for knitting them later into refined concepts. 

The next step would be to analyze your ideas by trying to perceive them with a fresh perspective and see if there is a connection or relationship between them. 

Let your subconscious play with the ideas and build an insight. Once it’s done you can flesh your ideas and build on it. 

Never Stop learning 

Researchers indicate that people who read about things that are outside of their work course and expertise are better in crafting new ideas. Engaging your self in topics irrelevant to your course of work though may seem a waste of time but it can allow you to expand knowledge increase your ability to engage in divergent thinking and may act as the building block for your new ideas in the future.

Surround yourself with interesting company 

Psychologists indicate that connecting and collaborating with creative and intelligent people can improve and grow your creativity as ideas and innovations are products of blending perspectives. According to Ramsey Nasser, a computer scientist, “The members of a collaborative group make up a single meta-artist who is the sum of all their skills and the sum of all their perspectives in a way that you couldn’t possibly do as a single person.” 

We couldn’t agree more. Not only that but holding a conversation with someone with a different perspective could seriously open your eyes and mind and take your idea on a new, exciting path.

Challenge yourself

Challenging yourself and experimenting with new things tends to boost and nurture your creativity. Extend your scope of work, stretch your working hours, work volumes, put yourself on a deadline and excite yourself for potential assignments and tasks regularly. This will help you catch up on the gap where you are and where you need to be, not just on the creativity scale but also ambitions. As Jack London says: 

“You can’t wait for inspiration, you have to go after it with a club.”

Change up your surroundings

Working tirelessly with a 9 to 5 routine with the same people and surroundings every day can drain your energy and to be honest can be lethargic at times. It can dampen your creativity and diminish your inventiveness. So what to do? Change your surroundings! Not just your physical surroundings but also take a break from the people you interact on social media and the websites you follow. 

Find new people, read something new, experiment watching a new genre of movies, play a new song, add another vase or picture to your desk, change your fashion line, in short, do whatever it takes to come out of your routine now and then. 

It’s all in your head

A research conducted by psychologists to study the placebo effect on creativity indicated that more the people believed they are creative, the more likely they will have creative thoughts. 

Embrace your failure and do not give up

Innovative ideas do not just grow from thin air, you need to start working, reading, writing and most importantly you need to keep going. 

People we admire, the kings and queens of creativity, were not born creative, it’s their efforts, hard work, years of dedication and never giving up that’s bearing fruits. They had their fair shares of failures and disappointments but what kept them going was their belief that they can do it. So, believe!

 Believe in your efforts and belive in your energies and the divine spirit will hold your hand and land you in the world of creativity and innovation eventually. 

In addition to the above practices, Psychologists suggest different methods to boost your creativity like taking shower, watching a movie, laying down for a nap, taking a long walk or just sitting on the terrace with a cup of tea, in times creativity block, will work wonders.