I feel like I can talk a little from my own experience here, which is nice to be able to do in an article which aims to help the reader to enhance their creativity. I have not been brought up around art or music. From school, all the way up until very recently, I did not consider myself to be a creative person at all. But the truth is we are all creative people, and in order to enhance our creativity, we must only tap into it.
What Shall I Express?
Firstly, never ask the question, “what shall I express?” True expression is born out of an internal impulse, and the closer to the impulse you manage to remain, the more pure the expression is likely to be. Creativity is a journey of discovery, and a way in which we can communicate our deepest, and often darkest aspects. If we stay true to our feelings then we are succeeding in being at our most creative.
Creativity is a fluid motion; from the abstract we give something form; from an idea we create an expression. There are many types of creative expression, and each could be considered a different way to communicate what is essentially the same energy, or impulse. We can be creative about anything. We may want to replicate something in detail, as is the case with modeling and fine art, or we might want to encapsulate an emotion using abstract swirls of paint. We may also express ourselves through our words, our speech or stand ups, performance or dance; using the body to create an atmosphere.
In terms of the actual expression, there is no definition of how to be creative, and no limitations to what can be expressed. Often we can tackle our every emotion, our dark and unspoken thoughts, our ideas about the world. We can create hypothetical scenarios, and characters which come to represent our own shadow self. We can also express love and joy and happiness, and bring hope where there is only depair.
The first way to enhance your creativity is to express whatever it is inside of you that is bursting to be expressed. This is often a process of letting go, and letting creative urges splash out in whatever form best suites you. Free yourself of your own restriction, and let the creative energy flow through you.
Mix It Up
We should follow our impulses whenever they arise, but I think it is also worth exploring outside of our comfort zones, and trying out different art forms. I am a huge fan of words; much of my creativity is crafted with sentences, weaved into paragraphs, and stitched together to form something that the reader may, I do hope, find useful and enjoyable. Drawing is not my forte, but I absolutely love it when I start a visual creation. It opens up a part of me that I rarely use, allowing my mind to work in pictures, giving my words a rest for a few moments. I want to learn a musical instrument soon, so as to open up another form of communication.
Whatever your artistic strengths, go with them, but be open to other outputs aswell; you never know how much you might enjoy them, and each art form seems to bring a certain something to the table, adding to a repertoire of expressive languages.
But… I Am Not An Arty Person
I used to think I was not an arty person. I got this view from academia, where I was considered to be not “good” at art. Actually, it is my view that the very idea of grading art defeats the very object of self expression. If you want to be a more creative person, drop all of the barriers and pre-concieved notions of your artistic capabilities, of style, of topic, of being right or wrong, or good or bad. The great thing about art is that the best art is always done for arts sake; there is no such thing as bad art. The feeling of joy that comes about through our self expression is more satisfying than the supposed result, or outcome of the art. So stop worrying about the results, and simply enjoy the expression. It is healthy for us!
Practice!
So we all have creative impulses. But the actual expression of these impulses requires a lot of practice. A great musician can not only think and feel in rhythm and blues, but can also translate this feeling into harmonic music. To do this they must first learn how to play the musical instrument. A writer must learn how to use a pen, and how to utilize their language effectively. A painter must know how to blend colors, and must have technical experience in order to create the desired brush stroke. I know I said we should enjoy expression for expressions sake, but that does not mean we should not learn to improve our creative communication skills in the process.
Like anything we do in life, we improve our confidence and our abilities when we practice. So, not only should we always act when our creative impulses run strongly within us, but we should also knuckle down and get to it. Don’t sit around waiting for an inspiring moment, to the point where it becomes a barrier in itself; put pen to paper and have a doodle, or write a quick poem. Get in to the habit of being creative, and before long you will find yourself a creative person.
