tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-195106872009-04-30T07:52:06.617+01:00The creativity articles blog of Creativity Coach Dan GoodwinDanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.comBlogger458125This is an XML content feed. It is intended to be viewed in a newsreader or syndicated to another site, subject to copyright and fair use.tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-1275471264523860252009-02-26T18:05:00.001Z2009-02-26T18:06:52.152Z

It's likely you have far more creative writing talent than you realise.The problem is you haven't found ways to channel and explore that writing talent that have worked well and given you the confidence to try more, write more and discover more of your writing potential.Creative writing exercises are a great way of unlocking your creative writing potential. Many people are put off by using

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-32861959334912793012009-02-26T18:01:00.000Z2009-02-26T18:02:02.834Z

There are many myths about creativity and being creative that, if we get sucked into them, can have a dramatic effect on how creative we are. And the tragedy is, so many of them are myths, they're not the reality of how things really are.One of the big creativity myths is that if you have a regular routine or a system in place to create, that it will complete choke your creativity and imagination

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-45420194169336773112009-02-25T07:13:00.000Z2009-02-25T07:14:10.416Z

A major barrier to being freely creative and reaching your true creative potential is a lack of ideas. Many of us create far less than we could - or even give up creating altogether - because we feel it's such a struggle to keep coming up with good new ideas each time we go to create.This is such a tragedy, as we all are capable of having more ideas than we'll ever need in our lifetimes, we just

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-42329035567150382722009-02-25T07:12:00.001Z2009-02-25T07:12:37.097Z

How often do you complain that if only you had more time, you'd be far more creative?Do you blame lack of creativity exclusively on lack of time you have, and consider these two elements irrevocably intertwined?Here's a quick test to find out.If you had a month off from your everyday life, a whole 30 days free from the commitments, responsibilities and chores you feel prevent you from being

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-8451311858806330142009-02-22T00:02:00.001Z2009-02-22T00:02:44.998Z

Procrastination affects all of us who create.How often do you just go and create without thinking and without employing any delaying tactics like "just" checking your email again, "just" making a snack, or "just" cleaning your cooker?!The reason most of us struggle with procrastination so much is that we don't even admit to ourselves that we're procrastinating. We manage to convince ourselves

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-36736187317212277892009-02-22T00:01:00.001Z2009-02-22T00:01:54.001Z

The reason behind why most of us get stuck in our creative projects and lives is a lack of consistency. Because we don't create regularly, it feels harder to come up with ideas and find any kind of momentum and flow when we DO try to create. Which means, over time, we develop negative associations with creating that turn us away from it even more.So as well as the difficulty we have in coming up

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-84758008056535610672009-02-06T07:28:00.000Z2009-02-06T07:29:02.827Z

How regularly do you create right now? Do you find it easy to create everyday, your creativity flowing smoothly from the moment you get down to creating?It's more likely that you create erratically, only when you "have time", and then when you do come to create, because it's been so long since the last time, you struggle to focus on one project and make any significant progress.The secret to

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-66097787526165537462009-01-28T07:39:00.001Z2009-01-28T07:39:40.575Z

Does your creative writing feel a little predictable and samey lately? Do you find you always fall back to the same kind of words and phrases, the same kind of ideas?A fantastic tool for giving your creative writing a new lease of life are creative writing prompts.Here are 5 ways they can give your writing the boost it needs:1. A new starting place gives a new perspective. When you write

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-49266398232753149442009-01-28T07:35:00.000Z2009-01-28T07:36:28.595Z

Increasing your creativity, when it comes down to it, is a simple mathematical formula. Now hang on, before you either run for the hills or start snoring at the mention of the phrase "mathematical formula", this isn't going to tax your mind too much at all! So give it a chance.CO = CM - CRJust kidding, here's what that really means in English:Creative Output = Creative Motivation - Creative

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-53474491324494298932009-01-16T22:09:00.000Z2009-01-16T22:10:22.545Z

Procrastination is the art of managing to find anything else to do instead of the thing you actually really want and need to get going on.All of us suffer from having procrastination habits to different extents and it's often creative people who, due to that inherent creativity, manage to take procrastination to new inventive levels, whilst all the time convincing themselves they're not actually

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-26919448044204600772009-01-14T22:55:00.001Z2009-01-14T22:57:38.761Z

Sometimes being a creative artist can feel like the loneliest role in the world. Few of us are strong enough alone to keep our motivation high and creativity consistent. The best way to be more creative and more inspired is to get a little help from some creative friends.So here are 7 of the top ways that being part of a creative community can sky-rocket your creativity to new levels:1. You don't

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-12749824211128623472009-01-12T21:30:00.000Z2009-01-12T21:31:31.193Z

Procrastination is a deadly assassin, infiltrating your creative habits when you're not looking, creeping up and claiming huge chunks of time you could be using to create.One of the reasons procrastination is so powerful and such an enemy to creativity, is because it's so stealthy and subtle. Before you've realised what's happening, another day has disappeared with most of it spent on small,

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-33823617135087969022009-01-12T21:25:00.000Z2009-01-12T21:35:07.553Z

Calling all creatives! Are you ready to learn 5 top techniques in the art of procrastination? Follow even one or two of these and you'll successfully get absolutely nothing creative done, day after day, week after week, year after year!1. Make sure you get everything else done before you start creating. This includes taking every item off every shelf in your house and thoroughly cleaning it,

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-86904456899267587592008-12-19T23:19:00.001Z2008-12-19T23:19:46.336Z

Out doing the grocery shopping while hungry (always a fatal mistake), you couldn't resist picking up a huge bar of your favourite chocolate."I deserve it" you think to yourself, "I'll just have a couple of chunks each night as a treat, it'll last me weeks..."So, later that evening, after you're home and unpacked, and everyone's eaten and gone off to do their own thing, you remember that bar of

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-21227760064159786912008-12-18T00:45:00.000Z2008-12-18T00:46:43.169Z

We all struggle from the effects of procrastination to some degree, whoever we are and however creative we are. Even if we take the brave and honest step of admitting that we do procrastinate, and declare we're determined to overcome it's debilitating grip on our creativity, we nearly always fall at the next hurdle.The most logical thought process is:"OK, I admit, yes I do

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-10651654424033555382008-12-18T00:41:00.001Z2008-12-18T00:44:50.428Z

How often do you find yourself fully intending to settle down and create something new, but only after you've "just" checked your email, or "just" made a snack, or "just" reorganised your pens, paints or materials?This collection of little "justs" adds up to a lot of minor activity and very little creativity.These kind of procrastination techniques are common to us all, and most of the time their

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-62846558181550273992008-12-16T18:06:00.001Z2008-12-16T18:06:52.499Z

Procrastination - the act of avoiding something you want to do by doing other activities you convince yourself are more important and more urgent - is one of the biggest issues creative people wrestle with.However much you personally struggle with getting down and just creating, without finding a hundred and one other tasks to do first, there's one crucial step you must take before can even begin

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-69402705200229428542008-12-10T23:45:00.001Z2008-12-10T23:47:38.045Z

If you've not created very much for a long period, or if you've only been creating relatively small projects, and long to return to more expansive and ambitious works, there are two main ways of doing this.Unfortunately, many of us take the difficult option by embarking on a major complex project, get stuck early on, our confidence in creating takes a shattering blow, and we retreat further into

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-17578969632926496432008-12-10T23:41:00.000Z2008-12-10T23:42:02.531Z

Most of us who are creative have two major motivations to create.The first is to discover more about ourselves, figure out who we are, what's important to us and where we're heading. Our creative art in whatever form it takes allows us to experiment, explore and step by step become more ourselves.The second major motivation to create is to connect with others. To somehow touch, enrich and add a

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-42709953663141738242008-12-08T23:51:00.001Z2008-12-08T23:54:02.373Z

Q. How many procrastinators does it take to change a light bulb? A. Five. One to check their email, one to go and make a cup of coffee and a snack, one to empty, clean and rearrange their toolbox so they're 100% prepared and ready, one to go on the internet and read at least 10 articles on how to change a light bulb, and one to sit in the dark and complain they never have enough time to do things

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-77465274451645465552008-12-08T23:46:00.002Z2008-12-08T23:48:26.754Z

Have you found lately your writing has become a little predictable and samey? Rather than serve up scrumptious sentences and mouth watering metaphors, you've somehow slumped into a writing diet about as appealing as stale bread and water.There is a way out though, techniques you can use to restore your writing to fabulous feasts fit for a king, rather than the day before yesterday's reheated

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-56901566112893252072008-12-07T23:41:00.000Z2008-12-07T23:42:13.447Z

Perfectionism - the need for every last detail of your creative projects to be exactly right down to the last button, beat or brushstroke - is a major creativity killer.Think about your own experiences of perfectionism for a moment and how it's affected your creative confidence and your ability to finish creative projects.Maybe you recognise the following kind of scenario: You have a great idea

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-61435326495828272602008-12-05T17:36:00.001Z2008-12-05T17:36:45.639Z

Have you been struggling lately to find new interesting ways to write, and frustrated that all your writing seems to end up in the same place, with the same words and phrases? Then you might want to check out a few creative writing prompts and exercises.What writing prompts and exercises do is give you a new way of seeing, a fresh perspective to start from, something you might not have thought of

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-85517027332751177852008-12-05T17:26:00.000Z2008-12-05T17:27:10.632Z

Many writers find themselves in the position of being caught between two stools.One the one hand, you’re struggling to find new ideas and new ways of writing, and all you seem to be able to come up with is tired rehashes of work you’ve written dozens of times before.On the other hand, you’re not prepared to try any writing exercises or prompts, because you feel that’s a cop out, or a shortcut.You

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19510687.post-8454233072092865492008-12-01T23:05:00.000Z2008-12-01T23:06:01.747Z

We’re all born creative. It comes naturally to us, as does being inquisitive and curious about the world around us.We want to explore, to question, to play, to learn and to make stuff. All the core elements of being highly creative.Then, unfortunately, over time most of us grow up and lose sight of that carefree spontaneous creativity we had as a young child.We start to believe “I can’t create

Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04636947547095690104noreply@blogger.com0