C. CULTIVATE A CREATIVE LIFE

C. Cultivate a creative life.

We all yearn for a creative life but living one can sometimes feel like a challenge.

However, the thing to remember is that living a creative life is more of a habit than anything else and as with all habits, there are certain rules you can follow to make it easy to stick to them.

If you want to lead a more creative life whether you are a painter, engineer, accountant, carpenter, military man or anyone else, follow the rules below and you will soon find that living a creative life is easier than you never imagined.

1. Learn to say, no to things that do not enlighten you: to live a creative life, you need to be specific about what you do.

By saying no, to the things that don't turn you on and excite you, you'll make room for the things that do it. You can't do everything, so make sure the things you do, are best for you and your creativity.

2. Let curiosity lead you: let your curiosity guide your creativity and really take the time to explore.

Being creative is all about exploring and discovering, so let your imagination run wild and be open to possibilities. You never know what amazing opportunities might come your way.

3. Anticipate, accept, and embrace your natural imperfections: nothing is perfect, nor is your creative work. It's easy to fall into the trap of lamenting your blemishes, but they're natural and completely normal.

Creative work is not supposed to be « perfect. » It's meant to be real and raw, made by a human, not a machine. Embrace the imperfections of your work and you will see yourself blossoming creatively.

4. Don't compare yourself to others: a comparison can be a huge pitfall to living a creative life. The problem with comparing yourself is that you are not compared to the original.

When you compare your work, with all its known inconsistencies and difficulties, to someone else's carefully curated presentation of their work, you are comparing two completely different things. It's just not a fair comparison and you will lose every time.

Remember that your creative work is wonderful and unique, there is no need to compare.

5. Making space and time for a creative Life: living a creative life is easy when you have the time and space to make it work.

Even if you work full time and live in a small apartment, you can still devote some time and space to your creativity. It can be a simple desk in the corner of your living room and a small daily commitment to showing up and creating.

6. Create a daily habit of creativity and stick to it: there's incredible power in forming a habit of daily creativity, and it doesn't have to be a huge time commitment either.

If you only have thirty minutes available per day, start there. Commit to a specific time of day each day and make it your time to create.

Schedule it like a date and stick to it as part of your daily routine. Forming a daily habit has incredible power to harness your creativity.

7. Stop being your own worst critic: despite all the criticism you might receive from others, chances are you are actually your own worst critic.

Think about how you talk to yourself about your creative work and ask yourself if it's negative or positive.

If you find it leans to the negative side of the spectrum, end it by affirming more positive thoughts. Your work is good, you have enough time, and you will get there!

8. Keep learning: to live a creative life, it is important that you never stop learning. Whatever your creative field, make an effort to learn something new every week.

It can be as simple as reading the story of a great designer in your field or as in-depth as learning a completely new style or technique.

Learning keeps your creative mind active and your ideas fresh.

9. Expose yourself to new experiences: living a creative life and creating every day means exposing yourself to new experiences.

Developing an idea during the creative process can sometimes be difficult, especially when you lack experiences to draw on. Living is what fuels your creativity.

This is where you will draw your inspiration from, and its importance cannot be underestimated.

10. Keep showing up no matter what: if you want to live a creative life, you have to keep showing up and creating no matter what.

We all have tough days when we don't feel inspired, but the most important thing to remember is that inspiration comes from action.

The more you show up and participate in creative work, the more inspired you will feel.

11. Get in touch with a creative community: a creative community is most important to you.

It will keep you on track, motivated, inspired and give you an amazing support system. If you want to live a creative life, find creative people in your area to connect with.

They will be there to support and encourage you in your work, while you also encourage them with theirs.

12. Don't limit yourself to one creative medium: just because you consider yourself a writer, painter, designer, inventor, or researcher, doesn't mean that's all you should be doing.

If you feel as if you want to explore a new creative realm, let yourself be.

Living a creative life is not about relentlessly pursuing a creative way, but about experimenting and finding what works.

13. Share your creations: always share your creative achievements with others!

You've worked hard to get there, and your good work should not go unnoticed. Show off your creative work with pride.