CREATIVITY, YOUR KEY TO SUCCESS

By Harriet Meyerson

A wise man once said, "If you keep doing what you've always been doing, you're going to keep getting what you've always been getting." If you're not getting the results you want in any area of your life, it makes sense that you have to do something different to get different results. Figuring out the different options you have is where creativity comes in. The more options you have, the better chance you have that one of them will work.

HERE'S HOW TO BECOME MORE CREATIVE

Get out of your routine. The mind tends to get set in comfortable ways of doing things, so in preparation for creativity, start doing everyday things differently. Drive a different way to work each day, make some new recipes for dinner, change your morning routine. You may find that changing the little things is enjoyable even though it may be uncomfortable.

Take some improv classes. Improvisation develops creativity. It's both fun and exciting and helps you think on your feet and become more spontaneous. Your local adult education program may have a class in improvisation. In Dallas, Fun/Ed has a two-session class. Also check with local acting or theater groups. The best thing about improv is that you can't do anything wrong.

The objects game will help develop your creativity. Have fun at home playing this game with your family. Pick an ordinary object such as a paper clip, pencil or marble, and try to find as many imaginative and outrageous uses for it as you can think of. Keep a list and add to it all week as you think of different things. Each week take a different object and think of imaginative ways to use it.

Borrow your child's box of crayons and draw a picture. The brain thinks in pictures, not words. If you can see the problem drawn on paper, you are more likely to be able to identify the real problem. Drawing is a right-brain activity, which is the creative side of your brain. Drawing a picture of your problem and the possible solutions will help wake up your right brain and spark your creativity.

Brainstorm. When you're looking for a solution to a problem, start by writing down everything that comes into your mind, whether it's realistic or not. Pretty soon the ideas will start to flow.

Your coworkers can help you brainstorm a solution to a problem, too.

CREATIVITY IS A SKILL YOU CAN RELEARN

All of us were born with limitless creativity. Somewhere along the line we got stifled by well-meaning parents and teachers who wanted us to behave a certain way. The good news is that creativity is a skill you can develop.

Without creativity, we are destined not only to boredom, but also to the trauma of experiencing the same difficulties over and over. With creativity life becomes an exciting adventure of limitless possibilities and continuous success.

By Harriet Meyerson, president of the Confidence Center in Dallas, Texas.Harriet Meyerson works with companies that want to build employee confidence and improve employee morale. E-mail Harriet@ConfidenceCenter.com