We've all heard of the Power Nap and the Power Suit, right?  But I think I'd rather find a boost to my creativity through a daily Power Play!  Here's the idea…  

We often think 'I really want to be more creative' or maybe say 'I want more creativity in my life '.  I’m not willing to wait for some someday when inspiration hits or the day when the chores are all done and the kids are raised.  I want to be more creative now!

If you'd love to feel more creative and imaginative every day, building a creative routine is the first step.  I know that sounds incredibly daunting, but I’m here to help!  Let's take the example of the Power Nap and twist it around a bit.  

What could fuel your creativity more than adding a little brightness and energy to your world every day?  Daily art-play opens your mind with creativity, confidence and imagination every day, not just 'someday'.  

To get you started, I've put together a little guide to help you Play creatively every day.  I call it Power Play!  It's about building a creative habit that sparks a feeling of playfulness and imaginative creativity a little every day so the next time a big inspiration hits, you'll be more open, confident and primed to create from your authentic creative resources.

Follow these 8 steps and start using Power Play to build a more creative life: 

Pick a regular time for daily creativity.    

Doesn't it make sense to sneak in a creative break rather than a trip to the coffee shop or vending machine?  Maybe there's a typical time of day that you feel a little down and you'd like to add a bright spot in your mood?  Or maybe you have a particular time of day that you'd like a little break from all the grown up tasks you have to do?  Pick a time that you can take a few minutes of uninterrupted time away by yourself.

Devote 15 - 30 minutes.    

Any less time and you're likely to feel frustrated or hurried.  Any more time and it becomes a session rather than a sin.  Feeling like you're being a little sneaky is energizing.  Sneaking the break into your busy day adds the touch of excitement and energy that keeps your play fresh and vibrant!

Pick a place that will be your regular Play Zone.  

You'll certainly have days you'd rather mix it up, but feeling comfortable is key.  When time is at a premium you'll want to get down to serious play quickly.  And yesterday's half finished creation might be just the place you want to pick up again today.  If your Play Zone is always set up, it becomes routine to get into your creative mind set right on cue.

Keep your toys, I mean tools, handy.    

The only thing I love more than new paintbrushes is a new drawing pad.  All your colorful pencils, juicy watercolors and sassy sketch pads should be handy and ready.  Like the velveteen rabbit, rub the dust off and give your paints a squeeze to show them you still love them.  Keep all kinds of fun supplies available so they're ready for your Power Play.  

Get messy!    

Play is messy business and creativity blooms when you get a little mud between your toes, or fingers as the case may be.  A cluttered desk may be the sign of a creative mind, so go ahead and Play now but do clean up when you're done. It's easier to create when your workspace is ready for you. Plan ahead if you can.

Practice makes perfect?  

While perfection isn't ever the goal, commitment and consistency are crucial to building your creative muscles.  Play every day and watch your creativity grow!  Playful creativity is intoxicating and a bit addictive.  Commit to a week of daily Power Play and get over the hump of self doubt.  Then you can say to yourself 'I create every day'.  What a Power Play that will be!  

Blocks are toys too.  

Stick with your routine and just dabble away if your muse is missing.  Inspiration can be illusive but when it's all about playing creatively you can't fail!  There's no right or wrong, and there's no one to please other than yourself.  Lighten up and let the colors flow.  Clean up the messes another day.

And while you're at it, throw judgement out the window and practice being kind to yourself.  That nasty little voice of judgement is the bully on the block and needs to be kicked to the curb!  

Take time to Notice.  

Do we ever really give ourselves enough credit for trying and learning?  Do we take time to be grateful for our joys and successes?  While you're building your new playful creative habits, remind yourself of the fun you're having while being creative every day.  And each day make time to say out loud: 'I am creative!', 'I love feeling creative!', 'I am more creative every day.

The goal is building a creative space that sparks a feeling of playfulness.  If you'd love to feel more creative and imaginative every day, building a creative routine is the first step.  

Start your Power Play today! And let your creativity flow!  


Stay in touch and let me know how your Power Play is going...  Cheers!  Audrey

Is it possible the emotional strain of regret and disappointment are blocking your path to happiness, confidence and contentment?

Imagine this: Someone makes a comment that touches a nerve.  Your thoughts begin to swirl.  'Could I have done better?  Should I have made a different choice?'  What ifs and if onlys start racing through your mind and your mood plummets.  In this way you let yourself feel the pain of regret again and again.  Some off-handed comment and an old habitual thought pattern takes over, eventually dissolving into a pity party for one with no clear way out.

When I've spent too much time in feelings of regret, I find myself in a lonely place with neither comfort nor reassurance.  I've opened my heart to feelings of self-doubt creating fertile ground for guilt, fear and depression.  The weight of disappointment and regret heaps on more doubt, self-blame and indecision.  

When things don’t come out as hoped and we wish for what might have been, the world seems to be conspiring against us.  It’s easy to think if we’d only made a different choice, everything would have been rosy. 

I realize now that regret did not serve me well.  I'd turned to a sadly familiar emotional habit that offered little, if any, illumination.  Rehashing circumstances, looking to lay blame, or wishing things had come out differently are all dead end thoughts.  We cannot change a choice made in the past, nor can we erase its results in the present. 

It’s only natural to feel pangs of disappointment or regret when our expectations aren’t met.  And good or bad events in our lives invite comparison to what might have been.  But as I develop my more self-compassionate thought process, I find it much more constructive to turn the situation around and ask myself 'Would I make the same decision if in that situation again?'

I am a caring, reflective and hopeful person, and when I look back, I feel I generally tried to do the best I could do at the time, so I feel confident I would probably have made the same decisions under the same circumstances.  I didn’t have a crystal ball then, nor do I have a reset button now.

I haven't always made the best choices in hindsight, but I feel I do the best I can at any given time, and I have learned that mind-numbing regret is not productive.  Learning my lessons and moving forward with new information is helpful.  Accepting the past and living without painful disappointment or regret helps me feel much more confident and positive.

I hope you encourage yourself to use a more self-compassionate inner voice.  Catch yourself as soon as you can and move forward with greater self-appreciation and confidence.

Warm wishes,
Audrey Wilcox

There is no benefit in multitasking?  Really?  Now they tell me!

Thankfully this discovery coincides with my effort to live a more conscious and healthy lifestyle in spite of myself, so the thought that multitasking has been causing me to be less productive and forgetful is just the kind of evidence I need to push me in a healthy direction.  (see attributions below)

I have been a habitual multitasker, and believed the trait served me well over the years.  I have owned businesses, raised children and worked in fast-paced environments that seemed to benefit from my special knack for juggling all things for all people.

I see now that I lived a detrimental lifestyle that has become a challenge to undo.  In my quest for a more self-compassionate and intentional life, I have been making a conscious effort to slow down and enjoy every day in fitness and in health, and I continue to seek ways to improve my memory and stress levels.

Like me, even if you are managing to get off the multitasking crazy train, you probably still have moments when you catch yourself running and you realize you haven't taken a deep breath in forever and you don't know why.

On my path to greater inner peace, I have learned a number of things about myself.  Over the course of the last few years, I am consciously choosing to slow down and enjoy life.  I want to do the things I've had on my bucket list.  I want to enjoy my family and friends in a deeper way.  I want to contribute in fulfilling ways.

But I not only want to DO things; I want to savor them.  I want to absorb life and enjoy it.  I don't want to multitask my way through my bucket list.  I want to BE in there enjoying every moment.

I'm seeing success for my effort.  I'll share my meditation methods in another post so stay tuned, but regarding my daily activities, my mind is still programmed for speed.  Even though I am building a day to day life that allows me to focus my thoughts calmly in the direction I desire, I still find old habits die hard.

My tendency to hurry up may be just the place I need to notice, and taking time to breathe, look and listen is a gift I must remember to give myself moment by moment. 

Even noticing that I'm speeding along is a big improvement and cause for celebration.  Learning a new behavior is done in stages and over time.  My awareness gives me a chance to improve this very moment.  I stop and notice my breath, and I open my mind's eye and look around.

It really feels good when I notice myself rushing for no particular reason and realize I can choose at that moment to slow down; to BE in the moment.  I feel my shoulders relax and my attitude improve, and the moment comes into focus.  I can be in the moment in an instant!  One benefit of my past multitasking expertise: I'm good at switching gears quickly.  Ha!

Attribution:
1) 'Media multitaskers pay mental price, Stanford study shows'  By Adam Gorlick
Stanford Report, August 24, 2009, news.stanford.edu

2) 'The Myth Of Multitasking',  NPR Talk of the Nation with Ira Flatow & Dr Clifford Nass
May 10, 2013, http://www.npr.org

3) 'Don’t Multitask: Your Brain Will Thank You'  By Issie Lapowsky
Time Business & Money, April 17, 2013, http://business.time.com

4) 'Clifford Nass, Who Warned of a Data Deluge, Dies at 55'  By William Yardley
The New York Times, Business Day, November 6, 2013, http://www.nytimes.com

5) 'This Year I Will...', By M.J. Ryan
Published by Broadway Books, 2006

Dear Friends,

It has often occurred to me I love sharing my experiences with others, and I frequently find myself in roles like listener, adviser, encourager, and cheerleader.  One day a friend said to me that I’d be a great Life Coach and the light came on!

I feel that I have influenced and touched many lives, and I have always loved sharing with anyone who would listen.  But I really I wanted a better way to help people live their lives in successful ways so they can experience more joy and enthusiasm while solving their daily frustrations.  Life Coaching is the answer! 

I feel blessed to be drawn to people who are kind, giving and open minded.  Like me, my friends and acquaintances seem to be looking forward to their middle years and are anticipating great things.  But at the same time, we seem to be feeling more weight of responsibility to our loved ones and less of the freedom of middle age than we anticipated. 

Why am I telling you all this?  I’m very excited to have found my best approach to help people enjoy their lives and reach their goals in conjunction with caring for the important people in their lives.  I’d enjoy connecting with you and offering you or someone you know a free sample coaching session so that you can see what coaching is all about.  We’ll find a topic that’s relevant to your life so you come away with something valuable. 

In the meantime, check out my website at www.audreywilcox.com.  You can also find me on Facebook as Free to Imagine.  If you feel like sharing my pages and blogs with your friends, please do!

Warmly,
Audrey Wilcox

P.S.  My business will grow quickly through referrals.  Please keep me in mind whenever you’re talking with friends who are finding themselves ready for change but just aren’t certain of the next step.