2012: Tú, only better
It’s Sunday evening and you’re going over the next week’s s schedule in your head, wondering, “How am I ever going do all of this?” You have a big project at work, a marathon to train for, kids to shuttle around, bills to pay, laundry to do, dinners to make, and the list goes on and on. When the next Sunday comes around, you’re exhausted but satisfied in the fact that somehow you managed to do it all. Are you a superhuman? Maybe (are you? I won’t tell), but doubtful. What you are is creative. You managed to think your way through a problem and found a resolution.
Creativity is the ability to transcend traditional ideas, rules, patterns, relationships,or the like, and to create meaningful new ideas, forms, methods, interpretations…”
Creative, you ask? Yes. In this crazy thing called life, creativity is a necessary skill for everyone. It’s true that often, when we hear or see the word creativity we almost automatically think of someone in the arts–writers, painters, musicians, dancers, and the like–but it’s not just for a few of us. Figuring out how you’re going to make dinner, finish the laundry, AND catch this week’s episode of Dancing with the Stars requires creativity. Much like a muscle, creativity can atrophy. You must exercise it regularly.
But how? What’s a good workout that will help give that creativity muscle some definition?
We turned to our residents experts–the creative BL team–for some advice:
- The best way that I have found to recharge the creative bank is to go for a walk; the combination of meditative and mindless activity ignites a brainstorm. – Sandra Foyt
- The thing that usually charges me is seeing my family especially my nephew and niece. I think seeing things threw a new pair of eyes, especially a child’s eyes, makes us appreciate and remember what it is that got us going and provide more motivation. – Jessenia Martinez
- Doing menial tasks, such as washing dishes or organizing your desk, occupies only a small part of your mind, leaving the rest of your mind free to wander and come up with new ideas. Creativity has a way of popping up when you’re not directly thinking about it. – Cindy Tovar
- We often think of creativity as a “lone ranger” process, but big ideas and the greatest inventions are born out of conversation and collaboration. Get out of your own head….talk to someone, get an outside perspective, create with another person. Two heads are definitely better than one. – Adriana Villavicencio
Always challenge your beliefs for meaning and justification. Focus on what you know best, and seek out knowledge about those subjects that are important to all. – Nick Baez- “Wake up early: staying up late every time is going to burn you up. Instead, go to sleep, get plenty of rest and do your work first thing in the morning. Your mind will be fresh and your brain as its best in alertness and creativity” – Luna Garcia
- Odd things inspire my creativity. Reading good prose or poetry, listening to or reading the news. Exercise has also proven to open my mind to creative thought. – Maitri Pamo
- When you steal, pillage from the masters and make sure you cover your tracks so well that we are forced to call the result “creative.” – Daniel Cubias
- Surrounding yourself with positive and productive people can sometimes offer inspiration when there is none because you’re inspired by their commitment to their craft and dream. – Xeno Martinez
- Carry a small notebook or a camera with you whenever possible and try to write or capture whatever interests you (camera phones work great for this). If your ‘creative well’ runs dry, look back through your notes and you’re bound to find something to inspire you.- Ryan Almodovar
- As with anything, my writing gets better through steady practice. But instead of simply putting pen to paper every day, I think reading what others have written is probably just as important, if not more so. – Hector Alamo
- Sometimes things come to you when you’re not even looking for it. If I need a boost to my creative juices, I surround myself with what inspires me, which is music. It happens every week when I have to write. I try to think of something to write about and it doesn’t come to me. I back off, shut everything down, put my music on random, and eventually I’ll come across something that I feel I need to share with the audience. – Nelson Figueroa
- I find expressing myself through different means – drawing, writing, photography – helps stimulate creativity, as they offer multiple ways of expressing myself; I either explore this by myself or might take a class or ask someone with more experience for help. It also helps if I just walk or around or exercise to clear my mind. A big help is having conversations with other creative people, as they can provide different insights and opinions. – Nicolle Morales Kern
- “Being around other creative people definitely helps get the process flowing. Most of our funniest stuff that pops up in our BL videos happen on the fly and are improvisational in addition to being scripted.” – Robert Rios III
- Creativity, or a creative idea, is not some elusive concept just beyond the grasp of our consciousness. Rather, it is the result of connecting two seemingly simple ideas already within the scope of our minds. – Felipe Diaz
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About Libby Juliá-Vázquez
good tips