Anxious or just very Creative?

Catalyst News Issue 66- February 5, 2010 http://www.catalystonline.co.uk included a wonderful piece about anxiety and creativity:

Being anxious about creating anything is very natural because anxiety is an emotional condition and producing something from your inner self, the most deep and private part of you is both highly emotional, and often challenging.

But just what brings up that anxiety? One theory was that was caused by a chemical imbalance or distorted thinking, but new evidence seems to show it is caused by having a creative intellect. In general this means having the mental facility to generate, both consciously and subconsciously, complex scenarios in the creative area of the brain. It seems that every anxiety sufferer has this mental resource which can be utilized consciously to produce creative ability or subconsciously by the autonomic nervous system to identify potential risks and initiates the flight or fight response if needed.

This means that under stress anxiety levels rise the anxiety response releases a series of thought processes which provide a 'risk assessment' asking 'what if?' and uses the sensory organs to collect data and respond with the appropriate course of action. When we are anxious we have physical signs such as breathlessness, or 'butterflies' for actors it manifests as stage fright, for writers it can be seen in writer's block or displacement activity.

Anna suggests embracing the anxiety; seeing it as a validation of how creative you are, and choosing to use that energy in a productive way. Fear and excitement have the same physical responses in the body. You are going to experience the same symptoms, so choose to be excited and use it to inspire you to create.

Spend Less and Live (perhaps even write) More?

Just read a fantastic book; The Spend Less Handbook: 365 Tips for a Better Quality of Life While Actually Spending Less by Rebecca Ash, Capstone Publishing (2008). Although it chiefly focuses on saving money, it also talks about the links between a consumer mentality, stress and why we are not leading the life we dream of.

Consider; 'You won’t get to the end of your life and wish you’d made more money – you’ll wish you spent more time staring at the clouds, playing with your children or doing something more meaningful' and 'Remember that you only have one life, and you really ought to live life as if you only had a few months left of it. Make time to do things that will add real value to your life – things that will make you feel like the person you want to be, the person you would like to be remembered as when you die.'

It features a poem which I have never seen before which I feel sums it all up:

Dust if you must, but wouldn’t it be better to paint a picture, or write a letter, bake a cake, or plant a seed. Ponder the difference between want and need.

Dust if you must, but there’s not much time, with rivers to swim and mountains to climb! Music to hear, and books to read, friends to cherish and life to lead.

Dust if you must, but the world’s out there with the sun in your eyes, the wind in your hair, a flutter of snow, a shower of rain, this day will not come round again.

Dust if you must, but bear in mind, old age will come and its not kind. And when you go, and go you must, you, yourself, will make more dust!

Anonymous

Jurgen Again (He's Good!) - Match that Mood!

Want to be creative? Be happy! Want to make better decisions? Be grumpy! That seems to be the message of research done by psychologist Joseph Forgas, published in Australian Science. He found that happiness is better for creativity, flexibility, cooperation, and reliance on mental shortcuts. Negative moods trigger more attentive, careful thinking and paying greater attention to the external world, resulting in better judgment and crafting effective persuasive messages.

ACTION: The best way to take advantage of these findings may be to try to match the task to your mood - if you're feeling upbeat, do your creative work and if you're feeling downbeat do administrative tasks that require accuracy and decision-making. Alternatively, manipulate your mood to match the task at hand, using music, visualization and movement (e.g. to get more upbeat, listen to upbeat music with which you already have happy associations, do a few minutes of exercise to get your heart rate up, and visualize the positive outcome of whatever you're about to do.) November 2009 Brainstorm E-Bulletin See: www.timetowrite.blogs.com/

New Year Resolutions - An Added Incentive

Jurgen Wolff's January 2010 Brainstorm E-Bulletin (http://jurgenwolff.com/ / www.timetowrite.blogs.com/) noted that there are a few strategies that have been proven to be effective when trying to lose a few pounds i.e. Keep the tempting bad foods out of the house and Jot down everything you eat! However, what he noted which really got me motivated was: Being creative requires energy and being overweight can sap it. Now, where did I put my trainers.....

I want to share with you this....

As we enter 2010, I want to wish you the very best of everything:

Confidence to pursue your best ideas.
Creativity to take you to new and exciting places in your work.
Determination to follow through on your goals.
Resources to support you as you go for it.
Patience to let things evolve as they need to.
Wisdom to see opportunities for what they are and let go of unhelpful habits.
Humour to deal with those around you and to see the funny side of your challenges.
Peace in the knowledge that you are in the right place and doing the right things.

Mindy Gibbins-KleinFounder of The Book Midwife http://www.bookmidwife.com/

New Year Resolutions

Last year I used being pregnant as an excuse. This year it was/is having a baby. I don’t feel I have really moved forward that much with regards to my writing in the last year. I feel disappointed that my 2009 Christmas present - the Writers and Artists Yearbook 2009 – never moved from its place on the shelf this year!!

My goals for 2009 were:
1. To complete (at least) one novel.
2. To enter one competition a month of any format.
3. To continue to write both blogs at least once a week.

This year I have added:
4. To continue to devour Writing Magazine, Writing News and MsLexia.
5. To try and write something or do something to move towards my writing goals every day.
6. To re-asses in 3 / 6 / 12 months time!

Other Resolutions are:
To remember that time is precious and to say No to things unless I really want to say Yes.
I will try to remain Positive at all times about all people and all situations!
I will aim to reach my pre-pregnancy weight within 3 months via diet and exercise.
I will save some money every week.

Wish me luck - Happy New Year!!

Thinking about New Year Resolutions?

"Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step." - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.