Source of Inspiration

A change is as good as a rest.  On Friday I was stuck.  I was working on a project and I couldn’t move forward.  I couldn’t find the right point of inspiration.  That’s where the weekend is a great invention and a wonderful opportunity to see the world from a new perspective.

The Starting Line

Inspiration from a Daughter – On Saturday evening, my daughter suggested that we participate in the Terry Fox Run the next morning.  She said she would run with me for the 5km or possibly the 10km race.  What a lovely surprise, as running is a new activity for my daughter and this would be the first time that we would be running together.

Meeting a Monk

Inspiration from a Monk – On Sunday evening I was delighted to be in the room at the Clarity Centre in Oakville listening to Lama Samten (from Tibet) talk about finding happiness.  Working through a translator, we heard about turning off the tap of negative emotions and how we need to find the cause of our happiness.  Discover what makes us happy. Happiness is like the sun, it’s always there.  On a cloudy day we need to work through our negative emotions to clear the clouds and reconnect with the sunshine.

Before

Inspiration from an Overdue Project – This weekend we tackled an overdue project, the relaying of paving stones in our driveway.  Over a year ago when we moved to our new home, we talked about raising the level of the paving stones to match the level of the garage.  The differential of more than 2 inches caused a “bump” as we drove into the garage and backed out of it.  This “bump” became so entrenched in my routine, that when I drove into the garage after fixing the paving stones, I actually felt the “bump” that was no longer

After

there!  It had become an expected habit.  A habit that wasn’t necessary and didn’t serve me anymore.  The actual project (after researching and planning) took less than 3 hours.  It was hard work, physically, and the rewards of completing a project that was long overdue was extremely satisfying.

To see the world from a new perspective gives us renewed energy, passion and drive.  As the saying on the back of a t-shirt during the 5km run said, “Power. Passion. Performance.”  Where do you find your source of inspiration?  Redefine possible.

The Creativity Project – The Bonus

Stacking 10 chop sticks

As we cross the finish line on the 30 Day Challenge of The Creativity Project, I’m filled with mixed emotions.

It didn’t matter what you did each day that was creative.  You could have done the activity in the blog, or been inspired by the blog activity, or chosen your own creative project.  The important part was that you did it. I applaud you for your accomplishment!

On the one hand I am ecstatic that the 30 day challenge is finished.  I had so much fun with the project and noticed so many wonderful restuls in my life in the past 30 days.  On the other hand, I am enjoying the project so much that I am sad to see it end.  I’ve heard from many of you about your learnings, observations and amazing results through the project and I’ve been inspired by you to relaunch The Creativity Project again later this year.  Stay tuned.  Send me your new ideas and tell me about your old favourites!

Here’s a bonus project for you that you could easily do at your desk or your kitchen table.

The Creativity Project – The Bonus:  Find 10 of the same objects (pens, paper clips, forks, chop sticks) and arrange them as many ways as you can.  How high can you stack them?  How wide can you make them?  How creative can you be?

Write about your experience in your journal and share on Facebook.  Redefine possible.

The Creativity Project – Outside the Box

Outside the Box

We’ve all heard the phrase “thinking outside the box“, haven’t we?  Most of the time we don’t realize that we are inside the box. We are so focused on what we are doing.  Focus is good when we have a clear goal to work towards.  Tunnel vision is not good.  We miss what’s just outside our focus.  Most solutions to our problems are found in our peripheral vision.

The Creativity Project – Outside the Box:  Today’s project is to find an empty box and toss various items into the box.  Notice what lands in the box and what lands outside the box.  (If everything landed inside the box, do this activity again and step further away from the box.)

Write about your experience in your journal and share on Facebook.  Redefine possible.

The Creativity Project – Thank You

Say “thank you”

Giving feedback is just like giving a gift to someone, isn’t it?  When you receive a gift, what is the polite thing to say?  The best response is simply, “Thank you.”  Feedback comes to us from many different directions during our day.  Feedback could be in the form of a compliment. It could be an expression of appreciation.

Or feedback could be noticing the results you are getting and if they aren’t the ones you were expecting, then taking this feedback and modifying your actions.  For example, if I’m late for a meeting, the feedback tells me that I need to plan a longer travel time.  What have I learned?  I’ve learned that to be on time for the meeting, I need to leave earlier.

You may have heard the saying that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.  Take in the feedback, make new actions and get new results.

The Creativity Project – Thank You: Today’s project is to express appreciation to others.  There is a wonderful feeling that accompanies the expression of appreciation.  Enjoy it!  Also notice when you receive feedback (which could be in the form of a compliment) and simply say, “Thank you!”  I appreciate your participation in the 30 Day Challenge of The Creativity Project.  (Now, what do you say?)

Write about your experience in your journal and share on Facebook. Redefine possible.

The Creativity Project – Dance

You can dance

A colleague used to say, “If you are going to walk on thin ice, you might as well dance.”  He was a manager in a big company and his dancing referred to the style of presenting an idea in a meeting.

You may have heard this quote by William W. Purkey:

“You’ve gotta dance like there’s nobody watching,
Love like you’ll never be hurt,
Sing like there’s nobody listening,
And live like it’s heaven on earth.”

The Creativity Project – Dance:  Today’s project is to get moving and dance.  You have a lot of flexibility here on the definition of dance.  You could waltz down the aisle at the grocery store. You could snap your fingers to the music in the car.  You could take a yoga class, an exercise class, or just take a moment to stretch.  Or, you could crank the tunes and dance.  Get moving to the rhythm.

Write about your experience in your journal and share on Facebook. Redefine possible.

The Creativity Project – Big

Chess, anyone?

Yesterday I saw something big.  It was unusually big.  What I saw was a large chess board in a park.  It reminded me of Alice in Wonderland, the book written by Lewis Carroll.  Big was also the name of a 1988 movie starring Tom Hanks where a young boy dreams of being big.

The Creativity Project – Big: Today’s project is to notice something big.  You could look for something big and take a picture.  You could think about something big and visualize how big it is.  You could even brainstorm your next big idea!

Write down your experience in your journal and share on Facebook.  Redefine possible.

The Creativity Project – Stripes

Black and white stripes

There are few creations by Mother Nature more striking than the black and white stripes on a zebra.  Where else do we see stripes naturally occurring in our world?

The Creativity Project – Stripes:  Today’s project is to look for stripes.  You can look for naturally occurring stripes or made made stripes.  You could look for horizontal lines or vertical lines.  Where do you find stripes in your daily routine? What do you notice when you look at the stripes?  Take a photo of stripes.

Write about your experience in your journal and share on Facebook. Redefine possible.

The Creativity Project – Pairs

Pen and paper

On my run this morning I spotted two snails, side by side on the path.  One doesn’t think about snails in pairs, do they?  I got to thinking about other unusual things that could be seen in pairs.  Which led to the realization that the word “pair” has a pair.  What I discovered was that “pair” has another word that sounds the same and looks different.  You know, a “pear”.

The Creativity Project – Pairs:  Today’s project is to look for things in pairs.  It could be typical items like a pair of gloves.  Or it could be unusual items like a knife and fork.  Or, you could think about words that sound the same and like different.

Write about your experience in your journal and share on Facebook.  Redefine possible.

The Creativity Project – Signs

Sign for fire hose

What signs have you already noticed today?  Shopping at the mall a few weeks ago I noticed a sign that I found so interesting that I circled back and took a picture.  It was a sign on the fire hose that said, “Fire hose for use by trained persons only”.  As I thought about it, of course, only trained persons should use special emergency equipment.  I guess what I found intriguing was the fact that this sign was necessary at all.

The Creativity Project – Signs:  Today’s project is to notice signs around you as you go through your day.  There is a stop sign.  A red light  A green light.  Words on billboards.  Messages on a poster.  Notice how many different signs you see throughout your day.  Take a picture of an interesting sign.

Write about your experience in your journal and share on Facebook.  Redefine possible.

The Creativity Project – Backwards

Getting on the train.

The other day I was taking public transit during rush hour and got to the front of the line to pay my fare and my transit card balance was too low to cover the entrance fee.  What was I to do?  There was a crowd behind me trying to get on the train.  I couldn’t go forward, so I turned around and walked the opposite way of the crowd.  I was “swimming upstream”, against the flow.  You could say that I was walking backwards, away from my destination.  I was surprised to discover how easy it was to swim upstream.  I had a clear goal.  Others moved out of the way to allow me to move towards it.

You see, I had new destination and time was of the essence.  It was a detour, yes, but an essential one to get to my final destination.  It was back to the ticket counter for me before I could move forwards, toward my goal.  I got the results that I needed.

The Creativity Project – Backwards:  Today’s project is to find an opportunity to do something backwards.  Something in an unusual way.  Keep yourself safe during the activity!  You could brush your teeth with your opposite hand.  If you are on the sidewalk, walk in the opposite direction of the rest of the crowd.  If you are golfing, hit the ball backwards for one stroke before moving forward.

Write about your experience in your journal and share on Facebook.  Redefine possible.