You can compete harder when you’re healthy.
Your body, a complex machine capable of all kinds of great things, needs some TLC every once in a while. More specifically, your creative mind needs that same kind of care. In the same way your body needs a healthy diet and exercise, your brain needs healthy input, a variety of sources, and movement to create output.
Here are five ways to develop your creativity:
1. Find input. It takes time to build your personal list of inspiration. That time is always important, because your inspiration is your visual bank. You’ll put from what you’ve seen and what you know. If you want to make better, more sophisticated work, make your pursuit of inspiration a priority. Give your brain some creative food.
2. Give yourself a variety. Look at sources from outside your practice or medium. Challenge yourself to explore something different, whether that’s the latest fashion week or a Ted talk on emerging technology. Variety is important in diet keeps your mind fresh, and will help you creative much more interesting and diverse work.
3. Eat often. This is a rule in food. My mom, who was a personal trainer for a time, always taught me that your body works best when it’s working often. Like the rest of your body, your brain likes to stay moving. Find input in small doses throughout the day. Listen to a podcast on the way to work. Try to find a new artist during lunchtime. Snack on creativity throughout the day, and you’ll find you’re more ready to create when it’s time.
4. Evaluate what you’re eating. There’s value in critiquing work as you go. You probably wouldn’t eat mystery food without asking a few questions first. In the same way, when you see new work use your brain and ask questions. What’s the source? What message are they attempting to covey? What’s the concept in this work? Is it successful? How can I use this? Assess and analyze the work. You’ll begin to develop an artistic opinion and practice of your own.
5. Exercise. In order to uncover the creative genius inside you, it’s important to get moving. Don’t be a couch potato. Art is hard. Being creative is hard. It’s difficult to consistently find inspiration, work on technique, push your ideas to the next level, and develop a practice of your own. The harder your work, however, the better you’ll get.
Be resourceful, and dig into the visual world a little bit more. These are all things I’m still working on too, but it’s always exciting to get better.