How To Find Your Personal Creativity Blueprint

A blueprint is simply a detailed plan of how something will work. “Hang on, but isn’t that just for scientists or architects,” I hear you asking. “What good is it for me and the way I create?”

Well, yes, it may sound a little technical and structured for someone who wishes to create freely and go where his inspiration takes him. But without your own personal creativity blueprint – an outline of how you can create most freely and deeply - you’ll be creating in the dark in short random bursts, interspersed with long frustrating periods of confusion and no focus.

Here are the 5 elements to defining a creativity blueprint that works for you:

1. When to create. Which time of day works best for your creativity? Do you naturally prefer to create first thing each morning while the world is still? Or do you work best during regular office hours? Maybe you’re a night owl and create your best work late at night? Experiment with different times, and find what works best for you. But give yourself time, don’t try creating just once at 3 different times and then make a decision. Try each for a week or two and see which time of day helps you find a creative rhythm most effectively.
2. How long to create for. Are you someone who creates most freely when you set aside a large chunk of time and just throw yourself into creating, fully immersed for hours on end? Or do you prefer to keep your creativity levels high and focused by working in shorter, more powerful bursts, with time in between to work on other projects, or other activities entirely? Listen to yourself, find the way of creating that suits YOU best. Remember, this is all about YOUR creativity blueprint.
3. What to create. Can you honestly say you create the projects you’re most passionate about, the art you most long to create? Or do you find yourself halfheartedly trudging through projects you think other people want you to create, the work you feel you SHOULD be creating? To be at your most creative, there’s a simple rule - go with your passion and energy. Create what you yearn to create, create what you love creating. Only then will you produce the best work you’re capable of.
4. Where to create. There are two elements to this part of your creativity blueprint. The first is where do you feel most inspired, where do you go that ideas always flow to you, that your imagination feels freed and you overflow with inspiration? Identify these places and make full use of them! The other element is how you have your creative workspace set up. What arrangement works best for you? How can you organize your space so everything is where you need it so you can get straight into creating at a moment’s notice?
5. How to stay creative. Once you’ve found what works best for you in the elements above, you have your personal creativity blueprint, the outline that’ll allow you to create most fully and freely. But don’t just stick to it rigidly for the rest of your life if something’s not working. Allow yourself the freedom to stay aware of how creative you are, and make a little adjustment here and add an extra tweak there, to keep your creativity flowing. We all evolve as artists and people, so let your creativity blueprint evolve too, to keep you creating as naturally and freely as possible.

Follow these steps to find and maintain YOUR unique creativity blueprint. You’ll then have an outline for being as creative as you know you can be for the rest of your life...