Increase Creativity A-Z - B Is For Balance – How To Use Your Creativity In ALL Areas Of Your Life

Sometimes a head-down-no-distractions-don't-even-come-up-for-air-for-eight-hours creative marathon can produce fantastic results. We can get deeply into the flow of a creative project, really get our teeth into it and make some wonderful progress.

But if we did this all the time, it wouldn't be so helpful. Or practical. Or sociable.

Unless you live in a shack in the middle of the woods, miles from the nearest living soul and have no financial, family or other commitments, this kind of creative behaviour day after day is just not sustainable.

If the description above describes you exactly and this lifestyle works beautifully for you, that's fantastic! Long may it continue...

But for those of us with the rest of our lives and obligations to fit in around our creative projects (or vice versa), we need an approach that is more realistic and flexible.

And we need balance. Balance between each of the connected elements of our lives that are important to us.

What we often do is separate our creative work - the time and energy we spend on creating in the ways we most enjoy – from everything else in our lives.

This then causes friction, a situation of "My Creative Life" Vs "Everything Else In My Life" and "I'm either creative or not creative." This approach isn't the most beneficial to either your creative work, or all the other important areas of your life.

So what's the solution?

Is there a better way to approach this conflict between creative time and non-creative time, and to achieve a happy balance?

The secret is to realise that as a creative person, this creativity influences your whole life. Being creative is an inherent part of your personality. It's not like a set of dentures which you remove after mealtimes and when you sleep.

Your creativity is there all the time, embedded in you as deeply and indisputably as there is blood running through your veins.

Once you accept this and put it into use, the conflict between creative and non-creative in your life simply won't exist.

The easiest way to do this in practice is just to trust your creativity and ask. Ask yourself "How can I use my creativity in (state an area of your life)?"

Do this for each area of your life, trust that you will come up with plenty of solutions that'll help you and then start putting some of them into use.

To recap, you can use your creativity in all areas of your life to achieve a more balanced and happy life overall.

Recognise that your creativity is ever present and there to help you in any way you need.

You've just got to ask it.