Do you ever just get lost in the moment? Do you get so engrossed in a project or engaged with what’s in front of you that you lose track of time? If you answered no, it’s time for a change! Psychology professor Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi writes in Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience that those who are able to connect to “joy, creativity, the process of total involvement of life with life I call flow” or to get into a state of consciousness called flow, are, in fact, happier.
In her book Art and Soul, Reloaded, Pam Grout writes, “I want to spend Saturday nights painting on walls, hosting show-and-tells and playing charades. I want to share my dancing, daring, audacious side. For years, I denied this side. . . I was so busy doing affirmations, reading books, and trying to heal this broken-down imposter that I forgot the ‘real me,’ the crazy, quirky, lightning bug me, is the very things I’d been searching for.”
It’s time to play and do more activities that remind you of those wild sides of yourself! Whether art is already a regular part of your life or you’re looking to spice things up, the following ideas will help spark a sense of creativity.
Get in touch with both your body and emotions, and enjoy a moving meditation by taking a dance class, boogie-ing around your kitchen, or blasting the music in your car (shimmy your shoulders but watch the road!). Conscious movement is a great way to connect with emotions, process past experiences, and sweat out whatever no longer serves your highest self in a fun way.
Recommended ritual: Dance every day and everywhere! Get your creative juices flowing with lively movement and fun music.
Recommended ritual: Look up into the dark sky each night, make it a playful game to find the moon in the sky during the day, create full moon and new moon rituals, and honor the moon during special occasions.
Recommended ritual: Who has a birthday coming up? Make his or her day!
Recommended ritual: Try this as a one-time special event or choose a cookbook to focus on for an entire month.
Recommended ritual: Plant this spring to embrace the season of renewal.
Recommended ritual: Journal every day—simple as that.
What other juicy rituals can you think of to bring light to your life? Are there things you already do that allow you time and space to feel creative? Humans are creative beings. The more you allow yourself to find your flow, the happier, kinder, and more adept you’ll be at coming up with creative solutions to the problems faced by the world.
Find Your Flow
One way to practice tapping into that state of flow is through creative expression: dancing, singing, painting, working with clay, playing pretend with your kids, using computer programs, writing, designing clothes, creating theater, gardening, doing crafts, scrapbooking, or otherwise “making stuff.”In her book Art and Soul, Reloaded, Pam Grout writes, “I want to spend Saturday nights painting on walls, hosting show-and-tells and playing charades. I want to share my dancing, daring, audacious side. For years, I denied this side. . . I was so busy doing affirmations, reading books, and trying to heal this broken-down imposter that I forgot the ‘real me,’ the crazy, quirky, lightning bug me, is the very things I’d been searching for.”
It’s time to play and do more activities that remind you of those wild sides of yourself! Whether art is already a regular part of your life or you’re looking to spice things up, the following ideas will help spark a sense of creativity.
1. Dance
Put on some great music and groove! Flowing, free movement appears in most cultures as a way to celebrate life. Gabrielle Roth, who conceived of the 5Rhythms dance practice, suggests moving your body in a variety of ways: flowing, staccato, chaos, lyrical, stillness, and ecstatic dance to move stagnant energy through your body. Practice honing your intuition.Get in touch with both your body and emotions, and enjoy a moving meditation by taking a dance class, boogie-ing around your kitchen, or blasting the music in your car (shimmy your shoulders but watch the road!). Conscious movement is a great way to connect with emotions, process past experiences, and sweat out whatever no longer serves your highest self in a fun way.
Recommended ritual: Dance every day and everywhere! Get your creative juices flowing with lively movement and fun music.
2. Moon Rituals
Take a look up and see where the moon is in the sky. Use the lunar cycle to mark transition and manifest your dreams. Notice when the moon is brightest and allow its fullness to remind you of all that you have to be grateful for, and for the abundance in your life. Notice when the sky is dark (when the moon is new) and allow this emptiness to remind you of all that you wish to manifest, of the intentions you have for your life. Consider pulling tarot cards, writing a letter to your past self, writing a love letter to your body, lighting candles, burning sage or palo santo, and stargazing to honor the cycles of the moon as they relate to your life.Recommended ritual: Look up into the dark sky each night, make it a playful game to find the moon in the sky during the day, create full moon and new moon rituals, and honor the moon during special occasions.
3. Creative Gift Giving
Have you ever received that perfect beautiful, sweet gift? That you know must have taken several hours to create? That looks homemade because it IS homemade, one of a kind, and, therefore, priceless? Then you know how incredible it feels to receive a creative gift! Anytime you’re giving a gift to friend, loved one, co-worker, or yourself, consider what would truly touch that person’s heart and think outside the (gift)box. Make a card, a scrapbook, a playlist, a shared experience, a meal, a bouquet, or a necklace—complex or simple, your intentions will surely shine through the wrapping paper.Recommended ritual: Who has a birthday coming up? Make his or her day!
4. Cooking
Ah, the art of cooking. The ritual of choosing a cookbook, creating a menu, shopping for ingredients, prepping/chopping/stirring, cooking, and (finally!) eating is one that benefits your mind as well as your belly. Consider how the presentation of the finished product can be a masterpiece in itself. Watch cooking shows or videos to get ideas. Invite friends over to enjoy your work. Bonus: you can choose music that will light you up as you cook!Recommended ritual: Try this as a one-time special event or choose a cookbook to focus on for an entire month.
5. Plant with the Season
Do some research and find out what will grow best in your region. Connecting with the earth by digging, watering, and getting dirty helps clear your mind and ground your heart. Consider your intentions and remember that what you plant, grows. So, plant positivity! Plant peace! Plant peas! Bonus: plant on the solstice or equinox as a celebration of the changing of the seasons.Recommended ritual: Plant this spring to embrace the season of renewal.
6. Journal
Open to a blank page and see what happens. Put pen to paper and after a few boring thoughts (“I don’t know what to write” or “I’ve been writing about the same problem for two years!”), you may hit the creative jackpot. Or not. Show up and write either way. One of the tools of The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron is Morning Pages: write three pages in your journal every day; this is non-negotiable. The physical act of writing has been shown to be beneficial and getting those pesky/brilliant thoughts out of your mind leaves space for more insight and inspiration.Recommended ritual: Journal every day—simple as that.
What other juicy rituals can you think of to bring light to your life? Are there things you already do that allow you time and space to feel creative? Humans are creative beings. The more you allow yourself to find your flow, the happier, kinder, and more adept you’ll be at coming up with creative solutions to the problems faced by the world.
