Creative inspiration is a basic need!

Having talked with a few left-brain types in my day, I know we all crave inspiration and creativity, when we stop to think about it! I think we need a creative outlet or source of stimulation in order to avoid left-brain burn-out.

But many people hesitate to take up a creative activity because they "won't be any good at it". They are perfectionists, or recovering perfectionists like me.

Nobody is good at anything when they first start; anything takes practice to improve. So the deal is: just start! Besides, being good is not actually the point. The point is to stimulate our right brain hemispheres.

This painting is my fourth--the third is underneath the paint of it. The inspiration was to use up some leftover wall paint so I would not have to figure out how to dispose of it in compliance with environmental regulations.

You see it in situ; it is one of 3 paintings in my house in various shades of blue, purple, white and brown. That was the end of the left-over wall paint!

Midge at Lipstick and Legalese is also a fan of creative activities. See her post on shrinkies today.

Creativity is a need

I have been meaning to write about creativity. I have also bewen meaning to do a regular week-end post about creativity....

Any person engaged in a profession that draws heavily on left-brain activity, will come to appreciate the need for some counter-balancing right-brain activity. In fact, the right-brain activity actually assists the left-brain hemisphere in its work.

People in problem-solving professions will start to feel in a rut and stymied, if they do not take conscious steps to activate their right hemisphere regularly. Some people seem to know this intuitively, others like me need to have the red flag waved in front of them.

I coached lawyers for 5 years and the felt need for creativity was commonly mentioned--as creativity was missing in their lives and the absence limited their thinking. And this blah feeling was undermining their confidence that they had chosen the right profession.

I first expressed this need to myself in 1991. It took me another 10 years to start actively seeking creative stimulus. A few years ago this led me to a blog about folk art that spawned a group calling itself the Glitter Power Sisters. We held our first retreat in Sedona this spring.

A recent review of studies on happiness discovered that enjoyment of our work is key to life satisfaction. And creativity figures in this.

Rhonda Muir of the LawPeople blog has a post today called Working Toward Happiness. she discusses the contribution that creativity makes to happiness. And the recent review of studies on happiness. Do read her post.