Creativity— it's not just a hobby, it's your lifeline to happiness. Imagine, just by setting aside an intentional time slot for a passion project or a creative task, you can significantly boost your well-being and reduce stress.
On today's episode of Creative Space, I'm sharing an insightful journey into the magical realm of creativity, referencing three compelling studies that reinforce its positive impact on our lives. From the power of a simple creative task to uplift mood, to the lower stress levels reported by people in creative professions, and even the therapeutic power of art for those battling with health issues, the science behind creativity is awe-inspiring.
As we wade into the practical side of things, there's a treasure trove of effective strategies waiting for you. I'll guide you through techniques to integrate creativity into your everyday life, even amidst the busiest of schedules.
Don't let your passion projects collect dust— let's make them a part of your daily life.
Creativity— it's not just a hobby, it's your lifeline to happiness. Imagine, just by setting aside an intentional time slot for a passion project or a creative task, you can significantly boost your well-being and reduce stress.
On today's episode of Creative Space, I'm sharing an insightful journey into the magical realm of creativity, referencing three compelling studies that reinforce its positive impact on our lives. From the power of a simple creative task to uplift mood, to the lower stress levels reported by people in creative professions, and even the therapeutic power of art for those battling with health issues, the science behind creativity is awe-inspiring.
As we wade into the practical side of things, there's a treasure trove of effective strategies waiting for you. I'll guide you through techniques to integrate creativity into your everyday life, even amidst the busiest of schedules.
Don't let your passion projects collect dust— let's make them a part of your daily life.
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SHOW NOTES:
0:00—Introduction
0:30—Why it’s important to make time for creativity
0:48—Studies that show positive impact of creativity
2:58—Tips on making time for creativity
Speaker 1:
Hello everyone and welcome to another episode of Creative Space, a podcast where we explore, learn and grow in creativity together. I'm your host, jennifer Loge, and today we are going to explore how to schedule time for creativity and our passion projects. First of all, why is it important to make time for creativity and our passion projects? Well, it's been scientifically proven to make us happier. There are three studies I'm going to reference as we open this conversation up. The first is recent, from 2021, called being Creative Makes you Happier the positive effect of creativity on subjective well-being. Essentially, there were two groups of study participants. One group was given a creative priming task to do before completing a divergent thinking test. The other group just took the test without having that creative activity beforehand. The study results showed that those who completed the creative activity before the test not only boosted their performance compared to the non-creative group, but the group that did the creative task also reported that they felt higher levels of well-being and reduced stress. I'll end to the study in the episode if you want to dig into it more. The second is a 2015 study from the UK that found people with creative occupations like graphic designers, town planners, architects, report higher levels of well-being and reduced anxiety compared to people with non-creative occupations like bankers and insurance agents. Although I will add to this just because you have a non-creative job doesn't mean you can't be creative outside of work. I know some bankers and accountants who are wildly creative, not just in how they market themselves, but also in their personal lives. They're incredible cooks, musicians, photographers. But I digress. And then the third study I want to bring up is from 2006 and backs up the idea that creativity can be a light to us even in the darkest of situations. In this particular study, people living with stage one and two breast cancer engaged in art therapy, and it was found to enhance psychological well-being by decreasing negative emotional states and increasing positive ones. So, no matter who you are, creativity can bring joy to your life.
Speaker 1:
But in order for it to work its magic, we've got to make time for it. So how do we make time for creativity, even with an insanely busy schedule? Here are some of the strategies that I use, and I hope you find them helpful. Number one how to make time for creativity. This is the first tip. Number one put your creative time on the calendar. This seems like a no-brainer, but you'd be surprised. It is so easy to make a general to-do list for the day without giving certain tasks a dedicated time. Once a guest, which one you'll probably skip the most if you're not intentionally being specific about the time your creative time, yep, that's probably going to be the one to go.
Speaker 1:
It's going to get overlooked and not executed. As an example, I've been working on my voice again and to keep up with the practice schedule, I cut down on my morning workout to have a solid 40 minutes to warm up and sing before the day even starts, because I know if I don't schedule it it's not going to happen. So take that as you will. Oh, also write it down like write it down, because if you don't write it down it's not going to happen either. Number two set clear goals for your creative time. I'm working on my voice again because I have a clear goal of making my instruments the best it can possibly be, just for the joy and fulfillment of it. I'm happier when I sing. My outlook improves. It's even helping my writing, because when someone who's been singing their whole life doesn't sing, they get blocked in so many ways At least that's been my experience. Singers gotta sing. You may have a goal of writing a book, so you'll use that time to write a page a day. Or maybe you want to work towards having your first gallery show as a visual artist. That means you've gotta get painting every day.
Speaker 1:
Number three Find time when distractions are minimal. For me, I wake up around 5 am every day. It's just how I'm wired. I also go to bed really early, like insanely early, but that's the best time for me to be creative. Much of the world is still asleep and if you have a family, this probably rings true for you too. You could also be a night owl, so that works just as well To have that sacred space carved out with minimal distractions. But it really depends on you and your unique schedule. Find time where you can really focus without interruption. That's really important.
Speaker 1:
Number four Be okay with starting small. You don't need to dedicate hours and hours a day to your creativity. Small blocks of time add up. As an example, while I have a large chunk of time in the morning to get my voice and shape when it comes to writing songs again, I've started out with 15 minutes a day. It's not a lot, but it's something, and that 15 minutes a day turned into a little over an hour and a half a week. Little steps can lead to big progress.
Speaker 1:
Number five Cut down on your consumption time.
Speaker 1:
I know we need inspiration. I get it. We do need to fill ourselves up to create, but sometimes we consume a little too much. It's so easy to spend hours a week binge watching a Netflix show or scrolling on social media, but if you're an actor, watching every single new show that comes out isn't going to make you a better actor or script writer. Actually sitting down and writing a script or going out and producing your own project will Actually preparing for auditions and getting roles will Consumption is such a passive pursuit.
Speaker 1:
Reduce the consumption time so you have more time to actually create. So what do you think you currently schedule time to be creative? How has it made a difference in your life? I'd love to hear about any tips you have on making time to be creative. You know where to reach me and if you've enjoyed the podcast so far, be sure to leave a review on Apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. I appreciate your support so much, and that's all for this episode of Creative Space. My name is Jennifer Loge and thank you for tuning in Until next time.
