Creativity doesn’t happen in the head but the body. It’s not so much a practice of knowing but feeling. And so if you want to be more creative, get out of your mind and into your being. This can’t happen in email inboxes, slack channels or Zoom meetings. It must happen in our physical environments.

David Ogilvy gardened.

Ernest Hemingway fished.

Virginia Woolf walked.

Ray Bradbury read (mostly poetry).

While I’m certain they each enjoyed these activities, it was through these activities they were able to return to their bodies. Our lives have become so cerebral. We are surrounded by laptops, smartphones and screens. They demand the use of our eyes and finger tips but little else.

When it comes time to call upon our creativity, it scurries away like a scared dog with its tail tucked. Find time each day to abandon your mind and enter into your body. Pay attention to the moments where you catch yourself not thinking. Try to repeat these moments every day.

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