inspire creativity. celebrate diversity. empower artists. give back.

creative mind

The mind of the creative person is a labyrinth of thoughts, ideas, doubts and memories. Here you will find articles to expose the inner-workings of the creative thought process; a 'self-help' section, if you will, for those times you need a boost or a block-buster.

The problem is never how to get new, innovative thoughts into your mind, but how to get old ones out. Every mind is a building filled with archaic furniture. Clean out a corner of your mind and creativity will instantly fill it. - Dee Hock

So You Want To Be a Writer?
by Len Fisher, PhD., for Psychology Today
Ok, don't let the title fool you. Although the advice is written for writers, we believe they are sage words for anyone who is sitting down to create something. Go forth, be inspired.

10 Essential Blogs for Creative Entrepreneurs
by By Mark McGuinness

10 blogs that are essential reading for creative entrepreneurs (i.e. artists and musicians who make a living from their work) – they will fuel your creativity, sharpen your business skills, connect you with others on the same path, and sustain you through the ups and downs of your entrepreneurial journey.

How Music Feeds and Steers Your Imagination
by Amy Fries, The Power of Daydreaming
Using music to boost your imagination and energy levels

Could Michael Jackson Have Created Twitter?
by Scott Barry Kaufmann, Ph.D., Beautiful Minds blog
How general was Michael Jackson's genius?

How Twitter and Facebook Make Us More Productive
by Brendan I. Koerner, WIRED magazine
An argument for the benefits of social networking on creativity and productivity.

Overconfidence and effort: Go boldly where no one has ever gone before
Art Markman, PhD, Ulterior Motives blog

7 Ways to Stretch Time
by Susan K. Perry, PhD., Creating in Flow
You can learn to stretch time and be more creative.

On Being an Artist in a Bad Economy
www.eyeconart.com
Thoughts on Art and Creative Living
an artist in conversation with herself and the world

Conversations on Creativity with Allan Snyder
by Scott Barry Kaufman, Beautiful Minds blog
Allan Snyder on accessing savant-like skills and enhancing creative thinking

Being Nice to Yourself Increases Creativity
by Darya Zabelina for Psychology Today
When you write (draw, play a musical instrument, or brainstorm), are you as accepting of your creations or ideas as you would be of a friend's?

Tempt Luck Your Way
by Tina Seelig, CreativityRulz, Psychology Today
Richard Wiseman, of the University of Hertfordshire in England, has studied luck and found that lucky people share traits that tend to make them luckier than others. And we know as artists - it certainly doesn't hurt to have lady luck on your side.

Born to Perform
by Joshua Gowin
You Illuminated blog for Psyhcology Today

The ability to keep cool depends on how your brain is wired

Creative inspiration – Matt Weiner, Lili Taylor, Carl Jung on using our subconsciousFrom The Holy Grail of the Unconscious, by Sara Corbett, The New York Times September 16, 2009

Never Be Defeated
by Alex Lickerman, M.D., from Happiness in this World, Psychology Today

"No matter how much others may doubt you or you may doubt yourself, never be defeated!"

Why Do We Want To Be Famous?
by Robert Fuller, Ph.D. for Psychology Today

"I hope to persuade you that the seemingly frivolous title question holds a secret with the power to reshape human relations. That a wish for fame belies the existence of a crippling, undiagnosed malady, one rather like malnutrition, except that it's a disease of the self, not the body. Let me explain."

Beat the Creative Block
from NetMag UK

"A blank sheet of paper can incite creative paralysis. So how do you bust out and gain control? Eric Karjaluoto, of strategic interactive agency smashLAB, shares his thoughts."

Recipe for maintaining inspiration: conversations, random people & big ideas
by David Rock - Your Brain At Work
Recipe for a burst of positive dopamine

What Makes Someone Creative
podcast by NPR

Among the topics discussed were: the relationship of mental illness to creativity, how creative people differ from non-creative people, the role of the association cortex and mirror neurons in the brain and creativity in animals.

The light fantastic
by Simon Crompton for The Times

"Neuroscientists say that our brain responses to these modern light sculptures are deep-rooted in our earliest evolution."

Silence, Solitude and Mindfulness in a Driven World
by Robert J. Wicks for Psychology Today

"The benefits are certainly there if we approach such a quiet place, not with a sense of duty, but as a time for returning to our self; it will become a gentle place of reassurance, reassessment, and peace"

Overcoming Creative Blocks
by Brad Bollenbach

"Whether you’re a novelist, musician, software developer, painter, poet, designer, or any other kind of creative, you probably know what it feels like to have “that time of the month”. You cramp up and buckle down for the storm that lies ahead. Your mood shifts and you get more and more frustrated. You feel cranky and critical. You pass the time by taking out your frustration on others. You wonder if you’re ever going to “get any” again. Good ideas, that is."

Unlocking the Mysteries of The Artistic Mind
By Jonah Lehrer for Psychology Today

"It might seem bizarre that science is using art to learn about the mind—looking for hard facts in the most ethereal of places. But great artists turn out to be the world's first neuroscientists."

What Mr. Spock Can Teach Us About Imagination By Michele and Robert Root-Bernstein for Psychology Today "Watching the new Star Trek movie reminds us once again that Mister Spock is a master of the imagination. How's that?! Spock, the premier exemplar of logic and reason, imaginative? Indeed! He is in full control of what may be the most important thinking skill in our creative toolbox. That thinking tool is imaging. Imaging is the ability to recreate sensory impressions and feelings in our minds in the absence of extrinsic or direct physical stimulation from our eyes, ears, nose, tongue, hands or body."

13 Tips For Actually Getting Some Writing Done by Gretchen Rubin Huffington Post Useful tips from the author on getting words on the page. Though the example is writing - a good lesson in just CREATING! Create - get your work out there.

Five Ways to Believe in Yourself: From the Muse, Audacity
by Jill Badonsky Creativity-Portal.com "Being convinced in the merit of our work is an attractive energy that sells and magnetizes attention as much for the product as for the belief itself. Spending time working on confidence, acting “as if” we are worthy, excellent, daring and courageous would be time well spent for the creative person desiring success. "

5 Inspiration Hacks for Creative People by Ben Cook of BloggingExperiment.com, posted on zenhabits.net "The most common problem faced by anyone trying to create something (including bloggers), no matter what their subject or level of experience, is lack of inspiration. Sure, some of us will suffer from it more often than others but there is no avoiding it. Sooner or later you’ll find yourself in a creative desert struggling to write something … anything that doesn’t come across dry and lifeless. For this reason, I’ve compiled this list of 5 Inspiration “Hacks” for bloggers and other creative types to help get you through the dry spell. "

"The truly creative mind in any field is no more than this: A human creature born abnormally, inhumanly sensitive. To him... a touch is a blow, a sound is a noise, a misfortune is a tragedy, a joy is an ecstasy, a friend is a lover, a lover is a god, and failure is death. Add to this cruelly delicate organism the overpowering necessity to create, create, create -- so that without the creating of music or poetry or books or buildings or something of meaning, his very breath is cut off from him. He must create, must pour out creation. By some strange, unknown, inward urgency he is not really alive unless he is creating." — Pearl S. Buck