Get Unblocked

If You Feel Inclined to Tweet… I am: @denisejacobs We’re at: @MindTheBridge And I’m talking about ways to #getunblocked

How did I become a Creativity Evangelist?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/b4b2/3954106061/

After writing this…

I had an epiphany

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In terms of

http://www.flickr.com/photos/designandtechnologydepartment/4771136128/

We ALL hold the power

http://www.flickr.com/photos/assbach/267598910/

Creativity is highly valued

http://business.time.com/2013/04/26/the-time-creativity-poll/

I’ve decided it’s my life work

Photo: Derek Kearney

Intro Blocked?

What’s our most important tool for creating?

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http://www.flickr.com/photos/plindberg/33867829/

No, not these…

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3APSM_V14_D495_Side_view_of_the_brain_and_spinal_cord.jpg

This one!

Instead of accessing all of your great ideas

http://www.flickr.com/photos/anieto2k/8156999698/

And feeling like this

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7730492@N03/4958540694/

You run into road blocks

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When you need them the least

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And you run completely

http://royhoes.deviantart.com/art/Out-of-Inspiration-85588391

However, creativity is a source of true power

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“Creativity is newness produced.”

- Sir Ken Robinson, Out of Our Minds

http://www.flickr.com/photos/myfear/289257055/

When we are in the creative flow

We are alchemists

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Faust_image_19thcentury.jpg

It feels like

http://www.flickr.com/photos/torley/2761300969/

“Creativity is magical, but it is not magic.”

- Dr. Charles Limb,

Your Brain on Improvisation TED talk

We’re innately powerful creators

http://www.flickr.com/photos/89927155@N00/2144275209/

Instead of using it fully

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We fear it

Photo: Denise Jacobs

And give our power away

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/6D-O5ECr5EUow5jrck2A2A

Building Blocks

Prologue How it starts

http://www.flickr.com/photos/barretthall/3036598475/ &http://www.flickr.com/photos/carbonnyc/3135103537/

It starts early

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lorenjavier/7324305636/

Share 4 stories from my own life

Age 6

Dad

Photo: Deloria Jacobs

Photos: Deloria Jacobs

Mom & sister

Me? More of a graphic artist

Photo: Deloria Jacobs

Age 10

Photo: Deloria Jacobs

Oldest friend in the world

Age 24

Happy graduation! Now what?

Photo: Deloria Jacobs

Maybe be a writer?

First airplane ride!

Internalized the critical voices

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeapalooza/553545517/

Caused me to binge-create

But never felt deserving

Always a bit in the closet

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kenzzz_14/7031233649/

Prologue, part 2 What it creates

These lies that we tell ourselves

Leave parts of us paralyzed and imprisoned

http://www.flickr.com/photos/b3ni/2990601183/

Adds up

= Blocks

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mr_g_travels/860951845/

Instead of creativity

Destructivity

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kevygee/3265941065/

Getting Unblocked

Nudge your comfort zone

“Creative minds have always been known to survive any kind of bad training.”

- Anna Freud

1 Recognize & Banish

Busyness

http://www.flickr.com/photos/wester/504925076/

Monsters in your head

http://www.flickr.com/photos/epsos/4887528060/

“If your demons are such that they fill the room the instant you contemplate creating, your studio will be too dangerous a place to enter.”

- Eric Maisel, author of Fearless

Creating

What’s really going on is we’re

http://www.43folders.com/2011/03/28/scared-shitless

Physical evidence of fear

http://www.flickr.com/photos/grumpyfeline/4626401443/

Recognize the many forms of your Inner Critic

Impostor Syndrome

Impostor Syndrome Paradox

http://www.flickr.com/photos/x1brett/2279939232/

Comparisons

http://www.flickr.com/photos/automania/126698126/

Perfectionism

http://www.flickr.com/photos/diepuppenstubensammlerin/7648792510/

Procrastination

http://www.flickr.com/photos/irrezolut/2311904560/

Fear of failure

http://www.flickr.com/photos/laughingsquid/2717325940/

“The goal is to manage anxiety so that our energies are used for the productive and satisfying art of creating, rather than the destructive and debilitating art of self-torture.”

- Clare Warmke, Idea Revolution

“False Evidence Appearing Real”

or, alternatively,

“F*ck Everything And Run!”

F.E.A.R. =

Become a Fear Alchemist

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Joseph_Wright_of_Derby_The_Alchemist.jpg

Thoughts on fear

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZIt20emgLY

“Fear is not real. It is a product of the thoughts you create. Do not misunderstand me. Danger is very real. But fear is a choice.”

- character of Cypher Raige (played

by Will Smith), After Earth

Banish the Inner Critic

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Empathize

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Comparisons aren’t real

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Maintain perspective

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Reframe #fail

http://www.flickr.com/photos/laughingsquid/2717326642/

“Failure is only the opportunity to begin again more intelligently.”

- Henry Ford

Nothing is a mistake

Photo: Denise Jacobs

“I am best at what I can’t do. It has become my ability to feel strong and confident….I feel free to move, to listen to my heart, to learn, to act even if that means I will make mistakes.

If you want a creative life, do what you can’t

and experience the beauty of the mistakes that you make.”

- Marcel Wanders, Designer and “Professional

Amateur” (marcelwanders.com)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/thirteenthnile/4546397775/

Change your body language, change your mind

“Our bodies change our minds, our minds change our behavior, and our behavior changes our outcomes.”

- Amy Cuddy,

Your Body Language Shapes Who You Are TED talk

Fake it until you become it

Stand up. Assume a pose that embodies a sense of defeat, can’t do it, it will never work, “I suck/I’m no good/an impostor”, etc. Make yourself as small and powerless feeling as possible.

Then, strike a power pose. Imagine yourself as a

superhero looking off into the distance seeing your destiny of major creative butt-kicking.

Alternate several times. Hold the power pose for as

long as you can so that you can feel the change.

Exercise: Power Pose

2 Adjust & Replace

Train Your Brain

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tiarescott/3211540197/

Let’s take a closer look

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Left v. Right brain?

http://browse.deviantart.com/?q=left%20brain%20right%20brain&order=9&offset=48#/d10qlpq

Left hemisphere

http://www.flickr.com/photos/smittenkittenoriginals/4451172538/

Right hemisphere

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lorelei-ranveig/2294885580/

A balanced brain

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What are our brains constantly producing?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/cblue98/7254347346/

Know your Brainwaves

Alpha: the gateway to Creativity

“The parts of your brain that are responsible for self-monitoring are literally turned off during creative endeavors….Creative people have mastered the art of turning off [the inhibitive] part of their brains to let their ideas flow more smoothly, unleashing their imagination.”

- Tina Seelig, InGenius

Close your eyes and relax. Breathe through your nose.

Now place your tongue at the roof of your mouth,

turn your eyes towards the ceiling underneath your eyelids.

Take several deep, long breaths. As you relax, you are changing your brainwaves from

Beta to Alpha.

Exercise: Enter Alpha

6 Easy ways access to Alpha

http://uniteunderfreedom.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Brain-waves.jpg

(1) Breathe to refocus

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(2) Lay prone

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(3) Daydream

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(4) Takes a shower

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(5) Get physical

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“When your brain is supposedly doing nothing, it’s really doing a tremendous amount.”

– Marcus Raichle, Neurologist

Exercise Discipline

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Manage habits

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Clean-up habit fields

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Habit what?

http://alistapart.com/article/habit-fields

Clean up your work habit field by following the suggestions in the article “Habit Fields” by Jack Cheng. Create your equivalent of a “distraction chair” and move to it when you feel like you are inclined to surf the web, email, Tweet, Facebook, or engage in any other computer-related distraction. When you are ready to work again, come back to your desk.

Rinse and repeat until your work habit field is clear

again and no longer fuzzy.

Practice: Habit field reboot

Manage time

http://www.flickr.com/photos/paolocampioni/2168286027/

To do more of what you love and less of what you dislike, start writing To Don’t Lists (aka “Stop Doing” Lists).

  Pick a partner, and write a list of 3-5 items that you commit to

stop doing within the next 30 days. Date the list. Share the list with your partner and get ideas on how to eliminate these items from your life either by stopping them or delegating/outsourcing the tasks.

  Review your list in 30 days to see what you need to continue

to stop doing so that your time is spent on what you value and want to cultivate. Create another list for the upcoming 30 days.

Practice: To Don’t List

Say NO to Distractions

http://www.flickr.com/photos/gideon/6582069/

RescueTime.com

GetConcentrating.com

Firefox extension: LeechBlock: http://www.proginosko.com/leechblock.html

Firefox extension: Idderall: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-us/firefox/addon/idderall/

Google Chrome extension: Strict Workflow: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/strict-workflow/

Google Chrome extension: StayFocusd: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/

stayfocusd/

Further Resources

Single-task

http://www.flickr.com/photos/33498942@N04/6009639079/

Pomodoro Technique

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lucamascaro/4975166968/

Airplane mode

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pieterouwerkerk/699475144/

Practice the Pomodoro technique. Do a 30 minute sprint where you turn off all distractions and work for 25 minutes.

Before you start your sprint, write down the objective of the

sprint. Do the sprint, and at the end of it, take a moment to jot down any challenges encountered, and your end results from the sprint.

For your 5 minute break, activate your Alpha brainwaves by

either laying down on the floor with your eyes closed, or look at clouds shifting in the sky.

Practice: Pomodoro 2.0

3 Invite & Allow

“Sometimes dabbling in mysticism can be a fun way to understand and solve a problem.”

- Carl King, So You’re a Creative

Genius, Now What?

A little help from (imaginary) friends

Your subconscious

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Themuse.jpg

The spirit of the idea

Ideas use us (not vise-versa)

Instead of treating an idea as something that comes from inside of your head, treat it as an external entity that has chosen you to bring it into the world.

Take some time to converse with the idea as an

entity with its own goals and objectives and vision for itself, and find out how you can help the entity get itself into the world the way it wants to be.

Practice: Converse with the Spirit of the Idea

Listen

http://www.flickr.com/photos/theory/3193684688/

Converse

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tojosan/181249465/

Embrace disruption

Photo: Denise Jacobs

Capture ideas

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rosengrant/3637839874/

Write them down

http://www.flickr.com/photos/caitlinator/2826079915/

Sketch them out

http://www.flickr.com/photos/eoze04/4890376021/

Talk them out (& record it)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jamescridland/3641402489/

Gather and curate your ideas

http://www.flickr.com/photos/gmanviz/3181410714/

Evernote Pinterest.com Delicious.com Flickr.com Zootool.com Gimmebar.com Diigo

Dropr.com Tumblr Scrnshots.com Vi.sualize.us Emberapp.com Trello.com Asana.com

Tools to do so

4 Connect & Flow

Do it with others

http://www.flickr.com/photos/u-suke/5668302030/

Mo’ people, mo’ ideas

http://www.flickr.com/photos/seretuaccidente/147686396/

Avoid sameness

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Immerse yourself in diverse environments

http://www.flickr.com/photos/shirinwiniger/3680885289/

Don’t keep them to yourself

http://www.flickr.com/photos/anieto2k/8127201319/

Share ideas

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nanpalmero/4278466639/

Share mistakes

http://www.flickr.com/photos/neilt/26322670/

Be the locus where ideas can mix & mingle

http://www.flickr.com/photos/opensourceway/7496803638/

Expands, does not contract

http://www.flickr.com/photos/opensourceway/5752191246/

Amplify the ideas of others

http://www.flickr.com/photos/roland/54381130/

Improv

http://www.flickr.com/photos/roel1943/5740295789/

Plus it

http://www.flickr.com/photos/66568868@N00/6032481145/

The structure

Make your partner look good

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The stage is set for Flow

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sgeithner/5290115839/

Flow?

•  Concept in mind: know what you want to achieve and what it looks like

•  Practice in place •  Cleared space •  Time carved out and distractions

eliminated •  Necessary materials on hand

The previous steps lead you here:

Free & Clear

Before

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mr_g_travels/860951845/

After

http://www.flickr.com/photos/visualdoubts/4087935894/

Stepping through them more easily

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(Re)Gain Creative Confidence

http://www.flickr.com/photos/44085287@N05/4055807492/

“…the confidence that, when given a difficult problem, we have a methodology that enables us to come up with a solution that nobody has before.”

- David Kelley of Ideo

…which is

Ideas are on and poppin’!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7730492@N03/4957946157/

Work becomes Play

http://www.flickr.com/photos/opensourceway/5392982007/

Reclaim our power

http://www.flickr.com/photos/anieto2k/8216666102/

Value yourself, ideas, and process

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pocait/2847866615/

Moving forward

http://www.flickr.com/photos/opensourceway/6005503875/

“Creativity makes day to day experiences more vivid, more enjoyable, more rewarding. When we live creatively, boredom is banished and every moment holds the promise of a fresh discovery.”

- Mihali Csikszentmihalyi, Creativity

To strive to

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And continue to

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The End…?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/imuttoo/232100469/

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Always being updated as I find new relevant articles!

“Great Resources” almost daily: @denisejacobs on Twitter

Resources!

My articles for further reading! netmagazine.com/features/ four-secrets-enhancing-creative-productivity alistapart.com/articles/ reigniting-your-creative-spark/ alistapart.com/articles/ banishing-your-inner-critic/

Cover art thanks to Americo Morales

AmericoMorales.com

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denise@denisejacobs.com

Twitter.com/denisejacobs

Facebook.com/denisejacobsdotcom

Slideshare.net/denisejacobs

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Photo used with permission: http://www.flickr.com/photos/aarronwalter/4629078087/

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Thank you

http://www.flickr.com/photos/theredproject/3302110152/