Creativity Secrets- The Single Tiny Creativity Secret That Will Catapult Your Creativity Into Orbit

A couple of years ago, I was writing maybe 2 or 3 creativity articles a month. And even this small amount didn’t come easy.

I’d spend hours at a blank screen, trying to come up with new ideas for the ezine or article that was due the next day.

Painful.

It wasn’t a very relaxing situation to be in, and of course not very conducive to creating freely and easily.

This last month I’ve written about 35 articles.

So that’s an increase of more than ten times what I was writing before.

The quality of the articles hasn’t changed. In fact many are actually more focused and more effective in communicating what I have to share with you the reader.

So what’s been the difference?

What’s been the key factor that’s enabled me to go from writing 2 or 3 articles a month to 30 plus?

Well, a few things have changed. But the one creativity secret that’s made more difference than anything else is simply this:

I created a text file on my computer called “ArticleIdeas”.

I made it as simple as possible, just wrote “Article Ideas” at the top and then down the left margin typed a few dozen “*” symbols, one each to represent the start of a new idea.

I keep this file open at all times in the background. While I’m surfing the internet, or reading other articles, chatting on forums, or answering emails from my clients, any seed of an idea I have I immediately type in my ArticleIdeas page.

Why is this simple idea so powerful?

There are a number of reasons why this easy to set up file can send your creativity into orbit:

1. You don’t forget the ideas you have. How many fantastic ideas in the past have slipped away from you because you didn’t capture them?

2. You give your creative mind a clear green light. You’re sending the signal to your creativity: “Bring on all the ideas you can produce, there’s a place here for them where they’ll be looked after and appreciated”.

3. Having space for more ideas sets your creative mind a challenge. Remember the list of “*” symbols down the left margin, each ready to receive a new idea? This works so much more powerfully than a completely blank file. It says to your creativity: “Here’s the start of an idea already, you’ve just got to add a little more detail.”

4. The ideas breed like rabbits. There’s something about having all your ideas together that makes them feed off each other. Each time you write one down, inevitably another 2 or 3 connected ideas will appear. Write them down too!

5. When you have ideas, you’re motivated to use them. If you have no ideas it’s intimidating to get started from absolutely nothing. If you already have a stack of ideas ready, just grab the first one that appeals and you’re off and creating!

These are 5 of the reasons why this simple technique will help you have more creative ideas, and catapult your creativity into orbit.

Set up your own “Ideas File" today – either on your computer, or in a notebook and sketchbook – and watch how dramatically it helps you increase your creativity.

Want to learn more about how to increase YOUR creativity and have more creative ideas?

Get your FREE copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical "Explode Your Creativity!" Action Workbook when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!”. Visit the website now: www.CoachCreative.com

Creativity And The Truth- Are You Having A Love Affair With An Imaginary Mistress?

Creativity is for life, not just for a mistress. Is that true for you?

Many of us tell ourselves we live a life of great creativity, and are actively creative each and every day. But how honest are we being? Who are we trying to impress?

Think about your creative life for a moment. Which of these two descriptions best describes your relationship with your creativity:

1. The Mistress: My creativity is alluring, exotic and exciting. All the time we spend together is completely thrilling. We run wild together, discover new landscapes, stay up until the dawn, laugh and play and dance until we both fall exhausted and sleep in each other’s arms.

There are never any problems, we never slow down, everything flows perfectly. Me and my creativity are beautiful and flawless and perfect.

2. The Life Long Partner: My creativity and me understand each other. We know our strengths, we trust each other. We’ve achieved many incredible things together by listening to each other’s needs and being open, honest and adaptable. We know how to support each other through the difficult times.

We face each new challenge together, knowing the we’ve come through everything that’s been thrown at us so far, and we can come through this and thrive again.

If you answered that number 1, The Mistress, was how your relationship with your creativity is, then congratulations, it sounds wonderful.

But how honest are you being?

Everyone has creative highs and lows, peaks and troughs. We all have moments of excitement and elation. We all sometimes feel stuck, defeated, dejected, like we’ll never create again.

It’s all part of the cycle, all part of being creative.

There’s no harm in striving for the kind of highs we might have in a new love affair. But be honest with yourself. Stay in reality.

Do you want a short term, idealistic affair with your creativity that’s all over at the first sign of any problems?

Or a strong, long term supportive relationship, built to survive any struggles you have?

If you want to be creative for the rest of your life, then prepare for that. Put the strongest possible foundations in place. Communicate with yourself, learn what works and what doesn’t. There will be struggles, but don’t ever give up, you’ve come through difficult periods before and you will do again.

You and your creativity are together for life.

Accept that, make the most of it, don’t expect it all to be perfect sunshine, and you’ll be all the stronger for it.

Want to learn more about how to increase YOUR creativity? Get your FREE copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical "Explode Your Creativity!" Action Workbook when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!”. Visit the website now: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing and Procrastination - Why You're Reading This Article Right Now Instead Of Writing

How did you come to read this article? It probably went something like this: there you were, with some time to spare, wondering if you should start writing something new, or maybe continue writing something you’ve already started.

“I’ll just check my email first though”, you probably said to yourself.

Ten minutes later, email checked, time to write. Right? Wrong.

“Maybe while I’m online iIll just have a quick browse on the internet for some writing tips, or a writing exercise I could do. That’ll motivate me to get writing…”

So, sometime later you came across this article you’re reading right now. And you still haven’t started writing.

Sounding familiar?

And I bet this isn’t the first time you’ve followed this pattern of behaving?

But this meandering trail of action never actually gets you closer to writing. So why does it happen?

The thinking behind it goes something like:

“I can’t write yet because iIm not good enough and the conditions aren’t quite right. There’s all this other stuff that needs attending to first. Then, if I get all that out of the way, I have time to find out a little bit more about how to write. Then when I’ve learnt enough and have enough information, I’ll be in the perfect position to start writing again.”

Ouch. There’s the “p” word that’s at the crux of it all. Perfection.

When’s the perfect time to write? Right now. You’ll never know all there is about writing.

Yes there are books you can read and courses you can take to help you write, and i’d encourage you to try them. But while you continue to write your own stuff, not instead of writing your own stuff.

Don’t worry, you’re not alone in this way of thinking and this cycle of behaviour. Far from it.

Everyone experiences this - the other dreaded “p” word of procrastination - some time or other.

The only solution to overcome it? Write. Just sit down, set a timer for 15 minutes and write non-stop until the timer rings.

Then do the same thing tomorrow at the same time. And the day after, and the day after that. It doesn’t matter how you write, where you write or what you write. But just write. It’s the only cure...

Kick start your creative writing right away - get your free 5 part creative writing ecourse at now at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com (But not until you’ve done your 15 minutes of writing!)

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative And Feeling Alone? What To Do When Your Friends Don't Support Your Creative Life

Everyone is potentially creative in some way.

It's a core part of being human, an essential need that we all have, to express our individuality.

Maybe this is through one of the classically recognised creative disciplines like writing, painting or songwriting. Or maybe it’s through something less obvious, but no less creative, like cooking, or gardening, or party planning.

Many of us are fortunate enough to have found some of the ways we can be creative.

Many others maybe know how they can create, but for whatever reason don’t feel able to create right now. Others still maybe haven’t yet found the best ways for their creativity to shine.

When we're not as creative as we'd like to be, being exposed to people who are "actively creative" – those who create regularly and openly - tends to provoke one of two reactions:

Reaction 1: We feel inspired by the person creating and this increases our own creativity, spurs us on and motivates us to explore more about what we can create.

Or

Reaction 2: We feel envious, intimidated and threatened, and feel we can never create like that, or be as good, so why should we bother trying. This of course stifles our creativity further.

The aim is to become more like the first of these, and find other creative people who are also like this to support us and join us in our creative journey.

Another factor is that even our closest friends don't necessarily evolve and grow at the same rate we do.

When someone finds a new outlet for creating or a new interest, it can make their friends feel left out, left behind or overlooked.

It can also make them look closely at their own lives and wonder why, although all seems well on the surface, they still feel there's something missing.

The most important and valuable friends are there for the long haul and will support you in becoming the best person you can be, as a creative as you can be.

If there are people around you right now like this, value them dearly.

Tell them as soon as you can how important they are to you, and how much their presence and support helps you be who you are.

And for those who aren’t supportive of your creativity? Maybe it’s time to give them a little distance.

Those that aren’t genuine friends with your interest at heart will soon fall along the wayside. When they do, and when you start to look around in a few of the right places, new supportive people will be there to leap in to fill the holes...

And with that in mind, I'd like to invite you to check out CoachCreativeSpace, a thriving interactive creative community space for you to learn and share more about creating and how to be as creative as you've always known you can be.

You'll find Forums, Groups and a blog you can all share in and contribute to, and like minded creative people who are experiencing some of the same challenges and triumphs you are.

http://www.CoachCreativeSpace.com, from Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin

Unleash Your Creativity - If I Don't Use It Am I Going To Lose It?

There’s a belief held by many that we have all been given a unique set of creative talents and abilities, and it’s our purpose and our quest in life to uncover these talents and put them to best use.

A step beyond this, there’s a further idea held that in fact if you don’t pursue this journey of discovering and using your talents, worse than them just lying there dormant, they may actually start to diminish and decay.

While it’s never too late to rekindle the smouldering embers of your creativity, to a certain extent this idea of “if you don’t use them, you’re gonna lose them” actually has a lot of truth in it.

Your creativity is like a muscle.

And like the rest of your muscles, you can use focused exercise to build and tone them so they’re stronger, more flexible, more lean, efficient and powerful.

This doesn’t happen overnight of course, it takes time and regular “workouts” and exercise.

But that’s OK, because creativity isn’t a whim or a fad, or the latest craze. You create because it’s a core part of your personality and genetic make up. Creating what you create, in the way you create it, is what makes you uniquely you.

Every single thing you create is another tiny piece in the puzzle, another step on the long and winding road to revealing - and living as - the true creative you.

When you become the naturally creative person you can be, everything flows more easily. You start to use your creativity in everything you do, creativity becomes an outlook, an attitude, a way of being and breathing.

Creativity becomes your daily uniform, your second skin, not just an posh outfit you put on for special occasions once or twice a year.

So maybe if you don’t use it you WILL lose it.

But what certainly IS true is the MORE you use your creativity, the stronger, more flexible and more effective it becomes, then the easier it is to create, and the happier you’ll be.

What single step can you take today, before you go to sleep tonight, to show to yourself that you’re ready to adopt this life of creativity?

What can you do to demonstrate you’re committed to putting on that creativity uniform today and wearing it for every day for the rest of your life?

Once you've chosen, take the next step, and put it into action.

Learn how to unleash your creativity today... Get your FREE copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical “Explode Your Creativity!” when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!”. Visit the website now: www.CoachCreative.com

Be More Creative: Learning The Pursuit Of Progression Not Perfection Will Transform Your Creativity

As a Creativity Coach, time and time again I hear of creative people who create wonderful, stimulating, interesting works and pieces of art, but are so personally disappointed by the results, they virtually give up creating afterwards.

It becomes, in their eyes, their flawed legacy, their ugly and imperfect offering to the world that can never be repeated.

However well their creative project was received by the outside world, the creator still feels they could’ve done better, could’ve given more, and so they feel that they’ve failed.

“If only that penultimate line had more emotional resonance”, says the poet.

“If only I’d have used a slighter darker shade of red”, bemoans the painter.

“If only I’d increased the shutter speed after the first few shots”, complains the photographer.

Travelling on the “If only” train is a one way ticket to disappointment, frustration and ultimately becoming less brave, experimental and creative.

Constantly trying to be perfect nearly always ends in a feeling of abject failure.

So what if we change our outlook and expectation a little?

What if instead of an obsessive pursuit of perfection – a perfection we usually can’t even describe or imagine anyway - we instead pursue progression?

What this means is that with each new project, with each fresh piece of creative work we produce, our aim is to progress our creativity.

So instead of expecting our next novel to be the most incredible piece of writing we (and anyone else in the history of human literature!) can possibly produce, we just want it to be better than the last.

We want some feeling of accomplishment. A feeling that we’ve moved on a little, developed as an artist, that we’re wiser in our choices, deeper in our knowledge and experience, more effective in the creative expression of ourselves.

This doesn’t mean we’re selling ourselves short, underachieving or letting ourselves down.

It means we realise that creativity is a way of life and a ongoing journey. We realise that however talented we are, we can’t go from nowhere to creating flawless masterpieces in a few weeks.

Creative evolution is a lifetime’s work. And it’s something to be enjoyed and experienced as richly, passionately and fully as possible.

So, which road are you going to choose?

The road of the pursuit of perfection, where you’ll probably soon end up in the ditch with a blown engine after pushing yourself too hard, too fast?

Or the road of the pursuit of progression, steadily travelling onwards and upwards, taking care of yourself along the way and being fully open to enjoying everything around you?

The pursuit of progression can be summed in a simple mantra.

“I will offer the best creative expression of myself I can at this time.”

Once you give yourself that permission, to give the best you can right now, instead of feeling restricted because you’re constantly in fear of failing to reach absolute perfection, you’re free to reach much further.

Then learn from each experience, take that forward to the next and reach again, this time further still.

Want to learn more about how to increase YOUR creativity? It’s easy: just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing- Can You Learn Creative Writing Or Is It Only For The Naturally Gifted?

Do you sometimes doubt your creative writing ability because you feel you haven’t gained major success or acknowledgment for your writing?

Very few writers are actually in a position where they have widespread recognition and acclaim for their work, and earn a good income purely from writing.

For every other writer, not having this same recognition or financial earnings can lead to us feeling a little envious at best, and at worst feeling our writing is totally inadequate and worthless.

This develops into other feelings of doubt and insecurity, and much questioning about whether we even have the talent to be a writer at all.

The first point to remember is the proportion of writers who do “make it big”, is absolutely tiny. It doesn’t mean you can’t join them.

The point is, not being commercially successful doesn’t mean you're not talented.

The two aren’t closely linked, as there are so many other factors involved in whether a writer becomes widely known, that don’t necessarily relate to their talent or the quality of their work.

So don’t automatically despair and feel you have no talent!

The second crucial point is that whatever your current level of creative writing, and whatever experience you’ve had up until now, there’s always more to learn.

There are a multitude of courses and programmes to go on and books and guides to read about being a better creative writer. Many are incredibly valuable.

The bottom line is, ultimately, the only way to become a better writer is to write more.

The only way to squeeze out every last drop of your creative writing potential is to experiment with your writing, write as much as you can, write as widely as you can and write as deeply as you can.

There are no short cuts, no quick fixes. Developing a creative writing style and voice doesn’t happen in a few hundred words. It takes hundreds of thousands.

But this is a GREAT thing.

It means you have hours of writing ahead of you that will be all about experimenting, playing around with different styles and techniques, and enjoying the whole experience of developing your creative writing.

So where, and more importantly WHEN, are you going to start?

Want to find out how more about how to unlock your creative writing potential? Get your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Confidence- 5 Powerful Ways To Kick Start Your Confidence As A Creative Writer

How confident are you in your creative writing right now, on a scale of 0 to 10?

If 0 is “I can barely write a word without analysing and criticising it” and 10 is “I can’t stop writing, my confidence is overflowing and has never been higher”, where would you say your confidence in your writing is about now?

If you answered 8 or 9 or 10, then that’s fantastic. Whatever you’ve been doing to get your creative writing confidence to this high level, keep up it up, it’s obviously working well for you.

If your confidence is only 5 or 6 out of 10, or less, then keep reading for 5 powerful ways to kick start your confidence as a writer:

1. Start a small creative writing project – and finish it. Often what drains our confidence is starting ambitious writing project after project, and never getting far with any of them.

Instead, pick something small, something you can begin and end in an hour or two, and feel that satisfaction of seeing a project through every stage.

2. Remember what you're capable of. We all have creative writing we’ve done in the past that we’re proud of, however well or otherwise our current work is progressing.

Compile a “Greatest Hits” collection of the 5 pieces of writing you’ve been most proud of in your life so far.

3. Pick 20 creative strengths. The fact that you’re a writer at all takes a lot of courage, creativity and commitment. So there’s 3 great strengths you have: courage, creativity, commitment.

List another 17 (or more!) creative strengths you have. If a stranger were to ask your best friends and family what your strengths are, which 20 would THEY list?

4. Keep a Significant Steps journal. Get a notebook and write in it each time you make a step forward in some way with something you’re writing.

It’s easy to forget how far we can come, how we develop as writers, and how much we write, so keeping a journal of our progress can be very valuable in reminding us.

5. Write just for the pleasure of writing. It’s easy to get sucked into large writing projects and get lost, forgetting that writing is supposed to be enjoyable for us!

Write something without attaching an outcome to it, or expecting to have an amazing “product” at the end of it. Write just to enjoy writing.

These are 5 great ways to kick start YOUR creative writing confidence today.

Which one are you going to pick to work on first?

Discover more about how to unlock your creative writing potential and boost your confidence: Sign up for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse now at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing- When To Focus, When To Write Wildly With Your Creative Writing

Focus is an issue that many writers struggle with.

Having ideas is not a problem, they flow easily and rapidly, presenting themselves in all kind of forms, in unexpected places and at unpredictable times.

But choosing an idea and taking it to the next level, giving it the space and attention it needs to develop into something more, can often be a major sticking point.

On this endless conveyor belt of ideas, where every time you choose one, another 3 or 4 take its place, how do you choose on and focus your creativity energy and talents just in that one direction?

The simple, but not obvious, answer is: you don’t always have to choose just one.

Different creative projects serve different creative needs. If you’re working on a 100000 word novel for example, then much of your creative writing energy and time will be focused on this major writing project.

But it doesn’t mean you CAN’T write anything else until your novel is finished.

Often, the best cure for getting stuck or feeling like you’re starting to tread water a little on a big creative project is to take a break from it. Try writing something else, something very different. And make this temporary new project as fun and low demand as possible.

Writing itself is not difficult. What makes it difficult is the feelings and significance we attach to it.

For example, many of us find it difficult to write just for the joy of writing, experimenting and playing with our creativity. We always need some end “product” to show for the time and creative energy we invest.

Sometimes yes, focus and commitment are necessary and important to reach where we want to reach with our creative writing ambitions, whatever they may be.

But other times, if you’re struggling to write even a few sentences in your novel, let alone the final ten chapters, perhaps exactly what you need is a break and some time to play.

When you write creatively for the pleasure and experience of it, without any great attachment to the end outcome, you’ll start to rekindle your love for writing.

Then when you do return to your novel, today, tomorrow or next week, you’ll feel freshly inspired and fired up again.

So the next time you feel you’re getting weighed down in a particular writing project, don’t keep blindly slogging your way through, laden with guilt for finding it so difficult.

Give yourself a break – literally – and use a different kind of writing, or even a different creative medium altogether to rediscover your love of creating and writing...

Sometimes, blinkered focus IS just what you need.

But stay aware enough – and kind enough to yourself – to know when a change of creative writing will actually give you just the fresh motivation you’ve been struggling to find.

Find out how more about how to unlock your creative writing potential by signing up for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing- Why It's Not A Sin To Admit You're Scared To Write

Do you write as much as you could be writing in your life right now?

Can you say you’re happy with the standard and the volume of your creating writing?

Didn’t think so... So that being the case, there must be something holding you back. There must be a factor, or number of factors, that’s preventing you from writing more often, more deeply, more truthfully, more rewardingly.

What is it that’s stopping you?

Whatever you think it is, it can be narrowed down to one simple thing: fear.

Whether it’s fear of failing, fear of being disappointed in how your writing might turn out, fear of not having your work accepted to be published, fear of becoming successful and given a multiple book deal, or any other type of fear. It’s fear, one and the same.

What compounds this fear, what makes it even more difficult to bear is that you feel you SHOULDN’T be scared.

You feel it’s foolish to be afraid of writing, after it’s just putting words on a page isn’t it?

The first step to starting to overcome some of these fears is to accept it’s ok to be feeling this way.

All writers get scared. Many writers spend more of their lives being scared than not scared.

Writing, to the writer, is everything. By your writing you stand or fall, succeed or fail, become loved or despised.

If you don’t write, it’s even worse.

The secret is not to try to eliminate this many headed beast of fear that lurks over every word you create.

The secret is to know it’s ok that it’s there. And maybe it’ll always be there in some form or other, giving you that twisted knot in your stomach and that trace of sweat on your brow.

But you can still create despite the fear. You can create through the fear. You create over it, under it, around, whichever way it takes.

Because deep down you know it’s more important for you to write than to not be afraid.

Take comfort that every writer feels the same kind of fears at some point or other. But despite these feelings – as many thousands of writers have done before you, and many thousands will after you – you can be afraid and still write the most wonderful words.

So start writing them today. Laugh at the fear, summon up that deep courage that dwells within you and throw the greatest words you have right down there on the page.

Get your creative writing kick started again right now with the FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Ideas- The No.1 Mistake That Stops You Having All The Creative Ideas You Ever Need

A common issue for creative writers is a lack of ideas.

We complain we either can’t come up with enough new ideas, or the ones we do come up with don’t fit the current writing project we’re working on.

How often have you thought to yourself “If only I could come up with more great ideas, my writing would reach new heights...” ?

Well, there’s one huge mistake we’re all guilty of making when it comes to having creative ideas.

You see we don’t actually need to HAVE more ideas.

All of us are capable of having all the wonderful ideas we’ll ever need.

We need to CAPTURE more ideas.

Over your lifetime, how many great creative ideas for writing have you had, and then gone on to expand them into something creative, of substance and passion?

How many other ideas have you had, thought “I’ll remember that idea and use it later”, then completely forgotten it moments afterwards?

And how many MORE ideas have you had that you’ve forgotten you even had?!

So what can we do, what’s the solution to this No.1 mistake?

The secret is in the capturing of the ideas in their embryonic form. Imagine ideas are like seeds on the wind. You might see one of these seeds float by you on the breeze and admire its tiny form. If that’s ALL you do though, that little seed’s going to carry on floating by on the wind. You’ll never see it again. You’ll never find out what it could have become.

But what if, instead of just gazing passively, you caught that seed in your hand and put it safely in your pocket?

Then when you got home, you emptied your pockets of all these tiny seeds you’d captured and planted each one in nutrient rich soil, gave it a little water, and popped it in your greenhouse for a bit of sunshine.

When you return to those seeds a few days later, you’re going to see a few green shoots. Sure, some of the seeds won’t sprout. But most will. Keep doing this, keep being a seed catcher, and pretty soon you’re going to have a different problem. You’re going to need a bigger greenhouse!

The point of this story is this:

If you notice your ideas only briefly then let them disappear through your fingers, they’re gone forever.

But if you capture them the moment they occur – a pocket notebook is great for this – and let them gestate a little while, you’ll soon have a healthy crop of growing ideas to use whenever you need them.

This one change – realizing and overcoming this major mistake that so many of us make in having ideas – will mean you’ll always be equipped and ready with more ideas than you’ll ever need for your creative writing.

So start catching those seeds today!

Discover more creative writing ideas right away. Get your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creative Writing Prompts- Superheroes In The Face Of Writer's Block!

How many times have you been plagued by writer’s block?

That horrible creative paralysis that comes when you’re sat at a blank page or computer screen, desperate to write and pour out your creative ideas.

But the words just don’t come. There’s not even a slow drip, let alone the gushing rivers of creative writing you’d hoped for.

This type of creative block, or writer’s block, can strike any creative writer and render them almost helpless.

But there is hope, and there are ways to overcome it.

Using creative writing prompts is a very effective method of combating the evil writer’s block.

Creative writing prompts are in fact like your own special private team of superheroes.

They’re ready and waiting to hit that evil villain known as writer’s block right where it hurts and send it scurrying back to where it come from.

So how do these prompts work?

What they do is provide a short creative phrase, idea or sentence to get your creative juices flowing. Once you’ve had that little push to get you started, your own creativity kicks in and carries you forward.

The most difficult part of creating – especially when your confidence is low – is getting started.

Creative writing prompts step up to the rescue in their beautiful flowing capes and their underpants worn on the outside.

(Ok they don’t ACTUALLY look like that, they’re just a few words written down, but go with the analogy!)

So the next time you’re stuck at a blank screen and feel you’re suffering the effects and onset of writer’s block, get on that superhero hotline and call up a few creative writing prompts to save the day!

Ready to get started with some top creative writing prompts right away? Sign up now for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Prompts- How They Provide The Spark That Sets Your Creative Writing Ablaze

Have you ever used creative writing prompts?

Many writers have concerns about using creative writing prompts because they feel in some way it’s cheating, or taking a short cut.

This is a common misconception, and it’s understandable where it comes from. We want to be original with our writing, find our own unique voice and way of expressing ourselves through our words.

If we use someone else’s words, how can we say we’re being original?

You’re not using the prompt then adding nothing else. You’re making your own major contribution to the finished piece of writing.

Imagine it being like a fire.

You creative talent is the logs in the fireplace, all stacked up and waiting to be lit. If they don’t get lit, there not going to burn. It’s as simple as that.

What you need is that initial spark to get your creative fires crackling away.

And this is where creative writing prompts come in, and can be so effective.

They are the tiny match that provides the initial flame that sets your creative talents ablaze.

Once you’ve got going, it’s far easier to keep the fire alive, by adding fuel in the form of your new ideas and creative talents.

If you tried to build a whole writing project from just creative prompts it wouldn’t work. This would be like trying to make a bonfire out of individual matches. It would burn fiercely for a few seconds then die.

There’s no real fuel of any substance there to keep the flame alive. That’s what you provide and where your stack of creative talent comes in.

Creative writing prompts can help you become a better creative writer.

You’ve just got to be willing to try them out and see for yourself what a fantastic stimulus they can be.

Get started with some top creative writing prompts right away. Sign up now for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Prompts- Can You Afford NOT To Use Them In Your Creative Writing?

Creative writing prompts are short phrases or ideas that we can use as a starting point for our creative writing.

They provide that initial spark we sometimes find so difficult to find.

Most writers, if asked what the hardest part of writing is, would say “getting started”.

How often have you yourself gone to write and sat staring at a blank page or computer screen, feeling like your creativity has gone into a sudden deep hibernation, possibly never to return?

You wonder where the next sentence is going to come from, let alone the next article, short story or novel!

This is a great time to use creative writing prompts.

Having a ready supply of prompts close to hand means you never need go through that horrible painful blank screen paralysis again.

One of the beautiful things about using creative writing prompts is as well as the benefit of using them then and there each time, they also steadily TRAIN you to be more creative without them.

For example if you use a prompt every week, at the end of 3 months, you’ll have experienced about a dozen different ones. Even in this short period of time, you’ll already be starting to see which type of prompts work best for you and your creative writing.

Soon, each time you start to feel a little stuck in your writing, instead of instantly reaching for a brand new prompt, you’ll begin to automatically form one of your own in your mind.

You might remember how that prompt about putting yourself in the place of a wild animal was particularly helpful. Or you might recall how that prompt about minimalist writing enabled you get focused in a crucial part of your last project, just when you were starting to flounder.

The more you use creative writing prompts, the more you’ll get used to using them, and the easier it will be to write WITHOUT them.

In a fairly short space of time, they actually manage to sell themselves out of a job!

If you haven’t used creative writing prompts, you’re missing out on an excellent and invaluable tool to enhance your creative writing.

You can get started with some top creative writing prompts right away. Sign up now for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Prompts- A Cure For The Dreaded "Blank Screen Paralysis"

Picture the scene. You head off to your creative workspace, head full of great ideas, ready to get writing and create wonderful, rich, three-dimensional characters in believable, realistic scenarios.

You’re keen to write the stories that will touch and inspire people, make them say “that character spoke to me, I’m just like them!”.

You open your notebook, switch on your computer, sit down, and... er, nothing happens, that’s it.

For all your ambition and great intentions, you don’t know where to start. You can’t think what to write. You begin to wonder if you can even string together a couple of sentences, let alone a complete story or novel.

You’re in the grip of the dreaded “Blank Screen Paralysis”.

Also known as creative block, or writer’s block.

But don’t give up, because there’s a way this story can still have a happy ending.

Creative writing prompts are an excellent tool to combat writer’s block.

A creative writing prompt is a small phrase, idea, or picture that can be used to kick start your creative writing. They provide that initial little push we sometimes need to get our creative writing going.

Once we have got going, the momentum easily builds and we can write freely and deeply.

Creative writing prompts can be used as and when you need them, for example when you feel you’re hit with some kind of creative block. But the great thing is, by using creative writing prompts regularly, you actually begin to create more easily without them.

Using them often means your mind begins to learn new ways of approaching your writing and finding starting points when it feels there aren’t any. In a short space of time of using creative writing prompts written by others, you quickly begin to automatically come up with your own.

If you haven’t used creative writing prompts before, try them out today and realise what a wonderful tool they can be to enhance your creative writing.

You can get started with creative writing prompts right away. Just sign up for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Prompts - How To Inject New Life At ALL Stages Of Your Creative Writing Projects

Creative writing prompts are short phrases, ideas or techniques you can use to give your creative writing a boost when you’re finding it difficult to find inspiration.

There are 3 main stages of a writing project that creative writing prompts can be used for:

1. To start a brand new project. Most of the time creative writing prompts are used as a starting point for a brand new writing project.

This way they can be a very stimulating and exciting tool, because you have no preconceptions about what you want to write. You start with the prompt, jump on board and write, and see where the words take you.

2. To expand an outline for a project. Maybe you already have an outline for a story but are struggling to get words down on the page? Use a prompt to get your creativity off and running.

With your outline for your story in the back of mind, this will subconsciously influence what you write as a result of the prompt anyway. So it’s likely that some point soon after you start writing, your words and ideas will coincide with those you have already in your outline.

3. To resume an existing project. You can use also use a creative writing prompt to help you resume an old project that you got a little stuck with and put away to continue at a later date.

Again, you could start writing from the prompt, then as thoughts and ideas from your other project will be in your mind anyway, there will be a point where these intertwine with the new parts you’re writing.

You can play around with the parameters and experiment too, it’s up to you.

That’s one of the great benefits of creative writing prompts. You can input as much or as little from other projects into them as you want.

Sometimes you’ll want to have a break from a major project and write freeform using a writing prompt.

Other times you’ll get to a difficult point in a larger project and use a prompt specifically to help you move forward with this project.

These are the 3 main stages of a project that creative writing prompts can be used for.

Try some out yourself and discover what an invaluable tool they can be for your creative writing.

Get started with some great creative writing prompts right away. Sign up for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Fears- I'm Scared I'll Waste Time On The Wrong Creative Writing Project

Feeling scared to write is not a sin.

In fact it’s one of the most common reasons why we, as creative writers, don’t write more, and sometimes don’t write at all.

There are a number of different ways these fears present themselves. One of the most common is the feeling that you might be wasting time by working on the wrong creative writing project.

Here’s what this fear sounds like, and what you can do to start to overcome it:

"I’m scared I might waste my time writing.

The time I spend writing is very precious. What if I spend 3 months writing a book, only to find at the end of it, the ideas I had weren’t as strong as I thought. Plus, the characters that seemed so interesting in my head, came out as one dimensional and uninspiring on the page. I wouldn’t think it was worth continuing with.

What a waste of 3 months writing!"

How to overcome the fear:

The crucial point to remember is -

Time spent writing is never wasted time.

Every single word you write with good creative intentions is valuable because it teaches you more about how you write, why you write and how you can write even better.

Sometimes, ironically, the writing projects that seem a waste of time when you’re stuck in the middle of them, are actually the ones that help you focus on a new clear direction that you might not have come to find otherwise.

So although the end “product” was not as you’d hoped, the experience of writing it will add to your creative writing experience and make you a more experienced, focused and richly creative writer.

This is one of the most common fears we have as creative writers, and can hold us back dramatically when it takes hold.

How has this fear showed itself in your creative writing life?

What steps can you take, starting today, to reduce its impact?

Discover more about creative writing and get your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Fears- I'm Scared Anything I Write Will Be Rejected So Why Bother Writing?

Many creative writers think it’s a sign of weakness to be afraid to write.

After all, it’s only words.

In fact nearly all writers have fears around their creative writing.

These fears can seriously reduce what we write, or stop us writing altogether.

These fears appear in many different ways. One of the most common is fearing your creative writing will be rejected once it’s complete.

Here’s what the fear sounds like in more detail, and how you can begin to overcome it:

"I’m scared my work will be rejected by the first person that reads it.

Even if I do spend valuable spend time and energy on some new creative writing project it would come to nothing because no one would think it was any good.

So what’s the point of putting myself through the pain?"

How to overcome the fear:

The first point to remember is just the act of creative writing, producing words unique to you and your view of the world, is a great success in itself. No-one can take that away from you.

How many people burn with longing inside to create but never quite get to expressing themselves on the page?

After this, ask why you’re writing each project. If it’s for your own personal enjoyment and to develop as a creative writer, it actually doesn’t matter what others think of it.

If you’re writing for more commercial reasons, then commit to learning all you can to make your work as “saleable” to an audience as possible. See each comment you receive as feedback to learn from, and make your next piece even stronger.

As creative writers, this is one of the most common fears there is, and it can block us completely when we let it.

How has this fear presented itself in your creative writing life?

What actions can you begin taking today to lessen its negative effects?

Discover more about creative writing and get your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Fears- I'm Scared That Creative Writing Will Overcome My Whole Life

It’s very common for creative writers to have all sorts of writing fears, so if you do too, you’re not alone!

One of the major reasons we don’t write to our creative potential – and sometimes don’t write at all – is because of some fear or other.

Being scared that writing will take over your life is among the most common.

Here’s how it presents itself and what you can do to deal with it when it does:

"I’m scared about the possibility I might not be able to stop writing.

What if, once I really find my true creative voice, and get fully in the flow of writing, all I’ll want to do day and night is write?

I’m scared of how this might effect the rest of my life."

How to overcome the fear:

This is an often overlooked area of concern for writers, and seems a genuine fear, until we look a little deeper.

So you’re scared of writing loads and being able to write whenever and wherever you wanted? Wouldn’t that a be a great problem to have!

In fact, how many millions of writers would love to be in that position? Of course it’s important to maintain balance between the most important areas of our lives, such as our careers, relationships, health, finances and so on.

But the bottom line is, if you’re a writer, writing’s what you do! So write!

This creative writing fear can block our writing significantly when we let it take control of us.

How has this type of fear revealed itself in your creative writing life?

What action steps can you take, from today, to minimise its impact?

Discover more about creative writing and get your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Nurturing Your Creative Ideas- Don't Leave Them Standing Cold & Naked In The Rain!

One of the best ways to increase our creativity is to take better care of the ideas we have.

Our creative ideas are the food, water and essential nutrients of our creative lives. Without new ideas, we’re stuck, stood still, lost without direction. Without an idea as a starting point, we can’t be creating.

So it follows, a steady flow of creative ideas is essential to maintain a healthy and constantly evolving and flourishing creative life.

And, the best part is, EVERYONE is capable of having great ideas. Ideas that can surprise us, springing up from nowhere and hit us firmly round the chops with a “I’m-just-so-obvious-why-haven’t-you-come-across-me-before?!” kind of audacity.

But having the ideas is often the easy part.

It’s what we do with them the moment AFTER they’ve given us that playful slap around the face that’s crucial.

How many of the great ideas you’ve had in your creative lifetime up to now would you say you’ve followed through and developed to their natural full potential? 75%? 50%? 10%?

What percentage of all the ideas you’ve had have been followed by the thought: “What a brilliant idea, I must make a note of it”, then forgotten just moments later, left to disappear lost forever back to the mysterious darkness from whence they came?

It’s likely the second number is significantly higher than the first.

Not recording our ideas in some way is the equivalent to leaving them standing cold and naked out in the rain. They’ll either catch pneumonia and die, or run for cover somewhere far away. Somewhere warm, dry and welcoming, where they’re welcomed in, wrapped in a huge soft towel and sat in a comfy chair by an open fire with a delicious mug of cocoa...

So what can we do to ensure we take better care of our ideas, and put more of them to good use?

The secret is in the recording of the idea and there are two key parts to this, each as essential:

Essential Part 1. WHEN we record the idea. This is so important. We must record the idea at the moment it hits us, while it’s fresh and vivid and most alive to us, ascending like a blazing shooting star against the night sky.

Leave it too long and it’s magic starts to fade, leave it longer still and it’ll slip from your memory quicker than a wet bar of soap dipped in baby oil.

Essential Part 2. In HOW MUCH DETAIL we record the idea. To give our idea the best possible chance to develop into something amazing, we must get its pure essence down quickly, yet in a richly detailed form.

We need to get a snapshot of the idea that’s as visual and memorable as possible. We want to capture the idea so strongly that when we return to it, whether that’s tomorrow, next week or next year, it bursts back off the page with all the energy and excitement as when it first came to us.

Do everything possible to catch this essence when the idea first hits, and you’ll find when you return to it it’s so much more inspiring and ready to grow into something incredible.

So, the next time a great new idea hits you, what are you going to do?

Leave it standing naked and shivering in the rain? Or welcome it in and nurture it?

Go on, put another log on the fire, some milk on the stove and get that big fluffy towel out ready...

Ready to learn more about how to have more creative ideas? Sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Fears - I'm Scared I'll Use Up All My Creative Ideas If I Write Too Much Too Soon

Sometimes it’s ok to be scared.

It doesn’t mean you’re weak or abnormal. It’s a part of life as a creative writer to have fears around writing.

But when those fears start to severely limit our writing, it’s time to take action.

These fears can appear in many different forms. One of the most common is the fear that we have a fixed quota of creative ideas and once we use this up, they’re all gone.

Let’s look at this fear in more detail and what you can do to beat it:

"I’m scared I’ll use up all my ideas if I write too much.

I guess I believe I can only have a fixed amount of good ideas in my life, so I want to pace myself and spread them out.

I don’t want to use them up then have years of nothing."

How to overcome the fear:

This, possibly more than anything else, is the biggest myth that stops us creating.

It’s a myth because the truth is we DON’T have a LIMITED reservoir of ideas. It’s infinite. You’ll only have a limited ability to come up with new ideas if that’s what you believe you have.

The only way to tap into all those unlimited potential ideas out there is to train yourself to be open to them. Be curious and inquisitive about everything. Look for the spark of a new angle or the twinkle of a fresh viewpoint in all that’s around you, everywhere you go.

This is one of the most dangerous fears there is for creative writers. It can literally stop us dead if we allow it to take hold.

How have you noticed this fear presenting itself in your creative writing life?

So what action can you take - starting here, today, right now – to minimise its negative impact?

Discover more about creative writing and get your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Fears- I'm Scared Of What I Might Unleash From My Creative Mind

As creative writers, there are many different fears we could have about our creative writing.

Fear is one of the major reasons why we don’t write to our full creative potential, and why sometimes we don’t write at all.

One of the most common of these fears – and one that’s often overlooked – is the fear that if we let our creative minds run free, we might unleash something bad or terrifying.

Let’s take a closer look at how this can appear and what you can do to overcome it:

“I’m scared if I let my creative imagination run free I don’t know what I might unleash in my mind.

If I really let go in my creative writing I’m scared about the kind of images, ideas and stories I might come up with, what they’ll mean and what they’ll say about me.”

How to overcome the fear:

This is a very real possibility. Ultimately you have to make the decision whether you’re going to be as creative a writer as you can be, or if you’re going to stay within certain boundaries.

Either way is great, if it’s the right choice for YOU.

If you decide to let your imagination run free, then yes there may be some scary stuff unleashed. But there will just as likely be some incredibly beautiful, emotive and touching writing to come from it too, writing that only you can create in your unique way.

And remember what you write is not you. Just because you have a dark thought, it doesn’t make you any less a person or mean for a moment you’d act on that thought. It’s just a natural part of your creative imagination.

This is one of the most common, but rarely talked about fears we can have as creative writers.

How has this type of fear appeared in your creative writing life in the past?

What choices can you make, and what action can you take, starting today, to reduce any negative impact it has?

Discover more about creative writing and get your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - Z Is For Zzz - Does Your Creativity Feel Stuck In A Deep Sleep?

If I were to ask how creative you’d been in the last few weeks, what would your response be?

Would you say something like “I’ve been SO busy, I’ve finished a collection of poems, painted 2 new abstract pieces, cooked several delicious meals and redesigned my website logo!” ?

Or would your answer be more like “Er... I’m not sure really. It feels like creatively I’m going through a bit of a lull...” ?

If, as is more likely, you answer in the second way, don’t panic! Let’s get to the real truth of the matter first.

How much have you REALLY created?

How many acts of creativity – however minor they seem at the time – have you been involved in? Once you start counting them up you’ll realise you’ve actually been far more creative than you thought.

How do you write a 100000 word novel? One word at a time. How do you paint a 2m by 3m abstract picture? One brushstroke at a time.

Once you’ve got a more accurate idea of how creative you’ve really been, then it’s up to you whether you want to increase that.

Does it still feel like your creativity is half asleep?

Do you still feel you can create far more and at a higher, deeper, more rewarding level?

Remember, though your creativity might be a little dormant right now, it IS only sleeping. It’s not dead!

Which means there’s plenty you can do to awaken it again.

So start planning your wake up call now!

When’s the last time your creativity seemed wide awake and full of energy, even if for a fleeting and short period of time?

Capture the details of this period as fully as possible.

What was going on in your life at the time that allowed you to be so creative? What creative environment were you in? What creative habits and routines were in place and working well for you?

What were you thinking, what were you focusing on? What were you telling yourself during this time about how creative you were? Who was around you at the time? What other factors helped you to be creative?

Now the important part, waking your creativity out of its slumber!

You now have a great idea of the kind of conditions that have helped you be creative in the past. So how can you introduce some if these effective elements back into your life again more now?

Pick just one or two, put them in place as soon as you can, and start to notice the difference it makes. Add more positive elements as you go. It’s often the tiny details and changes we make that make the biggest difference.

Take the next step to increase your creativity today by getting your copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical "Explode Your Creativity!" Action Workbook. It’s FREE when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!” at www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - Y Is For YES! How To Give Your Creativity Permission To Be Amazing

If I were to ask you: “What’s the biggest obstacle stopping you from being as creative, as often, as you could be?”, how would you respond?

Maybe you’d say you don’t have enough time? Maybe you’d say you find it hard to focus on one creative project? Maybe you’d say because you get sucked into procrastinating too often?

All of these are factors that limit our creativity, and all creative people experience them to varying degrees.

But there’s something bigger. Something deeper.

The one thing that’ll hold you back from creating to your full potential, even if everything else seems in place, is that you don’t LET yourself be creative.

Giving yourself permission to be creative is at the core of being creative.

If you’re constantly at conflict with yourself about whether you’re “allowed” to create, your work - and your creative life – will always been compromised and fall short of the heights it truly could reach.

So what does it mean to give yourself permission and to shout a huge YES! to your creativity?

Here are 5 of the crucial elements:

1. Say YES to being a creative person. You ARE creative, accept that and start celebrating it. Allow that creativity to shine through in whatever way it needs to. Keeping it suppressed benefits no-one.

2. Say YES to being able to produce amazing work. You’re capable of producing unique, deep, wonderful art. There are many things that only you can produce. Start finding what they are and creating them.

3. Say YES to letting yourself make a mess. Who said everything you create has to be perfect? Allow yourself to experiment, make a mess, make mistakes. It’s the only way to become more experienced in your creativity.

4. Say YES to being prolific. You can create as much as you want to create. The more you create, the easier it becomes to create, the more ideas that flow, the more will follow.

5. Say YES to letting creativity enhance your whole life. Your creativity isn’t a precious ornament that you dust your off and get out of a box kept under your bed on rare occasions. It’s always there, in everything you do, so let it be free to create!

Which of these 5 areas, rather than saying “yes” to, are you only giving yourself at best a “maybe” or a “sometimes”, or a “occasionally but only every third weekend and if the weather conditions are right”?

Which do you need to give a positive, affirmative YES! to today?

Pick one, then write as in a large letters as possible:

“I say YES to ___________________________________.”

Then pin it up, say it loud, now and another 20 times today, and tomorrow and the next day. Only you can deny yourself permission to create, and only you can say “YES!”. So start saying it right away!

Take the next step to increase your creativity today by getting your copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical "Explode Your Creativity!" Action Workbook. It’s FREE when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!” at www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - X Is For X-Factor - Finding The Secret To Creativity And Happiness

So the elusive secret to being as creative as you want to be... Does it really exist..?

Can there be just a single “one-size-fits-all” solution to being as creative as you want to be?

Well, no, in that we are all individuals, we create different things in different ways and for different reasons.

But also a resounding YES!

There ARE methods that anyone who creates can follow to find that X-factor and be as creative as they want to be.

Here are 5 of the crucial elements to have in place:

1. Create everyday. There’s simply no shortcut or cheat for this. The only way to be highly, consistently creative is to form a strong creative habit. Find the time of day that works best for you, choose a length of time (10 mins at least) then create for that length of time, at that chosen time, every day. You’ll feel the benefit in just a few weeks.

2. Play to your strengths. We all have particular talents and strengths and the more we utilise them, the more able we become. Think carefully about what you’re really good at. It could be media like writing or photography. Think also about personal strengths like determination, flexibility or compassion.

3. Find your creative voice. This is when you’re expressing your creativity in a way you feel is truly coming from you. Whatever forms you create in, you won’t find your creative voice in a few attempts. It might take 100 poems, paintings or performances before you’re even starting to find that unique creative you. This is great, it’s what creating is all about – experimenting, learning, evolving, all the time moving closer to the truest expression of you.

4. Get support. Although many creative activities are solo, it doesn’t mean you can’t ever get support. No-one can survive alone, the more support we have from people who understand, the better place we’re in to be more creative. Think about your immediate support network as well as looking wider afield to groups, clubs, forums and websites.

5. Recognise your achievements. It doesn’t matter how much you create or how wonderful it is, if you’re not able to acknowledge it for yourself. It’s easy to feel you’re getting nowhere when in fact you’ve made great steady progress. Keep a significant steps chart and write down every time there’s a little landmark in your creative life. At the end of each month, look back at all you’ve achieved. It’ll be more than you think.

Which of these do you have in place already in your creative life? Which could you benefit from devoting a little extra time to?

Take the next step to increase your creativity today by getting your copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical "Explode Your Creativity!" Action Workbook. It’s FREE when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!” at www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z – W Is For Widescreen- Is A Narrow Creative Vision Blocking Your Creativity?

How ambitious are you in your creative life? What kind of visions do you have for where you’d like to be creatively in 1 year, 3 years and 5 years time?

Is your creative vision as wide, colourful, loud and highly sensory as a multiplex cinema screen showing the latest blockbuster movie?

Or is it more like watching repeats from years ago on a black and white portable TV?

If you don’t dare to dream big with your creativity, it’s unlikely you’ll ever get close to creating what you really want to create, and to reaching your true creative potential.

Yes of course there are times when a narrow focus is exactly what you need to move forward on a particular creative project. By putting on the blinkers and cutting out distractions you can make major progress in a short space of time.

But that’s a different issue. What we’re looking at here is your vision for your creative life.

By visualising where you’d like to be in your creative life at specific times in the future, you can get a much clearer idea of where you’re heading and how you’re going to get there.

By writing down your future creative vision – in all its widescreen detailed glory – you give your creative mind permission to start coming up with all the ways you can move closer to it.

It won’t happen overnight, but by having that clear vision and keeping it present and visible, then step by step you’ll get closer.

Here are 5 of the most valuable areas you can focus on.

Get a pen and paper, allocate some time where you won’t be distracted and answer as fully and honestly as you can.

1. Where do you want to be creating? Do you want your own studio, workshop or gallery? Will you be in an environment that stimulates your creativity to new levels?

2. How often do you create? Is it full time career? Is it weekend and evening hobby? How much time to you spend actually creating and how much on supporting activities?

3. Who are you? What beliefs do you have that have enabled you to get this far? What personal strengths and qualities have helped you to keep progressing?

4. Who can help you on your creative journey? Who can offer you genuine support? Who can you support? Who can you collaborate and share ideas with?

5. Why do you create what you create? What drives you, what keeps calling you back to create? How do you feel when you’ve created something you’re pleased with?

By answering these questions you’ll have a much clearer vision of how you want your creative life to be.

Revisit the questions every month or two, then compare with previous answers to see how you’re moving forward. It’s amazing how – once you’ve got that compelling widescreen vision – progress towards it becomes rapid.

Take the next step to increase your creativity today by getting your copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical "Explode Your Creativity!" Action Workbook. It’s FREE when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!” at www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z – V Is For Valid- 5 Reasons Why Yes What YOU Create IS Important!

One of the major reasons why we don’t create as much as we like is we question whether we have the right to, or if it’s “valid” enough.

Do any of these doubts sound familiar to you?

“Who am I to create anyway, when there’s so many talented artists in the world?”

“My work isn’t good enough, I’m not a REAL artist anyway.”

“I’m just messing around, it’s not PROPER creating.”

Stop right there with all that negativity!

Here are 5 of the most important reasons why what you create IS valid, valuable and in fact ESSENTIAL:

1. Creating makes you a more balanced person. Creating is a core part of your personality and make up. You need to be able to express yourself, connect with and relate to the world through creating. When you create you’re a calmer, happier, more balanced person. Great for you, great for everyone else.

2. Your influence is wider than you may think. When you create, people notice. Even if your work’s not widely on display, when people know you create it sends a strong message that it’s OK to create! Because of your creative efforts, many others are inspired to create to. It happens everyday, even if you don’t directly hear about it.

3. Creating leads to new connections and friendships. Yes creating in many forms can be a solo activity. But think of all the opportunities for creative collaborations. Then all the hundreds of thousands of groups, clubs, societies and websites built around people sharing their love of creativity. By creating you become a part of that, and make a difference.

4. Creating is one of the best ways of understanding yourself. Though you may create to communicate with others, ultimately each time you create, it brings you closer to knowing yourself. The more you know and understand yourself, the more easily you can create, as well as find your place in the world.

5. What right have you NOT to share your talents with the world? Whatever your beliefs, you’ve been given the talents you’ve been given for a reason. What right have you to not make use of those, and to not share them with others to inspire and stimulate THEIR creativity?

These are just 5 of the most compelling reasons why what you create is valid and important.

So put aside those doubts and complaints, get creating right away and make the world a better place!

Take the next step to increase your creativity today by getting your copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical "Explode Your Creativity!" Action Workbook. It’s FREE when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!” at www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z – U Is For Understanding: How To Find & Understand Your True Creative Self

Does creating for you sometimes feel like trying to tap dance in treacle?

Do you sometimes wonder what happened to the enjoyment of creating, and question why creating has recently been about as much fun as cleaning an abattoir with a toothbrush?

It’s easy to get lost in this kind of frustration and before we know, creating – something that’s meant to be a wonderful experience that makes us happy – ends up being a painful slog.

So what goes wrong, how does this happen?

One of the major pitfalls is that we end up simply not creating what we really want to be creating. It’s really that straightforward.

Instead of writing that wildly imaginative sci-fi fantasy novel, you’re churning through a legal thriller because your publisher says that’s what people are demanding right now.

Rather than work on your 9 part classical symphony, you’re reeling out lightweight pop fodder for the teen masses.

What you long to create has simply got lost. So how do you find it again?

How do you find and understand your unique creative self again?

Here are 5 ways to get back in touch with the real creative you:

1. Remember the last time you got lost in creating. When you so were absorbed in creating that you lost track of time and where you were. What were you creating?

2. Which 3 pieces of creative work are you most proud of having created? What are you most pleased with about them? How can you rediscover this in a new creative project?

3. What would you create if you had no limitations of time, space and money? How you can take the first step towards this in your current circumstances?

4. What are the creative projects in the past that have been most enjoyable to create? What was it about these that made them so much fun? How can you find that kind of enjoyment again?

5. Imagine you’re 100 years old and looking back over your creative life. What kind of creative legacy do you want to have left? Which particular pieces in the body of work you’ve created best express the real you?

Pick just one of the 5 tips listed above and start to explore it today.

Get closer to understanding the real creative you and what you love creating.

As well as seeing your enjoyment of creating rocket, you’ll also notice how you increase your creativity and productivity, simply because you’re creating in a way that you love to create.

Kickstart your creativity today with Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical "Explode Your Creativity!" Action Workbook. It’s FREE when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!”. Visit www.CoachCreative.com now...

Increase Creativity A-Z - T Is For Time - How To Instantly Make More Time To Create What Matters

The biggest issue that my creativity coaching clients struggle with is having enough time to create.

"Dan, of course I'd love to create more, and spend more time on creative projects. But I just don't have time!"

As long as you don’t feel you have enough time to create that’s what will be true. And that’s how you’ll act and live your life.

All the while you believe that you’re not in control of your time, well, that will be true for you too. You won’t be in control of your time.

It’s easy to see time as a universal, intangible and mysterious thing that none of us can ever hope to tame. Of course it’s true you can’t stop time, or actually make time go any slower.

But what you CAN do, and what is so easily overlooked, is you can CHOOSE how to spend your time.

Every second of every minute of every hour of every day is yours to decide how to best use it. Yes you have basic needs like sleeping and eating and earning money to live. But you can choose when you fit these into the rest of your life.

Does everyone, around the world, work at exactly the same time? No. Does everyone around the world sleep for the same amount of time, and at the same time of day? No.

Once you realise this simple fact, that YOU control your life, and only YOU can make the choices that you wish to make, then time – or “lack of time” - becomes so much less significant.

What does “I don’t have enough time to create” REALLY mean?

It means: “I’m not prepared to prioritise creating. I’m choosing instead to spend my time doing things other than creating.”

There’s no judgement attached to this, it’s your life to live. But if you take nothing else from reading this article, realise that “I don’t have enough time to create” is not the real issue.

As soon as you reframe this as “I’m choosing not to prioritise creating” you’re instantly back in control.

Now you can take the logical next step, and remind yourself: “I can choose how I spend my time. If I want to have more time to create, I have to make creating a higher priority than some of the other things in my life.”

It really doesn’t need to be any more complicated than that.

What less significant things can you drop for 15 minutes a day and instead prioritise that time as time for you to create? Make a list right now. Then tomorrow, make the choice to change the priority of your creativity, act upon it, and start creating…

Would you like to find out more about how to increase YOUR creativity?

Then get your FREE copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical "Explode Your Creativity!" Action Workbook when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!”. Visit the website now: www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z- S Is For Space- How Your Own Creative Space Is Essential To Your Creativity

Do you always create in the same place?

Do you have somewhere you go to, where all your tools for creating are set up, somewhere that inspires you and makes it more easy for you to create?

If you don’t then you could be seriously stunting your creativity, and missing out on one of the crucial elements of a healthy creative life.

We already experience enough resistance to creating, both externally from other people and internally from our own negative thoughts and doubts. So anything we can do to make the act of going to create as easy as it possibly can be is incredibly valuable.

How is your creative work space set up right now? How does it help you create more easily?

Few of us are lucky enough to have a whole studio or room we can have set up 24 hours a day with our creative equipment.

So if we don’t have this luxury, what we can we do as the next best thing?

Quite a number of things.

So here are 5 top tips to get you started in defining your own personal creative space:

1. Find an area of room, a desk, even just a chair you can go to to create. You want to have somewhere that’s just yours, even if it is just a corner of a room. Defining this boundary and this space as your creative area will allow you, when you go to it, to know that it’s time to get creating.

2. Make your creative space as inspiring as possible for you to create. For you this might mean having pale walls, candles and soft lighting. It might mean loads of pictures stuck up and vivid colours wherever you look to fire your creative juices. Experiment and find a surrounding that works best for you.

3. Have your creative tools and equipment ready to use. The aim is to be able to go to your creative space and create as easily as possible. So do all you can to make sure your tools and supplies are set up for you to create and everything you need is close to hand.

4. Make it clearly YOUR creative space. Do what you need to to make this your personal space, not anyone else’s. This again will make it easy for you to go there and create easily, without worrying about disrupting anyone else’s stuff.

5. Let the people around you know about your creative space. While we can all work with some distraction around, we can do a lot to minimise it. Let the people you live with know about your creative space and how important it is for you to be able to focus there for a short time each day. Respect their privacy and passions and they’ll respect yours.

By using these 5 tips, you can ensure your creative space is somewhere you look forward to going to, and somewhere special to you where you can create as easily as possible.

Do all you can to allow your creativity to flow freely in your personal creative space and you’ll see the positive impact it can have on your creativity in a very short time.

Would you like to find out more about how to increase YOUR creativity?

Get your FREE copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical "Explode Your Creativity!" Action Workbook when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!”. Visit the website now: www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - R Is For Risk - The Only Way To Keep Your Creativity Alive And Thriving

Creating regularly is a great achievement for any of us who are creative.

Stepping up time and time again and showing that you’re committed to this creative life, putting in the hours at the page, canvas, desk, studio or laptop, is to be applauded.

If this is something you’re already doing, then congratulations, you’re achieving a huge amount by living with this discipline.

And yet, there is more to a fulfilling life of creativity than just showing up.

Maybe you show up and write a poem every day. And these are beautiful, touching, richly detailed poems that you’re proud of.

So hang on, this sounds ideal. What’s missing?

Well, that poem you just finished, wonderful though it is, is very similar to the one you wrote a few weeks ago. It’s also not very different from the one you wrote 6 months ago.

In fact, although you are prolific in your output, in terms of growth and development, your creativity is stuck in neutral.

Yes you’re getting in the car each day, starting it up and revving the engine. But you’re not actually putting your vehicle in gear and moving forward. You’re sitting stationary there on same driveway, just like you did yesterday. And last week. And 6 months before that.

This may sound harsh or overly critical. Maybe so. Maybe you’re happy to write the same poem again and again for the next month, the next year, the next 5 years. If so, continue and be happy.

But what does creativity REALLY mean?

Bringing into being something that wasn’t there before? Fusing together two or more existing ideas to form a brand new one?

How much are you doing this with your creativity?

It’s your decision to make: Create a slightly different version of the same piece of art for years to come.

Or take the risk and be truly creative.

Yes it’s a risk, and yes there may be unpleasant consequences. You might try creating something new and it not work out like you expected. This may happen far more often than you finding something genuinely new and exciting.

So weigh up the risk and make the choice that’s right for you.

Do you want to create wildly and bravely and risk ending up with a few disappointments, but also a few incredible pieces of work you never thought you were capable of?

Or, do you want to create the same safe art you’ve always created and risk the fact that your creativity may never truly live and thrive again?

Only you know the choice that’s right for you...

Want to learn more about how to increase YOUR creativity? Get your FREE copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical "Explode Your Creativity!" Action Workbook when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!”. Visit the website now: www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - Q Is For Questions- 5 Powerful Questions To Transform Your Creativity

Too many of the wrong type of questions can be counter productive to being creative and drag us down.

Negative questions like "Why am I useless?" or "Why do I even bother trying with so little talent?" are just destructive and defeatist.

But sometimes asking yourself the RIGHT question can make a major impact on your creativity.

It can set you off in new positive direction that otherwise you may not have found.

So here are 5 powerful questions you can ask yourself today, to transform your creativity levels:

1. When am I most creative? What time of day do you find it easiest to create? What kind of environment are you in when you’re most creative? What state of mind are you in?

How can you put yourself in these conditions that are favourable to your creativity more often?

2. What motivates me to create more? Do certain places inspire you? Seeing the work of others? Talking and sharing with other creative people? The desire to keep learning and improving?

How can you introduce these things that motivate you to create more often in your life?

3. What are my creative aspirations and goals? What do you want to have created in 10 years time? 5 years? 1 year? This next time next week?

What steps do you need to put in place today to help you reach these aims in the days, months and years to come?

4. Who can help me be more creative? Do you have role models and mentors to help you be more creative? Can you collaborate with and share support with colleagues? Could you use a coach or a teacher?

Which one of these people can you contact today to ask for their help?

5. What are my main creative strengths? What do you do really well? These can be specific talents like writing or designing, as well as strengths and qualities like being dedicated, flexible, full of ideas, persistent and so on.

Write a list of at least 25 creative strengths you have.

These are 5 powerful questions you can use to take your creativity to a new level.

Which of them are you going to ask – and answer – today?

Discover more about how to increase YOUR creativity by getting your copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical "Explode Your Creativity!" Action Workbook. It’s FREE when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!”. Visit the website now: www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - P is For Perfectionism - Creativity Serial Killer On The Rampage

One of the biggest killers of creativity is also one of the most elusive. The pursuit of perfectionism.

Picture this: You start your new creative project, bursting with ideas, creative energy and enthusiasm.

This is going to be your breakthrough project, the best thing you’ve created yet, the truest and deepest expression of your creative talents you can possibly produce.

You set off at a rattling pace, your creativity flowing like an mighty Alaskan river after the thaw of Spring.

This pattern continues, you find it easy to create and add more to your new project, and soon you have loads of new material to work with. Now, with just a little bit of a tweak here, some quick editing there, adding to this part, cutting down this part and your project’s going to be finished and perfect.

Uh-oh. There’s the deadly “P” word.

And there’s the problem. You see even after 50 or 100 or 1000 little tweaks, additions and adjustments, your creative work is still going to be teetering on the cusp of perfection. And that’s all you can see it as.

All you’re able to focus on is the hole and not the doughnut.

You’re so concerned about the tiny parts that are missing - that you think would make it “absolutely perfect” - that you miss the huge chunk of creative work there that is already amazing.

Because of this outlook, because for you the hole is always more concerning than the doughnut, your creative project will remain suspended in this state of “almost nearly perfect”. Maybe forever.

It’s the same state of almost perfection that your last project stopped at. And the one before that. And the 29 before that!

Perfectionism is a heartless creativity serial killer.

So how can you overcome this? How can you learn to see all the beauty and fulfilment in what you do create, rather than just be miserable and dissatisfied over filling that impossible gap that would finally make your project perfect.

A creative colleague of mine very wisely commented recently: “We’re always beginners at something or other throughout our lives…”

Yet we expect to be perfect after one or two attempts at something new. But there is no perfection, there is no end point.

Once you see your creative growth as an enjoyable lifelong learning experience, you can begin to realise that it’s impossible to be perfect.

Even if you create the most incredible piece of art you’ve ever created, there will still be ways you can learn, and different creative experiences to try.

So start to take action to free yourself today from the terrible murderous grip of perfectionism, and you’ll see your enjoyment and fulfilment of all the wonderful things you create soar to new levels.

Want to learn more about how to increase YOUR creativity? Get your FREE copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical "Explode Your Creativity!" Action Workbook when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!”. Visit the website now: www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z – O Is For Overload! How To Focus When You Have Too Many Creative Ideas

Creative ideas are absolutely crucial for the creative artist.

Creative ideas are as essential for all of us who create as blood is to the human heart, fuel is to the motor car, and water is to the great rivers of the earth.

Without ideas there is no creativity. To create we must have a starting point of some kind - a tiny sketch, a quirky phrase, a name for a character, an insistent melody, an evocative image.

And so as creative people we spend a great deal of time trying to find ways to have more ideas we can then evolve and mould and shape into beautiful creative expressions of ourselves.

But what about the other end of the spectrum? What about when we have TOO MANY ideas?

Is that possible, to have too many ideas?

Well no, not if you’re able to collect them up, store them, and use them when the time is right.

But yes you CAN have too many ideas if it’s this surplus of ideas that’s stopping you from focusing on picking one and just creating.

So what can you do if you feel overloaded with too many ideas?

How do you pick the RIGHT creative idea to begin working on?

How can you be sure if you choose one and start exploring it, that you won’t be backed into a creative cul-de-sac within a couple of days?

The answer? There is no “right” idea to start on. The power, the secret, the reward of creativity comes with choosing one and just starting.

You could spend the next decade trying to pick the perfect idea to expand upon for your next novel, or tapestry, or willow structure. And never actually get around to choosing one and creating.

Or, you could spend the next decade picking creative ideas, pursuing them headlong with all the creative energy and intention you can possibly summon and see where they lead you.

Yes, some will become dead ends. Maybe the majority. But some will become wonderful creations, of the kind you couldn’t have imagined they’d become when you started.

How would you have ever got to this point if you hadn’t chosen an idea and given your best? Quite simply you wouldn’t have. You’d still be sat here in the same place, with the same level of experience, a decade older, still deliberating over which idea to begin.

You know which option’s best for you, so take it today.

Pick ONE idea and get going, start creating, have fun and see where it can take you…

There really is no other way...

Want to learn more about how to increase your creativity?. Then sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - N Is For Nurture- How To Nurture Your Creativity & See It Blossom

Your creativity is an organic, living, evolving entity.

And, like plants need sunlight, water and nutrients to grow and blossom, so does your creativity.

If you put a plant in a dark cupboard, with no sunlight and no water, however hardy it was, it wouldn’t survive very long in such harsh conditions.

And yet sometimes we expect to treat our creativity with the same kind of neglect and then be able to create freely and abundantly at the snap of our fingers.

To get the best from our creativity, to be as creative as we can be and to create consistently near our creative potential, we have to nurture and take care of it.

Here are some of the key ways you can nurture YOUR creativity and watch it blossom and flourish:

1. Ample sunlight. Your creativity can’t exist in the dark for long with no outside stimulus. Give your creativity regular fresh input and stimulation by reading, taking in new art, visiting new places, interacting with other creative people, and a variety of other ways.

2. Lots of watering. Giving yourself recognition and reward for creating. So few people are brave enough to step and create the things that really matter to them. Be proud of yourself when you do, and acknowledge the commitment you’ve shown to your creativity.

3. Regular weeding. Too many weeds and a plant will be choked of the nutrients it needs. Similarly, too much clutter around you, mentally and physically, will severely limit your creativity. Stay on top of the kind of baggage that can drag you down.

4. Careful Pruning. What you create is yours. So you can shape your creations the way you want them. But remember too, to listen to and respond to the unique natural flow and rhythm of each creative project you’re working on.

5. Re-potting. When a plant gets too big for its pot, it needs re-potting into a larger pot so it can continue to grow. Has your creative ambition outgrown your surroundings? Do you need a new creative space to really be able to do justice to your creativity and what you want to achieve?

Take these 5 crucial elements to nurturing your creativity on board today. By truly giving it the care it deserves, you’ll find you’ll increase your creativity no end.

Want more great creativity articles, tips and exercises on how to increase your creativity? Then just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - M Is For Mistakes - How Mistakes Can Be Your Creativity's Greatest Teacher

Making “mistakes” is one of the biggest fears we have in creating.

Not wanting to make a mistake severely limits the risks we are willing to take in our creative projects and in all areas of our creativity.

Mistakes have so many negative connotations and ugly baggage.

No doubt you can come up with enough other reasons not to create, without even thinking about that fate-worse-than-never-creating-again known as the “mistake”.

But in fact, if we just gave them a chance, mistakes are actually an incredibly powerful tool to help us increase our creativity.

If you’re prepared to let them, mistakes can actually be the greatest teacher to your creativity that you’ll ever have.

Here a 5 of the most compelling reasons why:

1. You learn to be more courageous in creating. If you don’t mind making the odd mistake here and there, you’re more free to explore new creative ideas, take new paths, try new stuff you wouldn’t have done otherwise.

2. You become more open to learning. You don’t think you know all the answers right away and are prepared and willing to discover the many different ways that are going to help you be as creative as you can be.

3. They remind you that you’re human. You’re an artist striving to create meaningful art. The greatest art speaks to us on a human emotional level. You’re a living, learning, imperfect artist, not a cold, heartless, automated machine! Making mistakes is all a part of that.

4. You discover new media and forms to create in. If you’re not afraid of mistakes, you’ll embrace new forms of creating, and see how they can work for you. If you live in fear of mistakes, you’ll never even contemplate new media you’ve never tried before.

5. You simply create more. Because you don’t feel everything you create has to be an instantly perfect finished product, you’ve already eliminated many of the reasons not to create more. Leaving the door to abundant creating wide open!

These are just 5 of the reasons why making mistakes, far from being a cause for fear and dread, should be embraced.

Making mistakes can be the greatest teacher your creativity will ever have, and can help you be more creative than you thought possible.

So embrace your creative mistakes and let them starting teaching you how to increase your creativity today!

Want to learn more about how to increase YOUR creativity? Get your FREE copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical "Explode Your Creativity!" Action Workbook when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!”. Visit the website now: www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - L Is For Limitations - How You Limit Your Creativity Without Realising

What stops you creating the most amazing, fulfilling creative work you’re capable of?

Lack of ability? No. Not having the right equipment? No, that’s not the real reason. Not having enough time? Nice try, but guess again.

The ultimate deciding factor that determines how much, how deeply and how beautifully you create is how much, how deeply and how beautifully you BELIEVE you can create.

Say the following sentence out loud to yourself and notice your reaction and feelings as you speak the words:

“My creative ability is deeper than the ocean...”

How did it feel? Was it easy and comfortable to say, as if you were speaking the truth you’ve always known? Or was it awkward and uncomfortable, and caused little voices to pop up and say: “What? Who are you kidding? You’re about as creative as a wet sponge!”

How you react to positive statements like this is a good indicator of your true beliefs about your creative talents and potential.

Here’s another, try speaking this one, again out loud:

“I believe I can create whatever I want to create, whenever I want to create it...”

Again, what was your reaction, your response to saying these words?

Did it feel like you were simply stating the honest truth? Or did those little negative voices appear again with wisecracks like: “If you believe it so much why have you not written a word in the last 3 months?” or “I see, so you CAN create whenever you want, but you just haven’t WANTED to lately?”?

All of us have negative thoughts around our creativity.

By first taking an honest barometer reading of where we are with our beliefs, we can then take action to improve them.

Imagine for a moment how it would be if you actually did believe those two positive statements above:

“My creative ability is deeper than the ocean...”

“I believe I can create whatever I want to create, whenever I want to create it...”

What would it be like if you totally believed these kind of affirmations and you lived, behaved and created accordingly?

What difference would it make to your creativity?

Isn’t that the kind of creative life you want to strive towards? The kind of free flowing, richly rewarding creativity that, deep down, all creative artists long for?

So, it’s time to start taking action towards that life and that mindset.

Write down all the positive statements you can think of that someone who was highly confident in their creative abilities would say.

Then, pick your favourite 5 and say them out loud to yourself AT LEAST 10 times a day.

Stick to this routine and after just a couple of weeks you’ll notice a change in your attitude and confidence in creating, and as result will be able to smash through those limitations and increase your creativity overall.

Learn more about how to increase your creativity today... Get your FREE copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!”. Visit the website now: www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - K Is For Knowledge - Why You ALREADY Know How To Be Highly Creative

However unsure you feel sometimes, in those moments when creating feels about as easy as breakdancing in quick drying cement, you CAN be as creative as you wish to be.

You have all the resources within you to increase your creativity to whatever level you want, and to create as abundantly and as deeply as your heart desires.

When you struggle to be more creative, what blocks you is not the knowledge of how to be creative. You have that knowledge, and you can’t ever lose it. Deep within you, when you listen hard enough, you know exactly what to create, how to create it and why you want to create it in the first place.

The creative blocks are just that, various obstacles that get in the way of you hearing your true creative self. That unlimited creativity within can’t get through.

It feels like trying to listen to music through headphones with the volume down low. Except the headphones aren’t even on your ears, they’re in the room next door. Under a pile of cushions!

So if you already know how to be as creative as you want, if you already have that knowledge within, how can you learn to listen to it better?

There are 3 key elements to learning to be more creative and start listening to the creative you inside:

1. Believe that you DO know how to be creative. Look at creative work you’ve done in the past that you’re proud of. All of us have projects we cherish because we know they showed – if only for a glimpse – what we’re really capable of creating when we fully apply ourselves. If you reached this kind of level once, you can do it again. And you can do it even better.

2. ALLOW yourself to be creative. The biggest enemy against your creativity will always be yourself. Be kind, make it easy and allow yourself to be as creative as you can be – both in practical terms, and in your mind – and you’ll create so much more freely and rewardingly.

3. Practice! If you want to increase your creativity you need to practice. You can’t just transform it overnight, just like an occasional weekend jogger can’t suddenly run a marathon in record time tomorrow. Create a little each day and build those creative muscles slowly and surely.

You already KNOW how to be as creative as you could ever wish to be.

Start using the tips above today to truly listen to the creative you inside, and see the changes it brings to your creative life.

Want to learn more about how to increase YOUR creativity? Get your FREE copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical "Explode Your Creativity!" Action Workbook when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!”. Visit the website now: www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - J Is For Joy - How To Put The Joy Back In Your Creative Life Today

So often we realise all too late that the creative ventures we set off on with such excitement, energy and high hopes, have become painful struggles, as we wrestle with all kinds of barriers to our creativity.

At some point, our creative life – and the creative projects we used to take such pleasure and joy from – seems to have deteriorated dramatically.

Where we once heard bouncing playful melodies and luscious full harmonies, there’s now just a flat monotone drone.

Before there was a riot of every hue and colour, now there’s just various shades of mid-grey.

So what happens? Where does the all the joy go?

And more importantly, how can you start to put the joy back in YOUR creative life?

The most common reasons we start to lose enjoyment and interest in our creative work and projects is because we lose sight of why we began. Or we began for the wrong reasons in the first place.

Every creative project doesn’t need to be planned out in every last detail. That doesn’t allow for spontaneity and exploration.

But you need to have some idea of WHY you’re creating what you’re creating.

This may sometimes be specific aims, but can also be just for the fun of it. In fact, this is one of the main problems.

We often have a preconception that any creative work we do, and the creative energy we expend, MUST produce some glorious tangible end product.

We need some visible proof and justification that the time we’ve spent has been worthwhile.

But not every creative act has such obvious immediate results. Added to this, we’re living, evolving human beings. We’re not cold predictable machines, where if you put in one plus one you get two.

We’re unpredictable, creative, experimental adventurers on voyages of new discovery!

Sometimes the most valuable learning experiences in our creating are when things DON’T produce the expect result. When mistakes are made, it allows the possibility of something other than predictable, safe perfection. It allows for YOUR unique expression of human creativity with all its glorious quirks, bumps and flaws!

Start reclaiming the joy in your creativity today.

Create what you YEARN to create. Create what you were born to create, not what you think you SHOULD be creating, or what other says you should be creating.

Only you know what that is, and only you can take the decision right now to start to reclaim the joy in your creative life.

Learn more about how to increase your creativity and create more of what’s truly important to you. Sign up today to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - I Is For Inspiration - How To Never Run Dry Of Creative Inspiration

What would your reaction be if I said you actually had all the creative inspiration you’ll ever need, right there whenever you need it?

You can increase your creativity, and tap into creative inspiration far more easily than you may think.

Let’s use an analogy to explain why this is.

These days there are hundreds of thousands of radio stations broadcasting across the airwaves. How many do we actually listen to though?

If we choose only to listen to one of these radio channels, does it mean that all the others stop broadcasting their programmes and their music until we’re ready to hear them?

No, of course not!

It’s the same with creative inspiration. It’s always out there, waiting to be found, waiting to be “tuned into”.

So how do you tune in? How do you get the inspiration that’s right for you, the ideas that you need to start, continue or complete your latest creative work?

The secret is to develop you senses to be open to the inspiration. In fact, a step more than that, it’s honing your senses to actively seek out the ideas and inspiration you need.

Once you take on board the concept that there are potential ideas in everything, you start seeing, hearing and feeling them everywhere.

The shape of the leaves of the plant on your desk, the sound the birds on the rooftops make each morning, the images in a poster advertising a new perfume, rhythms in the fax machine in the office next door, snippets of random conversation overheard in the street, to name a few.

But there’s a little more to it than that, another step.

Once you start to be open to more ideas and inspiration, you’ve got to capture them while they're fresh.

Don’t fall into the trap we all fall into and say: “That’s a good idea, I’ll remember that and write it down later. I don’t need to capture it, it’s all up here in my head.”

Guess what? You WON’T remember it, and that potentially amazing idea will be lost forever. How many other ideas of yours have already gone that way?

Capture the inspiration the moment it strikes, as fully as you can.

Carry a notebook or a voice recorder with you at all times. When you get that glimpse of an idea, jot it down on speak it into the recorder, in a way that captures the idea as fully and in as much detail as possible.

Then, when you next get a little stuck for inspiration in your new creative project, you’ll have a stack of ideas waiting and ready to be turned into some wonderful creation.

All the inspiration you’ll ever need is all around you, waiting to be found.

You’ve just got to tune in to the right channels, and start gathering up those ideas.

Would you like more great articles, tips and exercises on how to increase creativity? It’s easy: just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - H Is For Happiness - 3 Steps To Rediscover Your Creativity And Happiness

Creativity and happiness are very closely intertwined, as anyone who creates knows.

When you create, it makes you happier. When you’re happier in your life, creating flows more easily.

When we’re very young children, we automatically create. We don’t know any other way.

Traits like curiosity, being inquisitive, playfulness and the need to experiment and try new things, all come as easily as breathing.

They’re simply second nature.

These kind of qualities come out in lots of different ways, like drawing, dancing, singing, playing, dressing up.

It’s all done very spontaneously and without pausing to worry about what it means or what you look like or what others might think.

Young children too, deal with their emotions in a more direct and spontaneous way. If they’re happy they smile and laugh, if they’re sad they cry. If they’re angry they scream, if they’re tired they sleep.

The way they feel is acted on instantly, dealt with, then they move on.

Unfortunately as we grow older we lose track of this innocence and spontaneity in our ability to create, and to express our emotions.

Our creativity gets buried in a steady avalanche of self-consciousness and confusion. We’re told “you can’t do that” and “you should do this”, and we’re expected to perform in areas we’re just not particular gifted in, or interested in.

But the reassuring fact is, though our creativity may be buried, it’s not lost or forgotten.

We may be less happy, less often, but we still know deep down exactly what MAKES us happy.

And so, we can reclaim both our creativity, and our happiness, those two vital and core human needs that we’re born with. The two essential elements we need for a fulfilling, productive and enjoyable life.

So what’s the secret to getting them back?

How can we rediscover the creativity and happiness we thought were lost and gone for good?

It’s not about knowledge. It’s actually about giving yourself permission.

Here are 3 steps to show how you can regain your creativity and your happiness:

Step 1. Believe you CAN be happy and creative again. We’re all capable of being more creative and happy than we realise. Deep down you know that. You just have to start believing it. And more importantly, you have to start LETTING YOURSELF believe it.

Step 2. Experiment and find what works for you. Try the kind of creative projects you’ve always been curious about, whatever your main creative medium is. You may stumble across a new way of creating that you absolutely love. Again, ALLOW YOURSELF PERMISSON to experiment and play. It’s ok, it’s what creative people do!

Step 3. Plan creativity regularly into your daily schedule. This is the cornerstone to all happy and creative lives. Creating regularly, having a set period of time each day to create. Once more it gives the strong message to yourself – and everyone else – that creativity is a fundamental element of your life. It’s vitally important to you, it’s a part of you.

These are 3 simple steps you can take, starting today, to regain some of the creativity and happiness you know you have inside you.

So, what are you waiting for..?

Want to learn more about how to increase YOUR creativity and be more happy? It’s easy: just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - G Is For Goals - How To Set Goals To Help Focus & Boost Your Creativity

Let’s be honest, “goal setting” is not the most sexy phrase there is.

Just the words can conjure images of complex detailed goals that are going to take a great deal of work and not be a whole lot of fun.

But goals can actually be as fun and as easy to set as you want to make them.

Here’s a simple 3 step technique to set goals that will help you focus and increase your creative output:

Step 1. Brainstorm what you REALLY want long term in your creative life.

Often we get so caught up in the tiny details of each creative project, we forget to look at the bigger picture.

If you feel like creating is about as easy as hacking your way through a dense rainforest, maybe you need a different perspective. What if you were able to take a helicopter above that rainforest, and you saw that just a few metres west of where you’re slogging through the undergrowth with your machete, there’s actually a path already carved out?

Do the equivalent for your creative life overall. What’s the bigger view? What do you REALLY want to achieve?

Step 2. Ask “Is this really MY goal?”

This is a crucial point often overlooked when goal setting. We feel we’ve set great goals and start working towards them with great enthusiasm. But something doesn’t quite feel right. And soon we grind to a halt.

Often this is because although we have defined a good clear goal, it’s actually not ours. It might be one that’s fantastic for someone else. Or one that someone else has chosen because they thought it would be fantastic for us.

Ask some very honest questions of yourself to ensure your goals are really yours. How will you feel when you’ve achieved them? Have you chosen them because they’re right for you, or just to please someone else?

Step 3. Set dates for action and TAKE ACTION.

Setting the goals is only the first step. Unless you then take action towards them, they’re nothing but pretty – yet empty - decoration.

Once you have a goal that’s truly important to you, and you’re sure it’s really yours, start to plan the action steps that will get you there. Sometimes the easiest way to do this is start at the endpoint, break it down and work backwards.

For example if you want to write a novel in the next year, break it down into each component necessary and give it a time frame. To finish your novel in a year, what actually needs to happen? What do you need to have done each month, each week, each day?

Set your dates, write them down and start taking action today!

This simple 3 step goal setting technique can help you get focused on what’s really important to you in your creative life and start taking action towards it right away.

So, what are you waiting for?

Want to learn more about how to increase YOUR creativity? It’s easy: just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - F Is For Focus - 5 Ways To Get Creatively Focused Starting Today

One of the most persistently challenging issues we face as creative people is how to focus our creative talents, ideas and energy.

Often people struggle to come up with new creative ideas, and they spend their time finding more ways to do this. It’s easy to then go to the other end of the scale and have almost TOO MANY ideas.

The problem isn't having too many ideas, because we can always store them up and cherry pick the best ones to use at a later date.

The bigger problem is WHICH idea to choose to work on next.

Getting focused and starting with a concerted effort on just one creative project is hard enough. Then maintaining this focus for long enough to see the project through is another challenge still.

Sometimes, it seems like riding a unicycle backwards across a tightrope whilst blindfolded would be easier than staying focused on one creative project.

So here’s 5 ways to help you get more focused, starting today.

1. Commit to at least 5 dates. Pick a project that appeals to you, then decide – before you even begin it – that you’re going to commit to 5 substantial sessions working on it. Then, after your first 5 “creative dates”, decide how it’s going and whether you’d like to continue. But don’t be a serial one date wonder, only giving a new project one chance before discarding it and moving to the next!

2. Remove all other projects from view. Once you’ve picked your next project, then take all other possible new projects out of the equation. Yes maybe you do like to play the field a little, see what’s out there. But for once try a little monogamy and give that one project all your loyal attention.

3. Create somewhere you’re comfortable creating. If you pick a new project then try to work on it in an environment you feel most relaxed and creative. Give yourself the best chance to bond. If you took a new prospective partner bungee jumping, sky diving and white water rafting on your first 3 dates, chances are you’re not going to get much meaningful conversation!

4. Don’t keep reminiscing about past projects. If you’re constantly thinking about how wonderful past projects were, you don’t give your creativity a chance to get to work on this new one. Yes, maybe those old flames were great. Which shows you have it in you to make this new project just as fantastic. If you give it the attention.

5. Treat your new project with respect and consideration. This new project might be the greatest work you ever create in your life. Give it the courtesy, space and respect to unfold itself and blossom fully. If you treat it as well as you can, it will give you the same level of reward in return.

These are 5 ways you can be more focused on your creative work starting today.

Pick a project, use these ideas as guidelines and notice what a difference it makes to your level of focus.

Find out more about creative focus and other ways to increase YOUR creativity right away. Just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z- E Is For Everyday - How Often You Should Create To Maximise Your Creativity

There’s a huge range of different forms of creative expression out there.

Even if we look at large areas of creativity like writing, painting, or dancing, within each are sub categories. And within each of those are further subcategories.

Then there are the true creative pioneers who are defining new forms of creativity even as you’re reading this.

So within this vast array of artists that all produce what we consider creative art, what do they have in common?

One of the most fundamental elements to developing as a creative artist is to give yourself the time and commitment to evolve. And this means creating regularly. Not once a month, not once a fortnight, not even once a week.

Create every day.

Creating every single day is the best way – in fact the ONLY way - to reach your true creative potential.

Here’s are 5 of the most compelling reasons why:

1. Creating everyday, at the same time, gives your creativity permission to express itself. Knowing that you have that time slot to be freely creative, means you naturally start to gather up creative ideas and inspiration throughout the day and subconsciously store it to be used during your creative time.

2. Creating everyday gives you more confidence in experimenting and taking your creativity in new directions. The less often you create, the more pressure you put on yourself to come up with something amazing each time. When you create everyday, if one day you don’t get very far, that’s ok because tomorrow you’ll have the chance to create again. And the next day. And so on.

3. Creating everyday allows you to create large projects in a short space of time. If you wanted to write a 100000 word novel for example, but only sat down to write once or week or once a month, it becomes a very daunting task. If you write 1000 words a day though, you’ll have your first draft done in just 3 months from now.

4. Creating everyday gives others around you a clear message. It shows you take your creativity seriously. You can be a comedy writer, but still be serious about your creativity and how important it is to you. It demonstrates that creating is a fundamental part of your daily schedule and your life. And the people close to you will respect that.

5. Creating everyday allows you to have more ideas. If you don’t create regularly, you’re less inclined to take note of the ideas you have throughout the day, because you don’t know when you’ll get the chance to use them. When you know you’re going to be creating again the next day, you’re more likely to notice and capture ideas, which will in turn lead to more ideas flowing to you.

The benefits of creating everyday are impossible to ignore.

If it’s not currently something YOU do, then start to ask yourself how you can fit it in to your daily routine, starting today.

The results you’ll see, after just a few weeks, can absolutely transform your creativity.

Want to discover more about how creating everyday can increase YOUR creativity? Then sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z- D Is For Disappointment- How To Bounce Back From Creative Disappointments

A major factor in how creative you are over a long period of time is not related to how much raw creative talent you have.

It’s also not about what it is you create, or how, why and where you create it.

One of the key elements that decide how consistently you create is actually your attitude and approach to dealing with disappointment.

No-one likes to be disappointed or let down.

But it will happen to all of us, more than once in our creative lives. And when it does we can let it set us back, or use it to move forward. And you know which of those is the better option to take.

So, here’s a 3 step plan to help you bounce back from those disappointments and use them to increase your creativity to new levels:

1. Accept that there will be disappointments. It’s a part of life. Your book didn’t get accepted for publishing. Your new songs didn’t get the response you were hoping for. If you expect everything to go perfectly smoothly all the time, it’s just not going to happen.

If you give your best effort each time you create, that’s all you can do. The rest is out of your hands. You can’t influence everything that happens to you. But you CAN control how you react to disappointment. Which takes us on to:

2. See disappointment as a tool for learning. When you’re disappointed in the outcome of something, ask yourself what it was that really made you feel that way.

Ask also if your expectations were realistic beforehand. However you answer these challenging questions, be open and honest with yourself. Then ask what you can learn from the experience to get better results next time.

3. Move on, don’t dwell on it. After a disappointment in your creative work, the worst thing you can do – and something that’s all too easy TO do – is give up.

This was just one occasion where it didn’t turn out as you expected. How are you going to take the lessons learned, and your greater level of experience forward to your next creative project?

This simple 3 step plan will help you to bounce back from the inevitable disappointments you’ll experience now and again in your creative life, and actually increase your creativity as you move forward.

Want more great articles, tips and exercises to help you increase your creativity? It’s easy: just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - C Is For Connection – Connect More Deeply With Yourself & Others

One of the most valuable elements of creativity and creating things is the way it allows us to connect more deeply.

When we get a direct hot wired short cut straight to the source of our creativity it can make us feel excited, energised, more alive, more motivated and more happy.

There are two different ways we can use our creativity to connect more deeply:

1. Using your creativity to connect with yourself.

When you create from the deepest point inside yourself, that true source of creativity, it’s rewarding in a way that nothing else can be.

You feel more alive and more connected and that you’re closer to feeling and knowing what life itself is all about.

We all have our own unique set of creative skills and talents, and we each have our own creative voice. The more we create, the more we experiment and explore our creativity, the closer we get to that deep pure source, and to our unique creative voice.

Maybe for a poet it takes a hundred poems to even begin to get close to finding their unique ways of expressing themselves.

If you were that poet and you write one poem a month, obviously it’s going to take nearly a decade to get this point. If you write a poem a day, of course you’ll get there quicker. Then you can write each poem beyond that more easily and in a way more authentically as that pure expression of YOU.

2. Using your creativity to connect with other people.

There are many ways we can use our unique creative talents to connect with others. The two most obvious distinctions are connecting directly or indirectly.

If you’re a singer for example, you might record an album and it sell a few thousand copies. You know that in some way you’ve connected with a few thousand people through your art. You know too that what you’ve put out in the world is in someway adding to people’s lives, making them a little better.

And, as a singer, you probably do live gigs. During these you can enjoy the direct connection and feedback from your audience in a way that’s not possible through selling records.

Another way creativity connects people is through shared creative passions. You could join a group, club or online forum about a creative passion of yours, and share your experiences with others who enjoy similar things.

Though you may not be directly sharing YOUR art, this is still a wonderful and valuable way of having meaningful connections with other people through creativity.

This is just a starting point to illustrate the to main ways you can connect more deeply – to yourself and to others – thought your creativity.

Doesn’t that inspire you to want to create more, starting today?

Want to learn more about how to increase YOUR creativity? It’s easy: just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - B Is For Balance – How To Use Your Creativity In ALL Areas Of Your Life

Sometimes a head-down-no-distractions-don’t-even-come-up-for-air-for-eight-hours creative marathon can produce fantastic results. We can get deeply into the flow of a creative project, really get our teeth into it and make some wonderful progress.

But if we did this all the time, it wouldn’t be so helpful. Or practical. Or sociable.

Unless you live in a shack in the middle of the woods, miles from the nearest living soul and have no financial, family or other commitments, this kind of creative behaviour day after day is just not sustainable.

If the description above describes you exactly and this lifestyle works beautifully for you, that’s fantastic! Long may it continue...

But for those of us with the rest of our lives and obligations to fit in around our creative projects (or vice versa), we need an approach that is more realistic and flexible.

And we need balance. Balance between each of the connected elements of our lives that are important to us.

What we often do is separate our creative work - the time and energy we spend on creating in the ways we most enjoy – from everything else in our lives.

This then causes friction, a situation of “My Creative Life” Vs “Everything Else In My Life" and "I’m either creative or not creative.” This approach isn’t the most beneficial to either your creative work, or all the other important areas of your life.

So what’s the solution?

Is there a better way to approach this conflict between creative time and non-creative time, and to achieve a happy balance?

The secret is to realise that as a creative person, this creativity influences your whole life. Being creative is an inherent part of your personality. It’s not like a set of dentures which you remove after mealtimes and when you sleep.

Your creativity is there all the time, embedded in you as deeply and indisputably as there is blood running through your veins.

Once you accept this and put it into use, the conflict between creative and non-creative in your life simply won’t exist.

The easiest way to do this in practice is just to trust your creativity and ask. Ask yourself “How can I use my creativity in (state an area of your life)?”

Do this for each area of your life, trust that you will come up with plenty of solutions that’ll help you and then start putting some of them into use.

To recap, you can use your creativity in all areas of your life to achieve a more balanced and happy life overall.

Recognise that your creativity is ever present and there to help you in any way you need.

You’ve just got to ask it.

Would you like to find out more about how you can increase YOUR creativity today? Then just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity A-Z - A Is For Action - How To Take Creative Action Before You Go To Bed Tonight

Creative potential is a beautiful concept.

Sitting and imagining how deeply creative we are, all that untapped talent just lying there waiting to be awoken.

Sometimes in fact this “fantasy” of how creative we are is an easier place to live in, in our minds, than the reality.

The reality is, you could be the most naturally creatively gifted person to have ever lived, but it all means very little unless you apply it.

Most of us get our water supply from a reservoir. Imagine if that reservoir that supplied your water was not actually connected to your home by any pipelines.

When you’re thirsty, when you go to wash, when you want water for all your everyday needs, what use would millions of gallons of water be to you lying in a reservoir miles away, with absolutely no connection to your home?

It’s the same with your creativity.

Yes there are millions of gallons of creative potential lying within you.

In fact there is an INFINITE amount of creative talent within you.

And the truth is - though we often don’t realise it – the more you use your creativity, the more easily it’ll flow.

But you have to start it up, connect the supply, prime the pump, get the flow going.

And getting the creative flow going requires ACTION.

So let’s begin!

What are the creative projects most important to you right now? Maybe there’s one that’s calling you to create more than all the others? Or maybe there are two or three?

Pick one project that you’re going to begin to take action on TODAY.

Now, for this project – whether it’s brand new and just a seed of an idea in your head, or 95 percent complete already – write down 3 things you could do before you go to sleep tonight to move this project on.

Then write another 3 things you could do, however large or small.

Keep doing this, keep asking “What ELSE could I do?” until you’ve run out of options. Then write 3 more.

You can do it, you're highly creative, just trust yourself.

Now pick 3 from your list.

Choose 3 actions you can take before you go to sleep tonight. And do them. Take that action!

Remember the only way to put those creative talents, dreams and ideas into being is to take action. There’s no short cut, no other way. Take action. Go and do it, right now. You know it’s the right thing to do...

Would you like to get more tips, techniques and exercises to help you increase YOUR creativity today? Then just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Be More Creative - How Often Are You REALLY Showing Up To Create With All Your Heart, Mind & Soul?

What does being successful mean to you in your creative life?

Having your articles published? Seeing a painting of yours on public display? Releasing your own album?

For all of these - and for anything else we want to achieve in our creative lives – the starting point is the same.

Quite simply, we’ve got to show up.

It’s the most crucial and fundamental part to begin any new creative adventure or project.

If you're not there at the page/ canvas/ computer/ studio, then how can you even begin to create?

So that bit seems obvious. End of story.

You just have to show up at your place of creating on a regular basis, and everything will be taken care of?

You’ll create freely and wildly, gushing out ideas like Niagara Falls gushes out water? Right?

Er, well, no. Because there’s more to it than that.

You've probably heard Woody Allen's famous quote:

"Eighty percent of success is showing up."

And, this is true.

But there's showing up and then there's showing up.

Showing up in body - physically being at the place where you're going to create is of course essential, and it’s the first step to that new creation of yours.

But what if you do show up time after time, day after day, and never really get anything done? What if you keep going to the well but there’s never any water? Yes you can give yourself an “A” for attendance, but not much else.

So what does it mean to REALLY show up to create?

To be there, eager and ready to start, willing to pour everything you have in your heart, mind and soul into your creative projects?

Here are 3 of the key elements essential to prepare, to make YOUR creative experiences more productive, and more enjoyable.

1. Have your attitude prepared. Adopt the positive attitude that this creative session will bear wonderful fruit. Tell yourself you’re creative and your creativity is gnashing at the gates, desperate to get out and express itself in so many diverse and amazing ways. It works.

2. Have your space prepared. Get your creative workspace organised so all your tools and equipment are close to hand and ready to use. Imagine you’re going in to create non-stop for 12 hours. Have everything you might need during that time close by.

3. Have your ideas prepared. Keep your ideas collected in one place, whether it’s in a sketch book, on a whiteboard, or on your computer. “My ideas are in one place - my head” doesn’t count! Capture ideas the moment they come to you, then you’ll have masses of material to work from when you go to create.

These are the 3 most important parts of REALLY showing up to create, not just being there in body but half-hearted, or completely absent in all other ways.

What changes can you make today to help YOU show up to create with all you have?

Want to learn more about how to unleash YOUR creativity? It’s easy: just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Why You Don't Create More: The Crucial Difference Between "Working" And "Struggling" When You Create

How much of the time you spend creating is a struggle?

A new and ambitious creative project will involve a high volume of activity, and a large investment of your time and creativity. But even though you’re spending a great deal of time on the project, it needn’t be a struggle.

In fact it can be among the most enjoyable things you do.

It's when we confuse "working" with "struggling" that the problems start and procrastination kicks in.

If we're creating the things most valuable and important to us, yes they'll be challenging, exciting and involve us putting in the energy and the hours. But they won't be a struggle.

Because underneath the work is the passion.

And the knowledge - the deep sense of knowing - that this is exactly where you should be, and this is exactly what you should be creating right now. It's the next step in the natural evolution of your creativity.

When we struggle, we lose motivation, we question why we're working so hard. The "work" changes in our perception.

Instead of “work” meaning: "time and energy invested in a project that's valuable, important and enjoyable to me", it becomes something else.

When you’re struggling, this same "work" becomes more like: "a slog, a chore, difficult effort that offers no desirable reward".

That's if we get going with the creative project at all!

If just the thought of creating seems like too much of a struggle, we don't even get started.

And unused creative potential is one of the greatest tragedies there is.

Here’s a couple of examples:

Example 1:

Working Hard: I spent 2 hours on writing my new book yesterday. I got about 2000 words written and I’m now much clearer about the main relationship in the story. I’m really enjoying my writing at the moment.

Struggling Hard: I spent 2 hours on my new book yesterday. I can’t get going with it, the story isn’t working, and I don’t even like my lead characters. I’m wondering if this is the right novel to be working on for me.

Example 2:

Working Hard: I’ve been painting every evening this week. It’s amazing what you can achieve with small steps day by day. I’m really in the flow right now, and feel my painting skills are progressing all the time.

Struggling Hard: I’ve been painting every evening this week. Or at least going to paint. I can’t decide on where to start, and spend so long trying to choose I just wear myself out and then run out of time.

In both of these example the amount of time being spent is the same. But the outcomes, the progress and most importantly the ENJOYMENT of creating, are vastly different.

So if the creative work you're doing feels all struggle with little enjoyment and reward, it's time to question whether you're creating the things most important to you.

Are you creating from your heart and your deepest passions? Or are you creating according to the "shoulds" of someone else's idea of what to create?

Find out more about how to stop struggling and increase YOUR creativity by subscribing to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine. Sign up today and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook.

Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Your Creativity - 3 Mistakes To Avoid When Finding Your Unique Natural Creative Flow

When we’re in the flow, creating CAN be as easy and as painless as pouring warm honey down your throat.

But only when we let it...

More often we make it about as pleasurable and soothing as gargling nails!

Here are some the mistakes we make when trying to find our natural creative flow, and what to do to overcome them:

Mistake 1: Expect everything you try to work perfectly.

There’s a very powerful (and true) saying that “If one person can do something, then another person can do the same thing.” And there’s much to be gained from following the examples others have had success with.

With creating there’s no need to re-invent the wheel each time we go to create. There are hundreds of tips and techniques we can pick up from reading and researching creativity, and many of them are very effective.

The secret to finding your own creative flow though is to experiment widely then discard what doesn’t work for you, and do more of what does work. If you expect every single tip you read to work perfectly then you’ll be disappointed.

At the heart of creativity is the attitude of experimenting, exploring, seeing things in ways that others haven’t before, and making new connections. If we apply this philosophy to everything in our creative lives, it’ll help us to live up to our creative potential.

Mistake 2: Do something that works for a while, then stop doing it.

When we do find something that helps us be more creative, obviously it’s a good idea to keep doing it. Often though, delighted at the progress we’ve made, we’ll get complacent. We feel we’ve had some kind of breakthrough, and from now on creating will be so much easier.

That’s probably true. But ONLY if you keep doing the things that are working so well. If you’re on a bicycle and stop pedalling, pretty soon you’ll come to a standstill. But keep pedalling at a steady rate and you’ll cover miles in a very short time.

Apply the same idea to the techniques you’ve found that work for helping you be more creative. Keep doing them, and keep refining them so they’re even more powerful and effective for you.

Mistake 3: Getting easily disheartened.

So, you’ve found some creative routines that work really well for you, and you’re making great progress in your creative projects. Then you hit a sticky patch.

Something happens to throw you off your rhythm and it dents your confidence. Instead of continuing to practice the methods that have been working, you stop doing them all in a moment of panic.

But of course this only makes things harder. If you carry on through these more challenging times (which we all experience) by doing what you’ve proved works well, then you’ll soon be through them. The worse mistake you can make is to give up what you know is effective for you.

These are 3 of the most common mistakes we make that disrupt our natural creative flow.

Think carefully about which you’ve done in the past. How can you take a different approach from now on? An approach that will serve your creativity well, and allow it to flow as freely as possible?

Want more great creativity articles, tips and exercises to help you increase your creativity? It’s easy: just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing- 5 Crucial Reasons Why You Never Really Get Going With Your Creative Writing

How happy are you with your creative writing right now?

If a rating of 100 was “I’m writing the most amazing, rich and deep creative work I’m capable of” and a rating of 0 was “I’m not even writing”, where would you be right now on that scale?

If you rated yourself around 80 or above, congratulations, that’s fantastic! You’ve obviously found the methods, routines and techniques that are working incredibly well for you as a writer.

If, like the vast majority, your rating was much lower, then obviously you’re aware there must be a number of factors that are preventing you from being the best creative writer you can be.

So here are 5 of the most common reasons why you never really get going with YOUR creative writing, and what you can do instead:

1. You feel you don’t have enough time. You don’t write very often, and when you do it’s only a snatched few minutes here and there. You don’t have a chance to get going, to build momentum. There’s always something “more important” demanding your attention.

What you can do – Set aside a fixed period to create in every day, even if it’s just 15 minutes. Get up earlier, go to bed later, borrow the time from somewhere, make it a priority. Stick to it the same time everyday and within a couple of weeks you’ll notice the difference in your creative writing.

2. You lack the confidence in your creativity. You don’t believe you ever write anything that’s any good or worthwhile. You feel “what’s the point of writing if I never come up with anything good?”

What you can do – Build your confidence by starting with small projects. Pick a simple form like a short article or poem and just experiment writing with different approaches. Detach yourself from the outcome of the “finished product”. Just write to enjoy the experience of writing.

3. You struggle to focus on one project. You always have about 17 projects at various stages of completion. Whenever you start working on one project, you come up with ideas for the others, and you feel bombarded with options and overwhelmed.

What you can do – Pick one project. Make it something quite small, something you can finish within a couple of hours. Put all the other projects away out of sight. The aim here is to practice seeing one project through to the end, and experience what that feels like.

4. You don’t think you come up with enough good ideas. You often just sit staring blankly at a screen, wondering where on earth your next idea will ever come from. This makes you feel more and more anxious and to avoid this feeling, over time you’ve stopped even sitting down to write.

What you can do – Being open to ideas and to stimulation is a state of mind, something that anyone can develop. Take a notebook or sketchbook out to a new environment. Go through each of your 5 senses in turn and write down as much as you can about what you’re experiencing through that sense. This will enhance your sensory awareness, and ideas will flow more easily to you.

5. You feel a slave to procrastination. You never quite get around to writing, you always manage to find something else important to do. Like reorganising your bookshelf or cleaning the entire contents of your cutlery drawer.

What you can do – Set a short period of time to create every day, say 15 minutes. In this time, just write, forget about everything else. Just write what comes to you, whatever that may be. The more you practice just sitting down and going straight into writing - without finding an excuse not to – the easier it’ll get.

These are 5 of the top reasons why people struggle to be the wonderful creative writer they have the potential to be.

Which do you relate to most?

What actions can you start to take today to move your creative writing forward?

Want to find out how more about how to unlock your creative writing potential? Then sign up for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing - The Secrets To Being A Creative Writer You Didn't Realize You Already Knew

Anyone who’s truly creative is always looking to develop their creativity in new directions, and discover more about how they can create to their potential.

This is no different for creative writers.

As creative writers, we’re on an ongoing search to find our unique voice.

The journey along the way can be very enjoyable if we take on a playful and curious attitude. We can try out different styles and approaches as much as we wish.

When we find what we enjoy and get most benefit from, we can do more of that. The things we don’t enjoy, once we’ve tried them, we can drop and move on to something different.

As we go along though, it’s helpful to get tips and pointers from other experienced writers. It’s useful to hear what’s worked for other people, and how we can try out those techniques ourselves.

But there are no bigger and more precious “secrets” about how YOU can become a better creative writer than those you already know.

The fact is, yes it’s great to get ideas, tips and exercises from others, and this all shows your commitment to exploring the depths of your creativity.

But the biggest secrets – the most powerful keys to unlocking your true creative potential – lie within you already.

So if they’re already within you, why aren’t you making use of them?

The answer is either:

1. Because you don’t realise you already know

or

2. Because you don’t believe you already know.

Or both!

What difference would it make to you if you absolutely believed you had the potential to be an amazing writer, and that you knew how to unlock that potential?

How much more inspired and motivated would you feel? What difference would it make to your creative writing?

Well, you can begin to practice having this belief today, right now.

Write out the beliefs you need to have, to get to this point. Here are some of the kind you might use to get you started:

“I have the potential to be a wonderful writer.”

“I know how to be an incredible writer and each day I get a little closer.”

“My open attitude to experimenting with my writing means I’ll continue to grow and develop as a writer.”

By taking on these beliefs - and then taking the action that supports them - you’ll have found the “secrets to creative writing” unique to you.

The same beliefs that’ll help you to unleash your potential and be the best creative writer you can be.

So what are you waiting for, start building those beliefs, and taking that action today!

Want to find out how more about how to unlock your creative writing potential? Get your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are frustrated they're not using their creative talents as well as they could be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Your Creativity - The Power Of Letting Your Creativity Go Underground

What do you think of when you think of creating?

Do you have images of a writer typing away at their computer? A painter at their easel? A musician experimenting with their instruments?

Most of the time we tend to think of these kind of obvious images that represent creating. They’re all about creative people in the midst of creating their art.

Then, because we have this strong picture of what creativity is, we feel that unless we ourselves are involved in similar scenes, then we’re not being creative.

In truth, there are many, many, different forms of creating.

Most of them are far more subtle than the obvious kind of images described above.

One of the most powerful forms of creativity is when we put our subconscious to work whilst doing something else.

This is like taking your creativity underground, letting it work its magic beneath the surface, away from the bright lights, out of view.

What are the best ways to encourage our creativity to work underground?

To let our creativity go to work while we get on with something else, the other activity needs to take enough concentration that we’re occupied, but not so much that we can’t let ourselves daydream.

The kind of scenario that works best are physical activities, like washing up, cleaning, cooking or exercising.

While our bodies are occupied with the physical actions, only a tiny part of our mind needs to be engaged to keep us focused on the activity in hand.

The rest of our creative mind is free to explore, create, concoct and imagine all sorts of wonderful new ideas and connections.

If we just sit down and do nothing, there’s too little going on and it doesn’t work.

We’re not able to let our minds be creative as there are too many thoughts swimming around. Plus, because we’re not actually doing anything physically, we start to feel guilty about that!

So by combining a physical activity that needs to be done anyway, with allowing our creativity to get to work while we do, is the ideal combination.

One final tip: You might be asking – “How do I get my creative mind to work on the right things?”

There are two answers to how to get your creativity to work on the right things:

Answer 1. There ARE no right things. If your creative mind is allowed to spiral freely it will come up with all sorts of ideas that can you use in many different creative projects and other parts of your life.

Answer 2. You just ask it. If there is a particular problem or issue you’re stuck with or need guidance on, just ask your creativity to help out. Sounds almost too simple, doesn’t it? But it works.

For example if you’ve got to a difficult point in a story and you’re not sure where to take the relationship of the two lead characters, just ask your creativity: “What different options are there for the relationship of my two characters? In what different ways could the story develop?”

Asking like this gives your creative mind the permission to get to work on coming up with some ideas and solutions.

Try this technique of taking your creativity underground yourself while doing other every day activities and see how you can make it work best for you.

Want to discover more ways to increase YOUR creativity? It’s easy: just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Happiness - How To Light Up Your Life

Happiness can sometimes seem very elusive.

However much you try to be happy, nothing seems to help.

Often this is because you’re trying so hard to find that single instant-happiness-in-a-box solution that will solve all your problems, you overlook all the small things in your life that actually do bring happiness.

And, through over familiarity, you don’t realise how the negative effects of other small things can add up and become overwhelming.

Every person, every event, every experience in life can be summed up simply into one of two ways.

1. This brings light into my life. These are all the people, things, experiences, events that somehow enhance your life, and give you more positive energy. They bring a smile to your face, put a bounce in your step, makes the world seem a little brighter and warmer place to be.

2. This steals light from my life. These are the all the experiences, events, people and things that bring unhappiness. They in some way drain your light and energy. They dent your hope and contribute to you feeling downhearted and pessimistic. The world feels darker and colder to be in.

So how can we use these two types to become happier?

The first step is to recognise them.

So take a sheet of paper and write “These bring light into my life” at the top. Write down every little thing you can think of that brings a little more happiness and positive energy into your life.

Be sure too to write about your own attitudes, beliefs and outlooks that bring light into your life, as well as external people and experiences.

Then take another sheet of paper and write the heading: “These steal light from my life.” Write down all the things you can think of that drain energy and light from your life.

Again, remember to include your own attitudes, outlooks, thoughts and beliefs that steal light from your life, as well as the external factors.

Now you have your two lists.

It’s time to take action towards being more happy.

Pick 3 from the “These bring light into my life” list. In the next week, take action to increase the amount of each of these 3 you have in your life.

Also, pick 3 from the “These steal light from my life” list. Take action, in the next week, to reduce the amount of each of these you have in your life. Do what you need to do.

After a week, you’ll begin to notice the difference to your happiness. Keep up the action, maintain what you’ve done in the first week, then pick more things from your two lists and take action on them.

Using this technique, you can learn what brings you happiness and begin to light up your life more often and more consistently.

Creativity and happiness are closely linked. When we’re using more of our natural creative talents, we feel happier, more fulfilled and more alive.

Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin publishes Create Create!, a twice monthly ezine of articles, tips and exercises to help you be more creative, and therefore more happy. Sign up for your copy now at www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Artist? ME? YES! How To Prove You're Far More Creative Than You Think You Are

Maybe you’re reading this as someone who creates regularly and is delighted with your creative output in terms of the amount, the quality and the depth?

Then congratulations! It’s a stage that few creative people reach.

If you’re not currently feeling quite so creative, in fact if you rarely feel very creative at all, then carry on reading.

At the heart of all creative endeavors are two elements.

Element 1: The idea. Every creative project begins with a small seed of an idea, a starting point. Something that may have come as a flash of inspiration, or a natural development of an existing idea. Every creative project - every song, book, collage, photo, painting and film - begins with a single idea.

Element 2: The creative artist. Someone with the courage, vision and belief to take that tiny idea and make it into something wonderful. Without an artist, a creative spirit that’ll take up the idea and expand it into something amazing, the idea will just sit there going nowhere. Or just evaporate completely, lost forever.

So what we’re going to focus on is element 2, the creative artist, rather than element 1, the creative idea.

We’re going to show you how you’re actually a far more creative artist than your realise.

Ok, I can hear you now:

“But I’m not, I barely create at all. I couldn’t possibly call myself a CREATIVE ARTIST!”

But is that actually true?

If there wasn’t a part of you that believed you were creative, and that you could build on that and become MORE creative, then you wouldn’t even be reading this would you?

So it’s time to gather what we’re going to call your “Artistic Evidence”.

Your Artistic Evidence is anything and everything you’ve done in the past that’s creative.

Every action, every thought, every idea that’s demonstrated that yes you ARE a creative person, when you allow yourself to be.

So take a sheet of paper and divide it into 5 columns, with these 5 headings:

1. Creative Thinking. Write under this column every time you can remember when you’ve thought creatively. It might be when you’ve been daydreaming, or been trying to come up with a solution, or just putting together two disconnected thoughts and making a new connected idea.

2. Creative Actions. List here all the creative actions you’ve taken. This can be literal things like a picture you’ve painted or a letter you’ve written. Note down about all the examples you can, there will be more than you think.

3. Creative Advice. All the times when someone’s asked you for advice about a problem, and you’ve listened then offered them solutions and ideas. This is a very creative activity that we easily overlook and discount. List them all.

4. Creative Approach. These are the occasions when you’ve taken a different approach than usual. Maybe you’ve taken a different route to work, added your own fresh twist to a favorite recipe, or come up with possible new solutions to an ongoing problem. Write them under this heading.

5. Creative Ideas. Think of the pure creative ideas you’ve had. List down the ones that are for your own creative projects as well as those that come out of nowhere, and offer a solution to an everyday frustration or problem.

Once you get in the flow of this exercise, you’ll soon realize how creative you are, and how many creative ideas and approaches you use every day.

Your Artistic Evidence will amount to far more than you thought it would.

The next step after acknowledging this creativity is starting to channel it into the creative projects you’re really passionate about...

Discover more on how to increase you creativity today... Get your FREE copy of Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin’s powerful and practical “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook when you sign up to the FREE twice monthly ezine “Create Create!”. Visit the website now: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing - 5 Reasons Why You're Not Reaching Your Creative Writing Potential

All of us are capable of being highly creative, it’s the way we were born, our natural state.

Think about how curious a child is in its early years, how much it wants to explore and find out and investigate.

Unfortunately the majority of us have lost these creativity and curiosity tendencies by the time we become adults.

But it’s never too late to regain them.

Through creative writing we can go a long way to explore our creative potential and express the ideas we have.

But even if you’re a regular creative writer yourself, it’s unlikely you’re actually achieving anywhere near your potential.

Why?

Here are 5 reasons why you may not be reaching YOUR creative writing potential:

1. You’re afraid of being left out or excluded. Being part of a social group or community is a very strong human need. If for example you’re in a creative writing class and your writing is obviously on a different level to everyone else’s, there’s the fear you might be seen as “having it easy” and be resented by others in the class. So you tone down your writing and write well within your capabilities.

2. You just don’t believe you’re very creative. Even if you’re the most naturally gifted writer in the world, unless you have a strong belief in yourself and your abilities, you’ll always hold yourself back. Even if you have encouragement from others, you’ll never achieve more than you BELIEVE you can achieve. So to achieve more, work on those beliefs.

3. You haven’t found the right form of expression. If you’re more naturally inclined to be a novelist and all you’ve written is poetry, you might have always struggled in your writing. Experiment with different forms of creative writing, give each time to develop, and find the ones that you feel most comfortable and most expressive in.

4. You don’t know what it’s like to achieve. Maybe in your life you’ve never had a role model or example of what it’s like to push yourself, to stretch yourself towards achieving your natural creative potential. So for you, underachieving, and playing it safe, is the only way you know how to be.

5. You’re scared of failing. On the surface you tell yourself you don’t have time to write more, or you don’t have the correct set up, and other excuses. But really, you’re just scared of writing more, and exploring your creative writing abilities, because you don’t want to fail. The only true failure is not giving it your best shot in the first place.

These are 5 common reasons why we don’t achieve our creative writing potential.

Which do you most relate to? Be completely honest with yourself, which of them can you recognise in yourself?

The next step, once you’ve recognised why you’re not reaching your creative potential, is to start taking action to get you closer to it.

You can take the next step now and sign up for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Your Creativity In Unpredictable Times- How To Embrace The Static In Life And Create Anyway

However wonderful we think the lives of others may be, however much we look on enviously at those who we think lead a perfect and flawless existence, the fact is we all have unpredictable events and unwanted difficulties in our lives.

Imagine your life running exactly as you want it to as being like receiving a signal from a radio station that’s crystal clear, resonant and completely uninterrupted.

Pleasant idea, but not very realistic. What actually happens is this:

From time to time a little (or a lot!) of static starts to seep through that clear perfect signal.

These are the times when something doesn’t go quite as you expected:

Maybe you get stuck on how to finish the final page of your new 25 chapter novel.

Or you get caught in the rain on the way to an important meeting with a new business contact.

Or one of your children falls ill suddenly throwing your plans for a creative weekend into disarray.

When these kind of events happen – all they’ll ALWAYS happen – we have essentially two choices.

Choice One: We can throw our hands in the air, stamp our feet, shout and scream that life isn’t fair and something always happens to curse our creative process, and we might as well give up creating because we’re never going to get anywhere.

Or,

Choice Two: We can embrace the static. We can accept the fact that yes there will be obstacles, unexpected twists and turns and challenges. And we can use this richness and unpredictability of life to draw from, to make our creative works deeper, more authentic, more courageous.

If you find you’re more inclined to take choice one, here are some tips to help you move to the more creative, healthy and productive choice two:

Build strong foundations: Have powerful creative habits in place to help you through the more erratic and unpredictable times. For example: create for a minimum 15 minutes at the same time each day.

Know that this will pass: Whatever form the static takes, it will pass. It’s a bump in the road, and yes it might change your direction a little temporarily. But you’ll still keep on travelling in the direction that’s right for you and your creativity.

Have a little slack in your routines: If you plan everything down to the last minute, then if something takes longer than expected, everything after it gets delayed. Instead give yourself a buffer of time, some slack in your routine just in case. If nothing unexpected does arise, use this slack time for something productive and creative.

These are a few tips to help you more easily embrace the static in your creative life, instead of going into a state of blind panic and everything grinding to a standstill.

Remember it’s often this unpredictability of life that makes the most interesting, dramatic stories, and the most touching and extraordinary works of creativity.

So embrace the static in YOUR life to add more depth and originality to what YOU create.

Want to find more ways to increase YOUR creativity? Then sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Prompts - But Isn't It Cheating To Use Prompts To Enhance My Creative Writing?

A creative writing prompt is a simple technique or a few words or phrases you can use as a starting point for your creative writing.

Once you’ve begun to write, and used the prompt for inspiration, you’re off on your own.

Where your writing goes after this is entirely up to you and your imagination.

Many creative writers feel uncomfortable using creative writing prompts.

They think it’s cheating or taking a short cut and all their ideas should be 100% new, original and their own.

On the surface that sounds like an honourable point of view. Of course we all want to be able to compose work that’s uniquely ours and the fruits of our creativity alone.

We know how bad we’d feel if we simply copied someone else’s writing and claimed it as our own.

But the fact is, nothing is completely new.

Everything creative builds upon the works of those who’ve gone before us.

For example, think about when a major car company begins designing a new model.

They may introduce many new features, some of which are truly revolutionary in car design and innovation. They’ll most likely use cutting edge technology to design each new element of the new model.

But that new car, even after all the millions spent and the thousands of man hours of design and labour invested, will still have four wheels and an engine.

It’s the same with creative writing.

At the most extreme fringes of creative writing, you might invent new words, you might even invent new letters. But they’ll have meaning in some form.

Creative writing is about the expression of ideas and emotions. Yes it can be as experimental as you want to make it, but it’ll always return to being about that human expression.

Creative writing prompts help us explore that creative expression.

If you’re a dressmaker, do you make the material from nothing. Do you have your own factory that processes the raw fibres into larger pieces of material? Unlikely. You probably buy material that’s already been woven and then make your dress from that.

If you’re a musician who composes using computer software, do you write a completely new software program from scratch each time you want to start a new composition? It’s not very probable. You find software that works for you, and use it to help you explore your creative music ideas from there.

If you’re a photographer who specialises in photographing buildings and architecture, do you go and erect a new building each time you want to take some pictures? Do you build a new camera, piece by piece? No. You have cameras you’re comfortable using, then you find buildings that inspire your photography.

Would you consider any of the 3 artists described above as “cheating” or “not being original”?

So if you have any concerns about whether using creative writing prompts is cheating or somehow not allowed, think again.

You’ll no doubt realise that in fact creative writing is in many ways already one of the simplest and purest forms of creating, because we need so little equipment, tools or technology to begin.

So using a few words or techniques as a starting point is even less of a possible concern.

Ready to discover some top creative writing prompts you can use right away? Then sign up for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Prompts - Supercharge Your Creative Writing Today Using Prompts

As a creative writer, no doubt you have the ambition and intention to write all your own work.

You want to be proud of every word you write, and know that it comes from your heart.

You want each piece you write to be as wonderful a creative expression as you know how to produce, and for it to touch, move and inspire people.

This is all fantastic, and can act as great motivation and impetus to write creatively.

But what about those times when you feel the ideas have run a little dry?

So dry in fact that you’re thinking of booking a holiday to the Sahara desert for a change of climate?

Those times when you’re sat at a blank page or screen wondering where the next WORD is going to come from, let alone the next complete poem, story or novel.

How motivating are these kind of ambitions and intentions in times like these?

Don’t you find they can actually increase the pressure?

This expectation you’ve put upon yourself actually adds to the feelings of being stuck and blocked?

It’s during these difficult periods you can benefit most from using creative writing prompts.

Creative writing prompts are simple techniques or sets of words that give you a starting point to write from. They give you that little spark of inspiration, that gentle push forward you need to get your creative writing flowing again.

Where your writing goes after you’ve set off is entirely up to you. You might use a prompt to start writing, write 1000 words then edit the last 400 or so into a new poem.

Although in this case you didn’t use the content of the creative writing prompt, you couldn’t have got to your own piece of poetry without having used the prompt to get there.

Having a good stock of prompts available to pull out in those barren times is invaluable.

They can not only get you moving when you’ve ground nearly to a complete standstill, they can also help you supercharge your creative writing to new levels.

Ready to discover some top creative writing prompts you can use right away? Then sign up for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing - How To Double Your Productivity In Creative Writing

Ah, the old debate of quantity versus quality...

Is it better to write one amazing book that blows people’s minds but is only read by a handful of readers?

Or to write a number of very good books that are read by thousands, even millions?

Either way, there’s one simple fact behind this argument.

Well actually it’s a progressive series of facts:

- The more you write, the more experienced you become in writing.

- The more experienced you become, the easier it gets to write.

- The easier it gets to write, the more your confidence grows.

- The more your confidence grows, the more you can experiment and try new approaches with your writing.

- The more you experiment, the better a writer you become.

So, to become a better writer, all you have to do is write more!

Except, as you know, it’s not always that easy to write more. Sometimes it’s hard enough to just write a single sentence.

So how can you hope to double your creative writing output during these times when it’s difficult to even string a few words together?

The secret is to form powerful daily writing habits.

We’ve all had experience of habits in our lives that are hard to break. Habits are usually associated with being negative and bad for us.

Few people remember we can harness their power to use in a positive way as well.

Such as to helping you become more productive in your creative writing.

Here’s a proven technique that you can start using in your creative life right away:

Step 1. Pick a time of day when you’re going to write. You know yourself when you tend to be more creative, so use this time of day to your advantage.

Step 2. Select the amount of time you’ll write for. When starting out, do at least 15 mins, and probably not more than 30 mins.

Step 3. Start your new routine! Every day, at your chosen time of day, for the period of time you selected, just sit down and write. It’s not even that important what you write. What is crucially important is that you get into the habit of writing for this minimum amount of time everyday.

Step 4. Repeat step 3 for at least 14 days. Then have a little review of how effective each element has been for you, and tweak as necessary. You might want to adjust the time of day you write for example.

Step 5. Once you get comfortable with your chosen time period, increase it. Then try that for a week or two. Then increase it again. If you pace yourself well, you can be writing 2 or 3 or 4 times the amount you were previously, in just a matter of weeks.

Creating every day like this is a great, proven technique for forming strong creative writing habits, and increasing your creative output significantly.

Then it stands to reason, as we saw earlier, the more you write, the better a writer you become. And you won't need to worry about which side of that old argument you fall upon, because you’ll be writing at a high quality AND high quantity...

Ready to find out more about how to unlock your creative writing potential? Then sign up for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse right away at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Increase Creativity- What A Scary Old Haunted House Can Teach You About Why You Don't Create More

Do you like scary movies? Or do you quiver behind the sofa in fear at even the slightest glimpse of anything frightening?

How would you feel if you had to stay for a night at a run down old haunted house, right out in the middle of nowhere? In a torrential storm? With no electricity?

Whether scary thrills are something you relish or run a mile from, there’s plenty we can learn from them about our creativity, and why we don’t create more.

Imagine then you DO go to stay at that haunted house.

And it is right out deep in the middle of a forest, the last few hundred meters of the trail there only accessible on foot. The rain’s lashing down, lightning fills the sky, and that thunder sounds nearer with each mighty crack...

You get in the house and find there’s no power. And it’s cold. And there are strange noises around.

By now you’d probably be feeling pretty anxious, wouldn’t you?

Why?

Because of all the different factors that are adding up to making you feel scared.

Any of them on their own wouldn’t amount to much. But added together all at once, combined with your own vivid imagination spinning overtime, it’s not exactly a recipe for steady nerves and a calm head.

There are two main factors as work here. Associations and Expectations.

Here’s a little more about each and how they apply in your creative life:

Associations: In the haunted house scenario there are many elements that we associate with being in a scary situation. The run down old house, the storm, the isolated location, the power failure and so on.

So what do you associate with creating?

When you think of creating, what images and thoughts and memories come to mind? Are they positive, empowering images that are going to inspire you to create more?

If they are, that’s great, keep going as you are. If your associations with creating though are negative, debilitating and frustrating, then invest some time in looking at why this is. More importantly, think about how you can reprogram these into more positive associations.

Expectations: Back in the haunted house, with all those factors, we’d EXPECT to be scared. Our minds can be very powerful and play all kinds of tricks on us. It’s more than likely that you might even begin to imagine the floorboards upstairs creaking, or the lock on the front door being rattled, just because you’re expecting more scary stuff to happen.

What expectations do you have when you sit down to create?

Do you expect to create freely, wildly and abundantly? Or – maybe this is more likely – you expect to get stuck, to run out of ideas, to procrastinate, to get frustrated.

Again, look closely at your expectations around creativity. If they’re less than positive, then start to seriously consider ways you can begin to turn this around.

By working on these two important areas – your associations and expectations – of your creativity and creative work, you can quickly make strides towards being more creative.

(Pretty soon you’ll be able to sleep again without leaving the light on too!)

Want to learn more about how to increase YOUR creativity? It’s easy: just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Be More Creative - Why It's Selfish NOT To Use Your Creative Talents

Many of us who create, in whatever form, are very aware of the time we spend on our projects.

Often we create alone, to allow us to be as focused and as creative as we can be.

Yes, there are any number of wonderful creative group activities and these can be very beneficial to us, as well as fantastic fun.

For most creative projects though, we need that solo time to really get in the flow and create.

Then we have the dilemma, that when we DO make enough time for ourselves to create, we feel we’re being selfish.

“All this time alone, just focusing on me and my stuff. When I could be spending the time with my family, with my partner, with my friends, working for a charitable cause...”

Many of us have beliefs that come from our cultures, backgrounds and upbringings that say that doing ANYTHING alone is selfish! This simply isn’t true.

So here are 5 reasons why it’s actually selfish to NOT use your creative talents:

1. You inspire others through your work. Think about some of your favourite artists of the past, people who are long dead whose art, music or books continue to move and inspire you. Now turn that around to your art. How many people can be inspired and moved by the fruits of your creativity? Isn’t it just selfish not to get your work out there for people to be inspired by?

2. You owe it to the people who love you. What is it that the people close to you - the people that truly care about you - want more than anything for you? Yep, they want you to be happy. And, as a creative person, creating is something that makes you happy. So do yourself and your close friends a favour – create and be happy!

3. You become more generous. All the time you feel you’re snatching a few minutes here and there to create, you become protective and defensive about your time, your ideas and what you create. By giving yourself more time to create, your creativity flows more easily, so do your ideas. So you’re more likely to share your ideas, your time and your creative experiences with others. It’d be selfish not to...

4. Your creative way of life motivates other artists. We’ve mentioned how our art can inspire others. But equally as important is the way you live your life as a creative person. Being brave enough to take up your tools and create each day – irrelevant of what you produce – is a major achievement. How many others can be motivated to take up THEIR tools and create by the courageous example you set?

5. You become a better person to be with. When you feel you’ve allowed yourself time to create, and start to see and enjoy the results of your efforts, there’s no feeling like it. The sense of achievement and pride you feel puts a skip in your step and a glow in your soul. And, you become a happier, more enjoyable person to be around. Everyone benefits. How can that be selfish?

These are 5 clear reasons why it’s actually selfish to NOT make the best of your creative talents.

Which of these most resonate with you?

Would you like to find out more about how to be more creative? It’s easy: just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Tips - How Many Creative Writing Projects Should I Work On At Once?

Many creative writers get concerned about how many creative writing projects they should work on at any one time to produce the best results.

So a common questions is: How many creative projects should I work on at once, to be at my most creative?

There are two main ways of working - one writing project at a time or multiple writing projects at a time.

So let’s take a look at each, and it’s pros and cons:

1. One Creative Writing Project at a time.

Some people work best picking one project, then holing up and hibernating, throwing all their creative writing energy into that project until it's done. Then they rest, choose a new project and start the cycle again.

Advantages: This kind of approach can be very focused and high intensity. You’re able to get a lot of writing done in a short period of time.

Because all of this writing is channelled into just the one project, it’s easier to see the progress you’re making. Seeing this rapid development then leads to becoming more inspired and motivated to create even more.

Disadvantages: It can be easy to get "lost" in projects. If you’re so focused on just churning out a high volume of words, there’s the risk of losing the wider perspective.

If you don’t stay in touch with the overall aim of what you’re writing, you can lose objectivity, then not perform at your best. Writing just one project at a time also means you’re more likely to become stale and bored and your writing may start to reflect this.

2. Multiple Creative Writing Projects at a time.

Others prefer to have a handful of different creative writing projects on the go at any one time. They choose projects of different lengths, and in different areas so they always remain stimulated. If they get a little stuck on one project, they simply put it away, let it gestate in its juices for a while, and get on with one of their other projects.

Advantages: Having more projects can mean you stay stimulated and inspired. There’s more scope for the cross-pollination of ideas, where while working on one project, ideas spark off into other projects.

Just by knowing you’ve begun a project, your mind is always switched on and looking for new ideas and new approaches for it, even while you're working on others. If you have more projects running, it can mean your mind works harder, in a wider range of ways, and is more productive.

Disadvantages: It’s easy to confuse getting temporarily stuck with complete block and procrastination. It’s possible with multiple projects you spend all your time flitting from one project to the next and never get any significant amount of any them done.

It’s also harder to measure your progress. Writing 5000 words on one project is easy to see and a big chunk of words. The same 5000 words spread over 5 or 7 or 10 projects looks a lot less, even though by the word count the total output is the same. Because it seems like you’re creating less, it can reduce your motivation.

So which is the best way of being at your most productive and creative, the single or multiple project approach?

The bottom line is, whatever works for you! There’s no definitive answer or method that works flawlessly for everyone.

So be bold, and try experimenting with different numbers of projects, combining different sized projects and so on. Take note of what helps you be more productive, have more ideas, etc and build on this knowledge and experience.

Would you like to discover more creative writing tips right away? Then sign up for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at http://www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing- How To Be More Focused In 3 Easy Steps

How focused is your creative writing? How consistently do you write? How far do you get with the creative writing projects most important to you before losing momentum?

One of the most common issues creative writers struggle with is being focused.

Focus is the difference between getting 3 chapters written this weekend and writing little or nothing.

Focus is the difference between being able to sit down at a pre-arranged time each day and write, and trying to snatch tiny pockets of time to write, never getting into a rhythm.

Focus is the difference between being a creative writer who writes and a creative writer who will start to write “when I have the time/ energy/ ideas.”

Becoming more focused can bring great rewards to your creative writing and allow you to quickly progress in a short space of time.

Here are 3 key steps to becoming more focused:

1. Focus your time. Not having enough time is a common cry for many, if not all, creative people. The first step is to realize we all have the same amount of time. We can’t change the number of minutes in each day.

But we can change what we do in those 1440 minutes. It’s not that we don’t have enough time to write, it’s that we’re not prioritizing enough time to write.

However busy you are, find a small window of time each and every day, even if it’s just 15 or 20 minutes. Make space for it in your daily routine. Get as far from distractions as possible and just write.

2. Focus your ideas. Many of us complain we don’t have enough good ideas. Many of us too claim we have so many ideas we just don’t know which one to start with. Some of us claim both of these things at once!

The simplest way to focus your ideas is to pick one and go with it. Set yourself a period of time, say a week or 2 weeks, and work only on that idea you’ve chosen. Commit to continuing to work on that piece of creative writing for the duration of the time chosen, wherever it leads you.

If another idea comes along demanding your attention, pause, jot it down, put it to one side and continue with your current project.

3. Focus your energy. Notice the biggest drains on your energy as a creative writer. It might be external distractions. Maybe it’s negative thought patterns. Maybe it’s people around you who tell you your writing will never amount to anything.

Maybe it’s your phone keep ringing or your email alerts. Maybe it’s your cat asking to be fed...

Find the biggest energy suckers and do whatever it takes to eliminate, or at least drastically reduce them. Then just write, each day, every day. Until your project is done. Then start writing the next one.

Lack of focus is one of the major reasons we don’t finish – and sometimes don’t even BEGIN – the creative writing projects we want to.

Use these 3 steps to greatly increase your focus in writing and notice how you improve your creative writing in just a few weeks.

Want to discover more about being more focused with your creative writing? Get your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse right now at http://www.YouAreACreativeWriter.com .

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are struggling to be as creative as they know they can be. See more at his website: http://www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing - How To Get Focused And Stay Focused - The 5 Key Factors

Focus is one of the top issues we struggle with as creative writers.

In fact for anyone who’s creative, trying to channel that creativity into one direction and producing one coherent end piece of work is one of the biggest challenges.

So here are 5 key factors for getting focused – and more importantly STAYING focused – in your creative writing:

1. Acknowledge your progress. If we can’t see how we’re progressing – in individual writing projects, and as a writer on the whole – then continuing to write soon loses focus and even its purpose.

Review your work every month or so. Recall what you’ve written, how you experimented, how you’ve developed as a writer. You’ll be amazed how far you can come in a matter of weeks, without even realising it.

2. Have a vision and a way forward. We all need goals to move towards to keep us motivated. These are long term visions for how we want to be as a writer.

Take the time to write out where you want to be in 1, 3 and 5 years time as a writer. Write about what you’d like to have accomplished in as much detail as you can. Then break this down into smaller time periods. 6 months, 3 months, 1 month.

Now you have clear, focused aims to move towards. Plus, your motivation will be higher, as you can see the benefits of your development.

3. Use external feedback and encouragement. Ideas and opinions from those we trust and respect can be great inspiration to us. It’s easy to get lost in the thick of a writing project and lose objectivity.

Find people you respect, and whose opinion you value. Ask them for regular feedback on your latest work, what they like, what they think can be improved. This helps us stay clear, focused, and on track.

4. Capture and store spare ideas. The more we write, the more ideas appear from nowhere, ideas we can easily get distracted by. Avoid being side-tracked by capturing these spare ideas for future projects as soon as they appear.

Take a few moments to jot the idea down in a notebook then put it away to be revisited and built upon in the future. This deals with it neatly and allows us to continue writing the piece in hand without being continually distracted by this new idea.

5. Write Regularly. There is simply no substitute, no short cut to becoming a focused, prolific writer. It will always come back to writing regularly, developing effective writing habits and routines that work for you.

Set aside a specific amount of time each and every day to write. Even if you start with just 15 minutes. The fatal error that most of us make is not setting a time, and hoping to fit it in "when we’ve got time". This doesn’t work! Set the time first, then commit to it.

These are 5 tips to help you get focused – and stay focused – in your creative writing.

Use these in combination and you’ll have the basis for a very powerful and prolific creative writing career.

Discover more ways to improve your creative writing right away.

Sign up now for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are frustrated they're not making the best of their unique creative abilities.

See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writer's Block - 5 Reasons Why Writer's Block Is Not A Terminal Condition

The words “Writer’s Block” can strike fear into the heart of writers young and old, form the virgin wordsmith to the veteran novelist.

For many of us, suffering from writer’s block at certain points in our writing careers feels as inevitable as the fact that the sun rises each morning and sets again each night.

And that’s the biggest danger of writer’s block.

The way we actually buy into this collective idea that if we’re a writer then yes we will be afflicted by writer’s block and yes it’ll be hard to overcome.

So it makes sense that to banish the dreaded block, we need to shatter this belief.

To help you, here are 5 reasons why in fact writer’s block is NOT a terminal condition:

1. We can choose what we focus on. The human mind has a few major blind spots in its logic. One of them is dealing with negatives. Even if we think “I will NOT suffer from writer’s block”, our mind tends to pick out the words: “Suffer. Writers. Block”.

The more we focus on NOT being blocked, the more we attract the state of being blocked. So instead, we can choose to focus on words and states like being creative, productive, inventive and flowing.

2. We can take preventative action.You know the old saying prevention is better than cure? Totally true in this case too. We can notice the times we’re more likely to feel stuck and find it more difficult to write.

Then we can take action and precautions to ensure we don’t put ourselves in these kind of situations and circumstances. By avoiding these times when we're more likely to struggle to create, we increase our chances of writing freely.

3. We can practice being more creative and having more ideas. Adopting a mindset that you’re a creative person and that ideas are in everything around you is essential to banish writer’s block.

The more you get used to seeing ideas and finding inspiration in the tiny details of everyday life, the more of a readily available stockpile of ideas you have to call upon and develop with your writing.

4. We can change our beliefs. If we believe we’re likely to suffer from writer’s block, we will. Our beliefs are more powerful than we often realise, and can influence every part of our life.

Take a good look at the beliefs you hold about creative writing – both in general about how you think writers are, and more specifically what you believe about yourself as a writer. Weed out those negative beliefs and replace them with ones more positive and supportive.

5. Ultimately, it’s a state of mind, not an external force. We are not slaves to writer’s block, quivering in fear with each word we write, in case it suddenly strikes us and renders us helpless to write anymore.

Writer’s block is as real, and as big an issue, as you want to believe it to be. You’re the only person who can overcome this false idea that writer’s block is something you are at the mercy of.

These are 5 powerful reasons why writer’s block need not be a terminal condition for you and your creative writing.

What action can you take today to start putting to rest the beliefs and mindsets that hold your writing back?

Here’s a bonus tip to overcome writer’s block: Sit down, get a pencil and a sheet of paper and just write...

Want to find out how more about how to overcome writer’s block and unlock your creative writing potential? Then sign up for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse right away at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are frustrated they're not using their creative talents as well as they could be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing - Read This Only If You Don't Think You're A Creative Writer

So, you don’t think you’re a creative writer?

But presumably you’d like to be? You have some desire, some ambition to write creatively, more than you do right now? Otherwise you wouldn’t even be reading this.

What we have then, is someone who wants to be a creative writer, but doubts they’ve got what it takes.

So we’re going to close the gap between where your thinking is, and where it needs to be for you to be that creative writer. In four simple steps.

Step 1: Where do you want to be as a creative writer?

Take a pen and sheet of paper and write out in as much descriptive detail as possible just how you’d like to be as a creative writer. Write in the present tense about how it feels, what it looks like, what it sounds like.

Write about what you write, where you write, how you write, when you write. Again use as much detail as possible. Step into this role of being the ultimate creative writer you can be and imagine and write down every last tiny aspect and nuance.

Step 2: Where are you right now?

Give an honest, fair appraisal of where your creative writing is right now. Describe what you write, where you write, how much and how often.

Be as truthful as you can. Don’t be hard on yourself and overly critical, but at the same time if you’ve only written 10 words in the last month, don’t kid yourself into saying you’ve written 10 thousand. The bare facts of reality is what we need here.

Step 3: What COULD you do to close the gap?

Write out all the things you COULD do to move from where you are now to where you want to be as a creative writer. There are 2 main ways of doing this. I recommended you do both!

First, just brainstorm. Write anything and everything that comes to mind as to how you can take steps towards being the best writer you can be, however small it seems.

Second, break it down. Look at each element – like when you create, where you create, etc - and come up with at least 5 things you can do for each. You can do it.

Step 4: Pick 3 things and take action!

Scan your list of all the things you could do to close the gap and move yourself forward as a creative writer. Pick 3 that jump out at you in some way, that make you feel excited or particularly motivated.

For each, set a date when you’re going to start to take that action and a date when you’re going to finish it. Then put it your diary or somewhere you’re going to see it so you remember to take that action.

One last thing. Write next to each of the 3 points you’ve chosen: “I commit to taking this action to move me forward as a creative writer.”

Take your time with this whole process.

Don’t just rush through half-hearted, or skip parts out. It only works as a complete sequence of steps.

Commit to giving it your full attention and go through each step as best you can.

When you’ve followed it through, you’ll realise how much closer you’ve got to where you want to be. This could be just a couple of days from now.

Then, repeat the process, pick another 3 action steps and take yourself – and your creative writing – to the next level.

Ready to discover more about how to unlock your creative writing potential? Get your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse right away at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are frustrated they're not using their creative talents as well as they could be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing - 7 Secrets Of Super Self-Confidence In Creative Writing

What’s the one thing that ultimately stops you achieving what you’re truly capable of in your creative writing?

Not having enough time?

Not having the right materials?

Not having the right environment to work in?

Not having enough ideas?

Nope.

Even when you have ALL of these things, if you don’t have confidence in yourself and your creative writing ability then you’ll always hold yourself back.

Sometimes without even realising you’re doing it.

If you don’t hold the belief that you are capable of writing wonderful creative poems, articles, stories, scripts and novels, then you simply won’t.

When we feel confident in ourselves and in our ability to create, the world seems a different place.

Everything flows more easily, we don’t notice all the tiny details that could otherwise hold us back. We feel brave, bold, fearless, and stride forward, ever closer to reaching our full potential and the peak of our creativity.

We all know how to be confident, deep down, and we’ve all had times where we’ve felt a strong belief and creative flow. But often we need a helping hand to get there.

So here are 7 secrets of super self-confidence to boost your creative writing starting today:

Secret 1. Start small to build your confidence. If you haven’t written for a while, be kind to yourself and ease yourself in. Set yourself small but important goals that are like a boat on the ocean that you’re watching from the shore – slightly out of reach to stretch you, but not out of sight.

Secret 2. Rediscover some past work you’re proud of. We all have creative writing we’ve done that we’ve been pleased with, even if it was some time ago. Re-read some of yours and remember that talent doesn’t just vanish. It’s inside you waiting to be called out to play again.

Secret 3. Ask someone you respect for feedback on your writing. A few words of encouragement from someone who’s opinion we value can work wonders for our confidence in times of doubt.

Secret 4. Compare yourself to only one person. That person is you. The more you try to compare yourself to others, the more opportunities you have to tell yourself you’re not as good or as talented. Compare yourself only to yourself and how you’re developing and how your work is evolving with each new project.

Secret 5. Visualise times of great creativity. Spend some time each day to sit quietly and just picture yourself in your mind writing amazing, abundant, creative work. The more you practice this “mental rehearsal” the easier it becomes to be like it in reality.

Secret 6. Surround yourself with positive influences. Meet and mix with energising, creative, positive people who are enthusiastic about creating and life. If there are people around you who drain your confidence, find ways to see them less or not at all.

Secret 7. Act as if you’re confident. Even in the times you don’t feel confident, you still know how it feels and what it’s like. By acting as if you are confident, and taking on all the subtle behaviours and actions confident people have, you’ll soon go from acting to actually becoming confident.

Pick just one of these confidence secrets and start using it right away. Stick with it and soon you’ll notice the difference in your outlook and ability in your creative writing.

Discover more about how to improve your creative writing right away. Get your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at http://www.YouAreACreativeWriter.com

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are frustrated they're not making the best of their unique creative abilities. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Be More Creative - The 5 Most Important Questions You Can Ask Yourself To Increase Your Creativity

Sometimes, the key to finding ways to be more creative and to help you increase your creativity is not about finding the right answers, the right techniques or the right secrets.

Sometimes, it’s about asking yourself the right questions.

A great question can help us unlock all kinds of different ways of thinking and new angles of approaching a problem we’ve never thought of before.

Most of us are very good at asking others these powerful questions. Those close to us, our friends, partners, families, colleagues.

A seemingly simple question can bring about a major shift in thinking.

This then leads to the creative juices kicking in and from nowhere all of a sudden all kinds of ideas and alternatives begin to develop.

Applying this to ourselves is usually a little harder though.

With someone else we have that distance, that objectivity that allows us to ask the right question at the right time.

With ourselves we can get so caught up in the thick of our dilemmas and issues we can’t see beyond them to come up with a new approach.

So here are 5 questions to give you a headstart.

In fact they’re quite possibly the 5 most important questions you can ask yourself to increase your creativity, both today and into the future.

Q1. Why do I create?

Often we spend time looking for different ways to create as well as trying to identify the things that stop us creating. This is great, but it’s only half the picture. If you ask yourself the true, deep level reason why you create at all, you’ll find a motivation that’s more powerful than anything you come up against.

Q2. What would my life be like if I couldn't create?

We all create more than we think we do, and are quick to dismiss acts of genuine “everyday creativity” as not real creating. Often unless we have an end product that we can call art, we don’t count it as creative. But imagine if you couldn’t create anything. Like you had a creativity-ectomy and had zero ability to create a single thought, idea or action. How would that be?

Q3. What would happen if I created everything I've ever wanted to?

Fear of failing is often a big creativity killer. But sometimes it’s the fear that we might SUCCEED that stops us even more. Think about what would happen if you created everything you wanted, to allay your fears about how it’d be, and to realise how amazing and positive an effect it would have on your life.

Q4. What stops me creating more than anything else?

The other side to Q1. What’s the REAL reason you don’t create more? Is it lack of time to finish a project or that you’re scared stiff about what might happen if you did? Unmask those fears and see them for what they really are. Then you can begin to face them head on and out in the open.

Q5. What 3 actions can I take TODAY to help me be more creative?

Thinking is essential and the four questions above will help you do plenty of that. But unless you then take action on what you’ve learnt about yourself and how and why you create, it means very little. So what 3 actions, however small steps they may be, can you take today, to help move your creativity forward and enable you to be more creative?

So there’s your 5 powerful questions.

If you ask them, and answer them, as honestly as you can, you’ll find a wealth of learning and ideas behind them to help you increase your creativity today and in the days, weeks and months to come.

Want to learn more about how to increase YOUR creativity? Then sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing - How Just 10 Minutes A Day Can Dramatically Improve Your Creative Writing

Creativity is like a muscle. If we want to improve our creative writing, the only way to do it is to give our creative writing muscles a regular thorough workout.

I don’t mean literally the muscles you use to write, the ones in your fingers and arms. What we’re looking at here are your creativity muscles.

Consider an athlete in training for a big event like the Olympics or World Championships.

They don’t turn up on the big day for their first race having not trained or exercised at all. If they did, however naturally gifted they may be, they simply wouldn’t perform anywhere near their true potential.

In reality the top athletes train vigorously for months and years leading up to their big event. They keep themselves in shape and keep pushing themselves to new levels.

An athlete competing even in their first big international event is likely to have been training in their discipline for a decade or more.

It’s the same with creative writing.

To perform at our best, to write the deepest, truest, most rewarding work we’re capable of, we must regularly workout and exercise our creative writing muscles.

It doesn’t mean you have to give up your whole life and write 12 hours a day. Though if that’s what you really want, then great, go for it.

In fact you can dramatically improve your creative writing beginning with investing just 10 minutes a day.

Here’s how to start with your first 2 weeks:

Day 1: Decide on what time of day you’re going to write. Make it a regular time, don’t just try to cram in 10 minutes where you can each day, because it’ll get pushed aside. Also decide where you’re going to write. Somewhere that’s as free from distractions as possible.

Day 2: Find or buy yourself a notebook or sketch book in which to write. Even if you usually type on a computer, writing by hand will help you get back in touch with the act of creating more strongly. You’ll also need a clock or timer that will alert you when 10 minutes are up.

Day 3: Your first day of writing. Set your timer for 10 minutes. Write the date at the top of the page, then just write whatever comes to mind. It doesn’t matter if it’s a new creative idea, a dream you had, a problem you’ve been turning over in your head, or even your shopping list. Just write, until the timer goes.

Day 4: Repeat Day 3.

Day 5: Repeat Day 3.

Day 6: Repeat Day 3. OK, you get the idea!

Day 7 – 13: Repeat Day 3

Day 14: Read back over what you’ve written the last 2 weeks. Notice any patterns and developments, in what you’ve written and how much. Think about any minor adjustments you can make to help you, in the time, place or form you write.

After the first 2 weeks you’ll start to have formed a good habit of writing. Now it’s up to you to continue as you wish.

You could carry on the same, or increase the time you spend each day. You could also have a more structured way in what you write and work for 10 minutes each day on the same ongoing piece of writing.

Whatever you do, the daily routine is what’s most important.

Very soon you’ll find that exercising your creative writing muscles each day is a great way to improve your creative writing.

Discover more about how you can improve your creative writing, and sign up for your FREE 5 part creative writing taster ecourse right away at http://www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are frustrated they're not making the best of their unique creative abilities. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing - What's Stopping YOU From Being A Creative Writer?

So you want to be a creative writer.

You know that, deep down, you’ve got the talent for it. You also know you used to enjoy it years ago when you were younger and more carefree.

But however much on the surface you seem to want to be a creative writer, or rather RESUME being a creative writer again, something always seems to stop you.

You’re just too busy. Or you don’t have the right paper, pens and notebooks.

You haven’t written for a few years so you’ll need to read a book or two on creative writing. Or take a course.

You haven’t got many ideas, so you’ll need to gather some inspiration together from somewhere before you can begin.

Even if we don’t realise it, when we think we really want to be doing something, but we never get quite around to it, there’s only one thing truly stopping us.

We may make virtual lists in our minds of all the criteria we need before we can be a creative writer and start writing. Like some of the examples mentioned above.

So what happens if we actually did come to the point where everything is in place for us to begin, or resume, our creative writing career?

What if all the boxes on our virtual list WERE ticked?

Got the time to write? Check.

Got the right equipment – paper, pens, notebook, computer? Check.

Read a few books on creative writing? Check.

Taken a course in how to be a creative writer? Check.

Got a few ideas ready to explore? Check.

But still you’re not writing…

What’s going on, surely you’re ready now, all the boxes have been ticked, you’re good to go? Aren’t you?

The reason why, even if all the conditions you think you need to have in place ARE in place, is that there’s another box to be ticked.

An invisible box that you missed.

One that nearly all of us miss. And one that, until we do tick it, will continue to hold us back from creating. Perhaps forever.

What’s the name of this invisible box that holds you back after everything else has given us the green light?

Fear. Plain and simple. You’re scared to write. Even though apparently you have everything else in place, if the force of inertia caused by your fear is greater than the force of motivation you have to write, you’re not going anywhere. Simple physics.

So what can you do to tick this final box and get creating?

Step 1. Identify the fear. Be totally honest with yourself. What is it you’re afraid of? Failing? Not having enough ideas? Starting a new writing project and not finishing?

Maybe you’re actually afraid of writing something more wonderful and awe-inspiring than you ever thought possible? What then?

By recognising your fears, getting them out of that invisible box and into the open, they usually look a lot less intimidating than you thought they would.

And by seeing exactly what it is you’re dealing with, you can now formulate the best way to start overcoming them.

Step 2. Identify the REAL fear. Hang on wasn’t this step 1? No, this is the next level. If you thought your fear was not finishing a writing project, ask yourself “And so what does that mean?”.

Get to a new deeper level answer. Then ask again: “And so what does THAT mean?”

Ask, and honestly answer, the same question over and over until you get to the deepest level of your fear. Only then can you see what you’re dealing with and begin putting the steps in place to combat and overcome that fear.

Then you really are all set to start exploring those creative writing projects just waiting to be discovered.

Want to find out how more about how to unlock your creative writing potential? Head over to http://www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com, where you can also sign up for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are frustrated they're not using their creative talents as well as they could be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creating Deeply - 5 Compelling Reasons To Take The Plunge Today And Create More Deeply

What does it mean to “Create Deeply”?

Anything that we create at all, must come from a certain depth within us, a depth of experience, a depth of feeling, a depth of emotion, a depth of ambition.

And, whether we’re creating because we’re compelled to communicate with others, to discover more about ourselves, or to forge a new pioneering trail in our chosen art forms, there are many different depths we can go to when we tap into our creative source.

So how deeply are you creating in your creative work?

Do you mostly feel like your diving in the deepest, most wondrous oceans of your inner creativity? Or just splashing around in the familiar shallow flow of surface streams?

Are you plunging down amongst dark uncharted waters with a strong determined stroke? Or barely treading water?

Here are 5 compelling reasons to take a deep breath, dive in and create more deeply than you’ve ever created before:

1. Create Deeply for your audience. Whether your audience right now is just you and your cat, or 1,000,000s of devoted fans, each time you produce a new work you have a certain obligation to them to give the best you can, to create the most deep and passionate expression of yourself at that time. If you don’t you’re simply selling them, and yourself, short.

2. Create Deeply for your health and happiness. Most creative people would agree that when they’re creating regularly and deeply, their level of happiness and well being increases significantly. Just think of your own experiences of the dreaded “Writer’s Block” to see just how painful the opposite state can be. The deeper you go, the more material you’ll find to create from.

3. Create Deeply for your peers and your colleagues. Even if we feel we create alone, at some point our creative work reaches others who are in a similar creative field. Just as we are inspired or disappointed by the creative people who’s work we follow, we each have our own followers and admirers. When you create deeply, you’re more likely to inspire others to reach in deeply and create their best creative work too.

4. Create Deeply for your own personal creative growth. However accomplished a writer, singer or photographer you become, if you continue to operate at the same level, creating the same kind of work at the same kind of level, you’re not growing creatively. And in creative terms, if you’re not growing, you’re dying. And in that state, how long can anyone continue to create?

5. Create Deeply for your family, friends and community. As creative people, when we create deeply and feel we are genuinely giving all we can through our creative work, the sense of pride and contribution is incomparable to anything else in life. And the more we do this, the more interesting, stimulating and happy we become in the company of those close to us. Remember that each of us has a unique creative voice to communicate with the world. It’s up to us how often and how powerfully we make use of it.

Creating Deeply means different things to each of us.

But the common factor is that we all KNOW how deeply we’re going when we’re in the midst of creating, we can’t fool ourselves, even if we convince others.

So carefully consider the five reasons above and look at your creative work.

Do YOU need to go a little deeper?

Want to learn more about how to go deep and increase YOUR creativity? It’s easy: just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing: How Increasing Self Belief Can Improve Your Creative Writing

As a creative writer, I’m sure you’re always keen to find new ways to enhance and improve your creative writing.

There are two main ways this can be done.

The first way to improve your creative writing is simply to practice writing in as many different creative ways as you can.

Start with all the ways and types you already know, then add to this range one technique at a time.

There are many different sources of creative writing exercises and prompts available that can give you the starting point and that initial kick of inspiration needed to head off in a new undiscovered direction with your writing.

The other way to improve your creative writing is less obvious. But in fact over the long term it’s the one that is most powerful.

Without it, you’re writing will always have a glass ceiling, a limit to how sophisticated, rewarding, inspiring and wonderful it can be.

Now sometimes a few limitations can be good when we create, it gives us something to push against, a boundary to stretch, a fence to leap over...

But in this case we want to smash through that glass ceiling. Then we can really start to soar...

The key to what sets your limitations, and what literally decides how high (or low) that glass ceiling will be is simply how good a creative writer you BELIEVE you are.

Or, taking this a little wider in scope, HOW CREATIVE YOU BELIEVE YOU ARE.

It doesn’t take long to realise that someone who’s riddled with self-doubt, whose confidence is shot to pieces and wonders if they can ever write their name again, let alone a poem, story, or novel, is not in the best shape to create.

Most of us have been in this position and it’s not a pleasant place to be.

There’s no guarantee too that we’ll never return there. But if you invest some regular significant time and energy into building your creative self-belief, your times of doubt will be less severe and less often.

One of the best techniques to increase your self-belief in your own creativity is to take time each day to write out and speak out loud some affirmations.

An affirmation is simply a positive statement that, said often enough, and regularly enough, can help us reprogram our thinking, away from negative and destructive patterns of thought, to more positive, uplifting and powerful ones.

A good tip for writing affirmations is to use the three Ps:

Positive: Make sure your affirmation is written in a positive way. For example: If you feel you lack self-confidence when creating, then turn this around and write “I have all the confidence I need.”

Personal: Make your affirmation personal, always start it with “I”. Just saying positive words may help in some way, but associating them with yourself is far more powerful and beneficial.

Present Tense: Your affirmation should be in the present tense, as if you already have the positive quality. So even if you don’t have loads of self-belief right now, don’t say “I’d like to believe in myself more.” Instead use the present tense: “I strongly believe in my creative writing ability.”

This is just one way to increase your self-belief and therefore improve your creative writing.

Practice affirmations at least twice a day for 14 days and notice the difference it makes to your creative writing.

Discover more about how you can improve your creative writing, and sign up for your FREE 5 part creative writing taster ecourse right away at http://www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are frustrated they're not making the best of their unique creative abilities. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Fears: What Happens When I Run Out Of Ideas For My Creative Writing?

A common fear of many creative writers is: what happens when I run out of ideas to explore in my creative writing?

Whether it’s ideas to keep an ongoing project like a novel or script moving forward and developing, or fresh ideas for completely new projects, the fear that we might not have enough inspiration in us to see them through can be very restrictive.

Sometimes this fear can prevent us even starting a new creative writing project.

We don’t want to risk the possibility of having to abandon it half way through because we’ve run out of ideas, then being resigned to adding it to our already substantial collection of half-finished projects gathering dust on a dark shelf.

So what CAN we do to prevent this kind of fear from crippling our creativity?

And how can we produce a steady flow of ideas, enough to keep us confident we’ll always have new material and inspiration available when we need it?

It begins by changing our whole approach to“having ideas”, and how we record and collect them.

If we simply sit hopefully and wait for inspiration to hit us when we need a new idea, we’re going to be disappointed most of the time. We need a new, more consistent, more reliable approach.

So, to ensure YOU’RE never short of creative writing ideas whenever you need them, follow this simple 3 step plan:

1. Be open and receptive at all times. Having a stream of great ideas begins with letting yourself have them, and doing all you can to open yourself to them. What does this mean in practical terms?

It means looking at things from different angles, being curious, asking questions, absorbing the little details that makes something wonderful or provocative or moving.

The more you practice this, the easier and more natural it becomes to see beyond the everyday and the mundane and start to let those ideas come through, first at a trickle, then soon a flood.

2. Record every idea. It’s not much use having this flood of ideas if you’re not capturing them in a useful way. It’s the equivalent of going through a long drought then when the rain comes, having nothing in place to collect the water, and seeing it all gush away as quickly as it came.

So what’s the best way to record your ideas? For most people a small pocket notebook works brilliantly well. Carry it with you at all times and jot down even fragments of ideas you have. Just by capturing them in this early stage, they’ll be able to grow. If you let them pass, or think you’ll remember them later, they’ll most likely be lost forever.

3. Have your idea collection ready to hand and ready to use. Once you’ve developed the habit of being more open and receptive to ideas and stimulation around you, then capturing the ideas you have in a useful form, what next?

It’s no good then putting your idea packed notebook away somewhere, and sitting at a blank screen in the grip of writer’s block, wonder where on earth the next idea will come from. Have your ideas book close to hand, use the ideas in it regularly, then cross them off as they’re explored.

If you follow these 3 simple steps, and adjust them to suit you best, you'll soon have a great system in place to have, capture and develop more ideas for your creative writing than you’ll ever need.

Want to find out how more about how to unlock your creative writing potential? Get your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at http://www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are frustrated they're not using their creative talents as well as they could be. See more at his website: http://www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing- Believe In You! 9 Reasons Why You're Already A More Creative Writer Than You Think

The biggest single factor in determining how much creative writing you produce, and at what kind of level, may not be what you first think.

It’s not always the most talented and gifted writers that write the best books, poems, screenplays and stories.

In fact often the most talented writers don’t even write at all.

No, the single biggest factor that controls what you write creatively is how good a creative writer you BELIEVE you are.

By increasing your self-belief in your abilities as a creative writer you can take your writing to new levels in both quality and quantity.

So here are 9 reasons why you’re ALREADY a better creative writer than you think you are:

1. You have unique life experience. No-one else has lived the life you have. No-one else has experienced the same set of circumstances. So you have a unique angle on how the world is. And other people out there are keen to hear YOUR unique way of seeing things, through your creative writing.

2. You have persistence and determination. Think back to a time in your life when you really struggled to overcome a situation. One that challenged you greatly at the time, but you got through in the end. There you go, you couldn’t have done that without persistence and determination. These strengths will serve you well as a creative writer.

3. You’ve already written 1000s of words. Think about everything you’ve written in your lifetime so far, every time you’ve put word to page. If you added it all up, you’d realise you must’ve written – over dozens of different formats - enough to fill a whole series of novels.

4. You’re keen to learn more. Well you’re reading this article aren’t you? And no doubt you’ve read other articles and books on creativity, and will read many more in the future. All of which proves you’re willing to learn and improve your creative writing.

5. You have ideas just bursting to be turned into creative writing. Think of all the ideas you’ve had for creative writing. How many have you actually explored to their natural conclusion? How many hundreds of others have come to you in a flash of inspiration then disappeared again just as quickly? There’s no end to the creative writing ideas you’re able to produce. It’s capturing them that’s the key.

6. Other people already see you as a creative writer. Even if you don’t! How many times have you heard comments like “can you write this part, you’re good with words” or “you can always come up with an interesting way of getting an idea across”. Then just dismissed them with a “Oh ANYONE could do that...”. It’s easy to take our talents for granted, because we live with them every day. Don’t fall into this same trap.

7. You’ve lived many lives. Each of us in our lives play a number of different roles. Friend, lover, partner, son or daughter, parent, work colleague... Each of these roles brings out a certain part of our personality, and gives us a unique viewpoint. You can use this to enrich your creative writing, and make it real and truthful.

8. You come up with creative ideas all the time. Whether it’s putting together an outfit for a special occasion, preparing a delicious meal with your partner, coming up with ideas for places to go out to, decorating your home, or finding new ways of doing things in your place of work. Every day you create new ideas and invent new ways that weren’t there before. This same energy and inventiveness can be channelled into your creative writing.

9. You’re only ever a moment away from writing something wonderful. At any time in your day to day to life, you’re capable of stopping what you’re doing, picking up a pencil and writing a line of beautiful, stirring, touching words. Your creative writing ability is just bubbling away beneath the surface waiting to come out to play. You’ve just got to ask it!

These are 9 reasons why you’re already a better, more creative writer than you think you are.

Which ones have you been overlooking and taking for granted?

Want to find out how more about how to unlock your creative writing potential? Sign up your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse right now at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are frustrated they're not using their creative talents as well as they could be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Renewal - 5 Ways To Breathe New Life Into Your Creative Work

Whether you’re a writer, painter, sculptor, designer, photographer or an artist in any other field of creativity, there are common traits and needs amongst us all.

One of these is the need to keep our art fresh and vital, and ourselves healthy, rested and in great shape mentally to be able to give our best to our creative work.

We all work and create in different ways, and at different rates. Finding what works well for each of us and doing more of it, realising what doesn’t work, and doing less of that is the only long term route to developing our creative potential to its fullest.

What we all need along the way though to help us with this are ways to renew our creative inspiration, as well as ways to renew ourselves, physically, mentally and emotionally.

Here then, are 5 great Creative Renewal ideas, to help you regather your creative resources and breathe new life into your creative work:

1. Creative Project days off. Sometimes it’s an unrealistic pressure to think we can create something wonderful each and everyday. Creating something everyday is a great way of developing your creativity but give yourself permission to mix this up a little.

If you’re working on a big creative project especially, take the odd day off from this and create something completely different. When you return to your main project, you’ll be refreshed and have new perspectives and ideas to bring into it.

2. A new environment. Take your creative work somewhere new and work. If this is impractical then simply go somewhere new with a sketchbook or voice recorder.

Make it somewhere quiet and tranquil, away from chaos and noise. Notice the small details in all around you and write, sketch, or talk about what you’re experiencing.

3. Research something completely different. Spend a few hours researching something you’ve always been curious about. It doesn’t matter what it is, or how connected to your creative work it is.

If it’s something you’re drawn to, then follow that trail and see where it leads you. When you return to your creative work, you’ll be more informed, your pool of knowledge will be wider and you’ll have more to draw upon as you create.

4. Meditation and Visualisation. Use meditation and visualisation techniques to connect yourself more strongly with your creative work.

Find somewhere you’ll be undisturbed for at least 30 minutes. Sit or lie comfortably, breathe steadily and deeply and just imagine in your mind how it’ll be when your project is complete. Think of how it’ll look, sound and feel, and the sense of achievement and fulfilment you’ll feel when you’ve accomplished it.

5. Go back to basics. Try creating something as simple and pure as you possibly can. If you’re a writer this might be a haiku or short poem. If you’re a filmmaker this could be a 10 second clip of a simple scene of daily life.

By returning to the bare essentials, stripping back all the layers, you can appreciate the act of just creating without any pressure to make this the most sophisticated, complex and deep project you’ve ever produced.

These are 5 Creative Renewal techniques you can use to renew yourself and return to your creative projects with fresh energy, knowledge and inspiration.

Pick one and take action on it today!

Want more great articles, tips and exercises to help you be more creative? Then sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Tips - 7 Killer Tips To Boost Your Creative Writing Today

However accomplished and experienced you are in your creative writing, there’s always more to learn and discover.

There’s no such thing as becoming the perfect creative writer. All of us can continue to learn, explore and experiment and give our creative writing more depth, impact and fulfilment, for us as the writer, as well as for our readers.

So here are 7 killer tips to help you boost YOUR creative writing even more:

1. Adopt a new identity. Imagine you're someone else, someone completely different from yourself. It could be a character you’re familiar with already from a book, film or your daily life, or a completely new creation.

Write from their perspective about what they do, who they see, how they live and what it’s like to be them. Notice how your creative writing develops to take on this new character.

2. Become an inanimate object. Take on the perspective of an object, like a stone on a river bed, a chair in a cafe or a leaf in a tree.

Write about exactly how it feels to be this object, what goes on around you, the other objects you come in contact with, what your day to day experiences are. Write in as much rich detail as you can.

3. Get away from familiar surroundings. Go somewhere where the environment is very different to what you experience day to day.

If you live and work in a city, get out into nature. If you live in a rural area, spend some time amidst the bustle of a city. Write about what you see, hear and feel all around you, and how it’s different to what you’re used to.

4. Focus on a single sense. Spend a day noticing just what stimulation is all around you with one particular sense, like your sense of sight or smell.

Experience the world as vividly as possible through this one single sense. Write about your experiences as you go, noticing how this sense is enhanced more than usual.

5. Write in different directions. Most of us are used to writing left to right, from the top of the page to the bottom.

Mix this up by taking a large sheet of paper, starting anywhere and writing in whichever direction you wish. As you write keep changing direction, using every part of the page. Notice how the direction you write influences what you’re writing.

6. Write purely phonetically. Sometimes the sounds of words, and the rhythm of language are more interesting than the meaning of the words themselves.

Try writing a few lines of prose or poetry just focusing on how the syllables sound. You can use words from a known language or make up your own. Think of it as a song of words.

7. Play creative writing tag. Arrange with a writing friend to set up a creative writing tag game.

Begin with one of you sending a line or two of writing to the other. Then they reply, adding the next couple of lines of the story and returning it to you. Repeat the process for as long as you wish. Email works well for this as it’s almost instant and you can stay fresh and in the flow.

Use these 7 killer tips to help you boost YOUR creative writing to new levels.

Notice which of the tips you get most from and how you can adapt and expand them to help your creative writing even more.

Want to discover more creative writing tips like these right away? Then get your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are frustrated they're not making the best of their unique creative abilities. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Exercises & Creative Writing Prompts - What They DON'T Give You And How To Get It

Even the most experienced and seasoned creative writer can benefit from creative writing exercises and prompts.

The key to continuing to grow and develop as a creative writer is to keep experimenting, trying new techniques, ideas and exercises to challenge yourself.

Using a variety of different approaches and starting points in your creative writing will help you to explore your potential as a writer and keep pushing the boundaries.

But although creative writing exercises and prompts are a great tool to use, they assume one thing.

They assume that you are willing and able to write.

Give a writer a creative writing exercise or prompt and they won’t necessarily come up with some interesting creative writing.

In fact many times, however ingenious, stimulating and brilliant the exercise is, the writer won’t produce a single word, let alone a wonderful piece of writing.

So why is this? What’s missing?

There are a number of different factors that stop us from writing, however gifted and talented we are.

Perversely, often the more naturally capable we are of writing creatively, the more we struggle to write.

Here are some of the crucial elements a creative writing exercise or prompt on its own WON’T give you, and how to get it:

1. The confidence to write creatively. Talent and ability amount to very little if you simply lack confidence in your writing.

Build your confidence by starting small and writing little and often. A few paragraphs of a story, a short poem, or a blog entry every day will help you get into the habit of writing consistently. Then you can just increase the amount and frequency as your confidence builds.

2. The “set up” to write creatively. If you don’t have somewhere you can go and start writing within a couple of minutes, you’ll lose motivation and inspiration.

Have a designated place for you to write. If you don’t have your own room or study, at least have a desk or chair where you can have your creative writing equipment to hand and ready for you to start writing at a moment’s notice.

3. The permission to write creatively. Even if you think on the surface you’re willing to write, often on a deeper level, you’re not allowing yourself to. Not giving yourself permission to create is an often overlooked creative block. Write out for yourself some positive affirmations, such as “I deserve to be able to create”, “I have as much right to create as anyone”, “The world needs me to be creative” and simply “I give myself permission to be creative”. Practice reading them out loud regularly.

4. The time to write creatively. Many of us claim we don’t have time to spend on our creative writing. The truth is, we don’t make it enough of a priority.

Start by giving yourself just 10 minutes at the same time each day to spend writing. Get up a little earlier, go to bed a little later, fit it in wherever you can. By practicing this routine, you’ll find it soon becomes easier to extend it to a larger chunk of time each day, without impacting the time demands of the rest of your life.

5. The motivation to write creatively. Even if you have everything else in place, if you’re not motivated to write, you just won’t write.

Keep your motivation high by reminding yourself why you write creatively. What are the top 5 benefits? What are the 10 things you love about being able to write creatively? What are your ambitions as a creative writer? Write these out and pin them up somewhere prominent to keep you motivated.

Spend a little time and effort on each of these 5 key areas and you’ll soon find there’s no limit to how much you can write.

Then, using those creative exercises and prompts will add the extra dimension you need to explore your creative writing even more.

Want to find out how more about how to unlock your creative writing potential? Get your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are frustrated they're not using their creative talents as well as they could be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creativity Killers - How A Clown In Your Kitchen Kills Your Creativity

Imagine you had a clown in your kitchen.

Bright red nose, painted face, huge floppy shoes, baggy trousers, the full outfit. Just sitting there right on your worktop in between your kettle and your toaster.

The first time you saw him, no doubt you'd get quite a shock.

What’s this clown doing in my kitchen??! Unless you live next door to a circus, it’s unlikely you’ve had a clown in your kitchen all that often before...

The next time you go in your kitchen, he’s still there. You still jump a little, but it’s not as big a shock as the first time.

A few weeks pass and by this time, you're getting used to Bobo being there.

Sometimes you even make him a cup of tea and engage him in polite conversation. “LOVE those shoes. Do they come in any sizes smaller than a 30 Extra Extra Wide?”

Months down the line though, you don't even notice him anymore.

He’s blended into the background, become part of what you expect to see in your kitchen when you make your breakfast every morning.

Friends come round for dinner. Friends you don’t see very often.

"Hey there's a clown in your kitchen!" they shout in surprise.

"Oh yeh," you reply. “We don't really notice him anymore, he's part of the furniture”.

So how does having a clown in your kitchen drain your creativity?

Remember when the clown first appeared? What a shock it was? Then how over time, the impact of him being in your kitchen got less and less until months later you barely noticed him.

It's the same with the kind of negative, destructive thinking that slowly kills your creativity, often without you even realising.

The thoughts start off kind of obvious.

Just as you settle down to begin a new project, they appear in your mind:

“Why are you even bothering to start? You know this’ll end in failure, you’ll mess it up just like you do all the other projects. Stop kidding yourself, you haven’t got any creative talents anyway.”

If you were with a friend who was just starting a new creative project and they this said this out loud, how would you react?

It’s unlikely you’d let it pass without comment, and without reassuring them that they have LOADS of creative talents and they DON’T mess up everything they start, and then produce the evidence to prove it.

Why is it ok to turn a deaf ear when you say the same to yourself?

Because they’re just clowns in your kitchen.

They’ve been around so long, and been heard so many times, that you don’t notice them anymore.

But this is the precise reason WHY they’re so dangerous.

Although it SEEMS you don’t notice them on the surface, deeper in your subconscious you’re absorbing every negative comment, every disparaging word.

And this adds negative pressure and makes it more and more difficult for you to create.

So what’s the solution? How DO you get the clown out of your kitchen?

Step one, you have to recognise the negative thoughts as they appear.

Step two is turning them around, replacing them with something more positive.

Here’s an example:

Negative thought: Why are you even bothering to start this project? You know it'll end in failure.

Positive Turnaround: The only way to truly fail is not to begin in the first place. Each time I get a result I don’t expect, I can learn from it. Then I’m in a better, more informed position to take the next step.

This won’t be easy at first, it takes patience and practice.

Make the commitment to start right now. Each time you have a negative, critical thought, stop it, write it down, and turn it around into one more positive. The more you do it the easier it’ll become.

Stick with it and the positive rewards for your creativity in all aspects can be quite profound, and more dramatic than you could have imagined.

Want to learn more about how to increase YOUR creativity? It’s easy: just sign up to "Create Create!" - Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin's free twice monthly ezine - today, and get your FREE copy of the “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook. Head on over now to www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing - How To Find & Maintain Your Unique Creative Writing Rhythm

One of the most important elements to being able to write regularly, deeply, and consistently as a creative writer is to be able to find your own unique creative writing rhythm.

If we don’t learn to listen to, and tune in to, the unique creative rhythm that each of us have, we’ll find it a constant battle to remain motivated and productive in our creative writing projects.

Professional athletes and sports players talk about being “in the zone”, where they’re performing at a peak level and everything flows. We can apply the same principle to writing.

So how do we know when we’re not “in the zone”, when we’re out of sync with our natural creative rhythm?

Some of the tell tale signs are:

Writing inconsistent amounts – 10 pages flow freely one day, but the day after you struggle to string together 10 words.

Being obsessive about tiny details – you spend hours re-writing a single difficult line 30 times, and eventually go back to the first version you came up with.

Sticky Shoes Syndrome – you just can’t get going, writing feels about as easy as wading through treacle in concrete boots. With an elephant on your back.

Losing objectivity – struggling to see the bigger vision in the project you’re writing. It’s like trying to view a mountain range from ground level, instead of flying above in a helicopter to get the overall view of the landscape.

Feeling out of control – you’re aware that sometimes your creative writing flows like Niagara Falls and other days it’s barely as fruitful as a dripping tap. But you have no idea why and you don’t feel in control.

So what’s the secret to overcoming some of these struggles and finding YOUR unique creative rhythm?

Put simply: experimenting and testing.

If you keep doing the same things over and over – the same things that aren’t working – then of course they’re going to continue to not work. And you’ll continue to be inconsistent, erratic and frustrated in your creative writing.

Now I’m not suggesting you have to become an emotionless robot, churning out perfect page after perfect page of creative writing.

Not at all.

There are natural peaks and lulls in our minds and bodies, in our moods and in our personal circumstances. They’re part of being a human being.

But if we learn to recognise these patterns, learn to find when we’re naturally at our best, at our peaks, we can begin to find our creative rhythm.

And when we do that, we reduce the kind of tell tale signs like those above we feel when we’re struggling to create.

So we’re able to create more consistently, more abundantly and more deeply than ever before.

How do you experiment then to help you find your natural creative rhythm?

Here are some of the factors to play around with and see what works best for you:

- The time of day when you write.

- How long you write for.

- How you cope with or eliminate distractions.

- The materials you use to write with.

- Where you write.

- What breaks you have, how long and how often.

- What you do (if anything) to prepare yourself to write.

- Whether you use background music or sounds, or silence.

- How you have your writing space set up physically.

- How you decide when your writing time is over for that session.

Experiment with just one of these variables at a time or you won’t be able to track the changes effectively.

Once you’ve found the best way of working with that particular factor, keep that fixed and move on and adjust the next one.

Follow these guidelines and you’ll be well on your way to finding your own unique creative rhythm. You’ll begin too to see your creative writing reach new levels.

Want to find out how more about how to unlock your creative writing potential? Get your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at www.YouAreACreativeWriter.Com.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are frustrated they're not using their creative talents as well as they could be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing Prompts- How Prompts Can Juice Up Your Creative Writing

Creative writing prompts are a great way of enhancing your creative writing.

They can stimulate new ways of seeing and thinking and help you grow your creative writing skills in directions you might not have thought possible.

So what are creative writing prompts?

At the most basic level, a creative writing prompt is anything that gives you a starting point from which to write. It could be a sentence, a picture, a song, a film, a photo, or a memory.

Most effective creative writing prompts are quite simple and short and give you just enough to get your creative teeth into and your imagination flowing.

They don’t give you half of a new story on a plate, or a technicolour all-singing all-dancing stage show musical.

Think of creative writing prompts as tasty hor d’oeuvres to get your creativity salivating, or a peek behind the stage curtain to get a glimpse of the singers, dancers and set design in the half darkness.

Why do we resist using creative writing prompts?

Many of us as creative writers feel we should be able to do it all.

We think that unless we come up with every single idea at every single stage of each creative writing project, then somehow we’re not “authentic” or we’re “cheating” in some way.

It’s understandable that we wish to be original and come up with our own unique ideas, and that’s a great quality and ambition to have as a creative writer.

But the fact is, there’s nothing that’s 100% new, original, never-been-discovered ever before.

ALL creativity stems from some initial stimulation and prompt.

Even when we think we’ve come up with a new idea from nowhere – a scene, a story, an image or a character plucked from out of the ether – if we were able to, we could trace our line of thinking back to a number of sources.

It’s like those dreams we have that at first appear random, bizarre and disjointed, but then when we look a closer we can see how the elements have been gathered from our daily experiences.

A snatch of conversation we had earlier that day, an image from TV show we watched last week, a line from a song that stuck in our heads...

Think of your creativity as an underground spring.

Somewhere deep down there’s as endless source flowing. It’s always flowed and always will flow.

But it needs an outlet, a way to get to the surface and show its purity and shimmering beauty to the world.

For the underground spring, you could build a well and use a pump to get the water to the surface. Then it would gush freely on its own.

For your creativity, use creative writing prompts to have a similar effect. The hardest part is getting the water to the surface in the first place, so anything you can use to make that as easy as possible is obviously a good idea.

Once your creativity has been “pumped” to the surface, it’ll be far easier to keep it flowing and active.

For some great creative writing prompts to get you started, sign up for your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse at http://www.YouAreACreativeWriter.com

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are frustrated they're not using their creative talents as well as they could be. See more at his website: http://www.CoachCreative.com

Creative Writing - What Happened To The Fun? 5 Ways To Start Enjoying Your Creative Writing Again

Creative writing gives many different benefits and pleasures to many different people.

We don’t all write for the same reasons, we each have our deeper values and motives for why we write.

However, there ARE common motivations that all of us who write creatively share. One of these is simply because it’s enjoyable.

It helps us feel good to write, to create words, sentences, scenes, characters and WORLDS that weren’t there before.

The problem is, when we go through more challenging and difficult times with our writing – those times when we find ourselves stuck, blocked, out of ideas - “fun” and “enjoyable” are some of the last words that come to mind to describe what we’re experiencing.

During our creatively barren times, “anguish”, “torture” and “despair” are words that are more likely to spring to mind.

We feel like a lost rabid animal in the desert, desperately scavenging for food and water, yet withering steadily under the fierce relentless sun.

So what happens? Why does it all go wrong? And where does all the fun in writing go?

Here are 5 of the most common reasons why we lose the sense of fun and enjoyment in our creative writing, and how to start to get them back.

1. We expect too much too quickly. Maybe it’s been a while since you wrote much creatively and you’re just finding your way back into it. If you expect to write a novel by the end of the week, you’re likely to be very disappointed.

Set yourself small writing projects, and write little and often. This way you’ll write more freely without the expectation of having to produce a large volume of words in a short time hanging over you.

2. We always start in the same place. Often, set routines and patterns of working can be very beneficial and help us write prolifically. But if your aim is to have more fun with your writing, it’s important to mix it up and experiment.

Try writing from the middle of a piece and work outwards. Or start at the end with the final line of a short story. Then work backwards and uncover the details of how the story reached that point.

3. We always write to produce an “end product”. If we have an end point in mind the whole time, we can get too wrapped up in how we’re going to get there, and forget to make the bit in between interesting.

Sometimes it’s more fun just handing the reins over to the story itself. Concentrate on the richness of your descriptions, and just write and see where the writing takes you, without worrying about the plot structure or development.

4. We get stuck writing the same way over and over. Even if we start in different places, we can soon fall into a familiar groove and write in a predictable way every time.

If we’re going for volume this reliability is just what we need. But if you want to write for fun and the enjoyment, then try writing in as many radically different ways as you can. Make up a new language even if you want to!

5. We’re afraid of messing up. This is one of the biggest creativity killers there is, whatever you create. You’re so scared of making a mistake or doing something wrong you keep it super safe. Or worse, you don’t write at all.

Let go of the concept of “messing up”. In creative writing, there is no messing up. You can write how you want, about whatever you want, using whichever words you want. Use this freedom and let your imagination and creativity loose!

These are 5 of the most common reasons we lose the sense of fun and enjoyment in our creative writing.

Which do you most relate to in your creative writing experiences? Which are you going to take steps to improve today?

Ready to find out how more about how to unlock your creative writing potential? Head over to www.YouAreACreativeWriter.com right away to get your FREE 5 part creative writing ecourse.

Creativity Coach and keen creative writer Dan Goodwin helps people who are frustrated they're not using their creative talents as well as they could be. See more at his website: www.CoachCreative.com