I love thought-provoking puzzles. I ran across this puzzle while watching The Oxford Murders (one of the few Elijah Wood movies I wouldn’t recommend).
Try to figure out the next symbol in the sequence below. Based on the previous 3, the green box has only one symbol that continues the sequence. What is it?
Got it figured out yet or do you give up? Either way, check out the solution.
The holidays are over. If you’re like me, you let out an internal sigh. Sometimes the stress of the holiday times can drive you bonkers. Rabid shoppers, avid honkers, psycho drivers, layoffs and fires…it’s enough to make you curse December. We fail to enjoy what should be a magical season.
So this year I’m taking it back! I’m celebrating Christmas in July! I’ll deck my halls, jingle my bells, and tell Batman he smells in the blistering heat of summer. Read more…
Phantom Vibration Syndrome: feeling your phone ringing in your pocket when no calls are coming in. Have you experienced it?
On a recent cruise I experienced PVS at least 20 times. I wasn’t even carrying my phone!
I’m not saying I hate being connected to every single person in the world by whipping my phone out. I love the fact that any information I want can be instantly delivered to my pocket for my immediate consumption. But sometimes the information that I’d rather ignore begins to take center stage on my iPhone. Suddenly my phone is no longer serving me…I become its slave. Read more…
“Which goes on first? My underwear or jeans?” This was my dilemma as a 5-year-old. One morning, due to temporary amnesia or my own naivety, I couldn’t remember the proper apparel order. I was planning to wear my favorite, Superman underwear that day. It was going to be a great day…if only I could remember which came first–underwear or jeans. Read more…
When you are experiencing creativity block, it usually means you’re under pressure of some sort. Either pressure from a boss, a client, or yourself. This pressure can cause you to shut down the creative areas of your brain. These areas tend to be a bit more bashful and we have to give them a happy environment to live in. Read more…
Sometimes creativity block can be brought on by something as simple as a messy work/living space. Cleaning up will often give you a sense of order, allowing your brain to get a little “messy” to compensate. (Messy brains can create really cool creativity.) Read more…
Feel like your well of creativity has run dry? An easy option to spark your imagination again is to relocate.
Chances are you spend most of your time in a small area of your town–seeing the same buildings, types of people, topography, etc. Why not take your laptop (or favorite creativity tool) to another side of town and work there for a bit? Visit a different type of coffee shop or work in a park.
If you hang out in wealthy areas, go to poorer areas. Don’t stay in your car or go to a “safe” building…walk the streets. Emerse yourself in the area. Take it all in. Observe the buildings, people, signs, and scenery. When we get out of our comfort zone, our adrenaline levels spike and monotony is eliminated (valuable ingredients for reigniting your creativity).
I’ll frequently go to a coffee shop on the other side of town just to switch up my location visualizations. Before I begin working on my laptop, I just sit for a bit and watch the people. I observe who they’re meeting with, what they’re talking about, what they’re wearing…anything that stands out. When I do this it pulls me outside of myself…I get out of my own head. I can start imagining what things would be like if I lived on this side of town…it starts freeing up my creative juices.
So where can you go to get your creative juices flowing? (If you go to a dangerous side of town, please know I won’t be held liable for any mugging or violence than may ensue.)
One of your best sources for creativity is your life. There as so many amazing things in our lives that pass by–unnoticed.
These events are gold for inspiration. You need to take notice of them and remember them. Enter micro-journaling, micro-blogging, tweeting…whatever you want to call it.
Start recording all of these little events that happen in a creative way. If you’re a graphic designer, take pics with your phone and post them to Tumblr. If you’re a writer or songwriter, Tweet a two-line poem about the experience. If you’re a composer, create a short melody with a voice recorder and begin cataloguing these.
Now you have a resource of creations you can draw from when you’re feeling clogged up. Plus micro-journaling will force yourself to look for art in the little things that happen.
Warning: Don’t spend much time on a single journal entry. It should be Twitter sized and only take a minute. You will easily get bogged down trying to do more.
The world is full of magic to a child. A cardboard box can turn into a rocket ship. A bicycle is actually a covert spy vehicle. And lazer bullets can shoot out of sticks. But then the magic and imagination wane as we get a bit older.
A simple exercise to get a bit of that magic back is to revisit candy from your childhood. There’s something that comes alive in you when you partake of goodies you haven’t experiences in at least 15 years. Memories and feelings flood into you, transporting you instantly back to a simpler time.
So visit your local candy store. Find some Razzles, Fun Dip, Everlasting Gobstoppers, or even some Hawaiian Punch. Whatever poison you pick, you’ll find you’ve stumbled upon a sugary time machine.
Do you feel like you’re in a creativity desert? Or are you just missing that creative spark that makes good ideas great? Try mixing up the music you’re listening to. It’s a simple tip, but often we get stuck listening to a certain genre and it keeps our emotions in a certain genre too.
If you need help varying your musical collection, allow me to share a few of my favorite selections. (From a few different genres.)
Enjoy. And no making fun of my musical tastes… :)