Creativity, the Unconscious and Showering with Lisa
“I think it's the water, but also the sense that I am done, that allows my mind to relax enough that new insight gets in.”
- Lisa at Mommy Mystic – on my previous post's thread, discussing how taking a shower often fosters creativity for her.
Creativity means coming up with something new. With creative writing, that means fresh language and ideas. Of course, there are many other forms of creativity, and as human beings, we’re all creative in some ways – for example, suddenly coming up with a solution to a day to day problem from work or an interpersonal difficulty.
An idea “pops” into our head. It comes to us as a surprise. Unconscious processes are fundamental to creativity. Different things promote these processes for different people – showering, driving, gardening, jogging, walking – but certain activities have a way of deeply relaxing us and leaving our conscious minds open and receptive. That’s when those unconscious creative processes find the opportunity to get rolling and pass along what they’re coming up with to the conscious mind.
I had to learn not to interfere with this unconscious-conscious relay race, so to speak, after I found that running had become a creative activity for me. As I mentioned last post, one morning after a couple ideas had come to mind and a third and started to form, I decided to stop jogging to jot them down.
It killed the process. I never really felt that the third idea arrived fully formed. And although I’d strongly sensed that more ideas were on the way, that was the end of them for that morning.
From then on, I was determined not to write anything down until my half hour run was done. And I learned three things:
1. Not being able to jot anything down for half an hour extended the creative process. Stuff would just keep coming – and coming…
2. It’s hard to remember that much stuff – but possible.
3. What you have to go through mentally to remember so much for so long enhances the creative process, allowing it to play itself out undisturbed. I think the way it works is exactly what Lisa mentions: the grunt work of memorization gives your conscious mind the feeling that you’re all done being creative. It has to completely give up on trying to control or even pay attention to the more fundamental unconscious processes of creativity as they begin to bubble to the surface because the conscious mind is fully occupied.
Up next: memorization tricks, if anybody’s interested…
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Global Warning . . .
Average temperatures in the Arctic region are rising twice as fast as they are elsewhere in the world. Arctic ice is getting thinner, melting and rupturing. For example, the largest single block of ice in the Arctic, the Ward Hunt Ice Shelf, had been around for 3,000 years before it started cracking in 2000. Within two years it had split all the way through and is now breaking into pieces.
- National Resources Defense Council
- Lisa at Mommy Mystic – on my previous post's thread, discussing how taking a shower often fosters creativity for her.
Creativity means coming up with something new. With creative writing, that means fresh language and ideas. Of course, there are many other forms of creativity, and as human beings, we’re all creative in some ways – for example, suddenly coming up with a solution to a day to day problem from work or an interpersonal difficulty.
An idea “pops” into our head. It comes to us as a surprise. Unconscious processes are fundamental to creativity. Different things promote these processes for different people – showering, driving, gardening, jogging, walking – but certain activities have a way of deeply relaxing us and leaving our conscious minds open and receptive. That’s when those unconscious creative processes find the opportunity to get rolling and pass along what they’re coming up with to the conscious mind.
I had to learn not to interfere with this unconscious-conscious relay race, so to speak, after I found that running had become a creative activity for me. As I mentioned last post, one morning after a couple ideas had come to mind and a third and started to form, I decided to stop jogging to jot them down.
It killed the process. I never really felt that the third idea arrived fully formed. And although I’d strongly sensed that more ideas were on the way, that was the end of them for that morning.
From then on, I was determined not to write anything down until my half hour run was done. And I learned three things:
1. Not being able to jot anything down for half an hour extended the creative process. Stuff would just keep coming – and coming…
2. It’s hard to remember that much stuff – but possible.
3. What you have to go through mentally to remember so much for so long enhances the creative process, allowing it to play itself out undisturbed. I think the way it works is exactly what Lisa mentions: the grunt work of memorization gives your conscious mind the feeling that you’re all done being creative. It has to completely give up on trying to control or even pay attention to the more fundamental unconscious processes of creativity as they begin to bubble to the surface because the conscious mind is fully occupied.
Up next: memorization tricks, if anybody’s interested…
###
Global Warning . . .
Average temperatures in the Arctic region are rising twice as fast as they are elsewhere in the world. Arctic ice is getting thinner, melting and rupturing. For example, the largest single block of ice in the Arctic, the Ward Hunt Ice Shelf, had been around for 3,000 years before it started cracking in 2000. Within two years it had split all the way through and is now breaking into pieces.
- National Resources Defense Council
Posted by Paul at 11:58 AM Permalink
14 Comments:
What blocks my creativity is when I move from creative thinking to implementation -- putting a creative idea into action. Similar to what you described in turning around from your jog.
Different, though, for me... I am perfectly able to express and manifest my creative ideas in just about any setting. Unfortunately, creative ideas often takes input and the veritable "sounding board" of other people.
I've found that somewhere along the last decade, those other creative people in my life who would encourage and prod have gone off in creative directions -- and I'm stuck surrounded by people who are hardly creative at all and most often critical of, uninterested in, or otherwise negative regarding "new" ideas. This kind of attitude, by which I am surrounded these days, puts the implementation or even the motivation to be creative in the first place to a dead stop.
So, my time in creative thought is essentially wasted -- even though it's who I am and what I do -- . Which leads to a high level of frustration and dissatisfaction. But, what does one do? I could disown my family, divorce my wife, and go live as a gypsy somewhere -- but that hardly seems the right thing to do.
You are right, though. Creativity is a wellspring that ought not be capped, if there is any way to help it.
Nice post! I had to chuckle after reading it because the two places which allow creativity to bubble up in me—completely unexpected—are the shower and while I am driving. I've learned to keep a pad and pen handy for a long term drive. When I least expect it, boom!, there is a blog post, or a segment for a new book I'm writing, or for an article. The shower is trickier. I have to quickly dry off and grab something to write with. Perhaps I should keep writing implements in the bathroom too.
Like the previous poster (Tim?), I can pretty much pull up creativity wherever I am. That is a blessing.
The only time I have found my creativity absolutely dulled and non functional? When my husband and I are not in sync or there is some strong emotion between us. We have been creative partners for a very long time and are joined beyond the hip (I think our DNA is entwined!) so when we are out of sorts, nothing flows. Does that mean love fosters creativity? Hmmmmm.....I'd say so, at least in my case.
I have not tried this yet, but I am wondering if a hand held voice recorder would be a good idea. If I stop and take the time to write or type my creative thoughts, it seems to produce a disconnect and the creative thoughts seem to wane. But I am thinking speaking these thoughts into a recorder would not do this.
TIMJAMZ: I've also had things come to me in other sorts of settings, but rarely.
JAN: Me too - on the driving and glove compartment.
SUSIEQ: I'm betting the recorder WOULD do it...!
MATT: I'm glad, and thanks for stopping by.
@SusieQ: I'm with you. Creativity seems to flow best when there aren't any distractions. I often find my best thinking comes when I'm not really "thinking" at all -- like mowing the grass, washing dishes, or as Jan mentioned, driving.
(I never analyzed it that closely!)
AMY J: Thanks, and for stopping by. But I absolutely deny being in the shower with Lisa, who is a mother and married woman.
We just had a health aide walk out on us with zero notice apparently because her class schedule got too full, and things are really bad with my sister stopping here to work as a health aide for two hours in the evening after driving an hour and half home from her work.
I'm looking forward to the memorisation info as you rightly suggest theirs a paradox between creativity and capture.
Thanks Paul.
Like Lisa, I find that showers bring creativity, but I use my usual animist twist to think about it. As piped and canned as shower water is, it's as close to the creative wellspring of a real river as most of us get in the average day.
Rivers have always been home to the sprites, nymphs and gods - often willing to bless the willing recipient with bounty and beauty, which historically was, in turn, thanked with flowers set on the surface of the water.
Even when you drop the animist thinking, there is something atavistic deep in our core that responds to running water...
HAYDEN: Thanks for stopping by and I can well imagine what you say about rivers. I had some limited experience with that as a kid and teen in my hometown, and found that whether I was in the river or on the river it sometimes put me in a deep reverie.
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