Creative Mindset Discovery and Growth

By definition, a creative mindset is one of growth and discovery. Below are some examples, quotes, and activities for discovering and growing your mindset. You may know that creativity has been an area of study for me lately and therefore something I’ve been excited to share about.

I was looking through some old papers, journals, and resources the other day as part of a spring cleaning exercise. It was fun to discover that the search for a strong creative mindset is something I’ve actually been pursuing for a long time. Interestingly, most of the materials I’ve saved over the years for inspiration all connect back to mindset.

To be honest, the things that have had the biggest impact on my life all have to do with taking control of your own mindset. And I’m talking about from a young age. My teachers and coaches guiding me over the years towards something that seems current today.

But that’s the thing isn’t it? Most of the best ideas are timeless ideas. And let they are so easy to forget perhaps because they seem like common sense while are actually much harder.

creative mindset definition

Creative: adj – marked by the ability or power to create. n – one who is creative. (Merriam Webster)

Mindset: a mental attitude or inclination, a fixed state of mind (Merriam Webster)

Creative mindset: a mental attitude that supports a power to create

Interestingly, mindset autocorrected to mind-set. The thought being that your mind is set and fixed. Meanwhile, Dr. Dweck’s research and teachings on the growth mindset tells us that we can grow and develop our abilities. I think this is a fun reminder that we can change our fixed state of mind.

For today’s blog post we’re talking about changing our state of mind to be one of a creative. That means we have to set our mind to creative. If you have a hard time currently seeing yourself as creative at least start with a growth creative mindset.

Believe that you have the ability to develop your ability to be creative. I actually like to take this one step further and say that the creative is already within you. It’s a built in quality that has simply be buried and covered by conditioning, circumstances, and identities.

You are creative. Think way back to your childhood, a common place we look for the artist within. You may have, like me, been not so great at singing but loved writing songs. Experiences followed that led you to believe you were terrible at music even though in reality your song ideas were extremely creative.

If you can believe it, I’m going to draw on an example from nature. I know it’s a shocker with with love of the outdoors and all. In fact the example isn’t so much from nature, rather it is nature.

Nature is creative. It has the power and ability to create. You, my friend, are a part of nature. You just have to find your creative mindset.

Why does this matter? Imagine what believing in and valuing our creativity could do. Imagine what we could create or how we might feel about ourselves, our lives, and the world around us.

discovery and growth

Naturally, (pun intended) I think there are two paths to a creative mindset. Discovery and growth. If you don’t believe me about the growth part, you must go read Mindset by Dr. Dweck. And if you don’t believe me about the discovery part then I prescribe a mindful walk in nature.

Additionally, you might be interested in this article by Dweck where she explains that “…the path to a growth mindset is a journey, not a proclamation.” She goes on the explain that we need approaches to practice.

I love her call to watch your triggers and become aware of when you’re falling into a fixed mindset. If you feel like “I’m not creative,” she would tell you to add the word yet to the end of your sentence.

So if you’re not feeling very creative yet. Or you’re looking to practice and develop your creativity, let’s head out on that journey. Let’s know that as with any journey there will be ups and downs. And let’s be aware that it’s a practice.

You may know that I’m a yoga teacher. As a recovering athlete addict, meaning I love competition and grew up with a lot of it. One of the hardest and best things about yoga for me is this idea that it’s a practice.

We approach a practice with a growth mindset. A mindset that we’re on a journey. We don’t expect perfection but rather approach each day with a fresh set of eyes and an open mind.

What would we call that? An open mindset? To have an open mindset and make room for creativity we need to let go of limiting beliefs and cultivate beliefs that support our creativity.

creative mindset examples and activities

So we’ve established that we are creative. (If this is challenging for you I will address is in another post to come soon. Or you can check out my Creativity Test.)

We have also established that we can practice, grow, and develop both our creativity and our mindset around creativity.

Now, it’s time to work on developing approaches and practices to both become more creative and tap into our inherent creativity. Below are some of my favorite creative mindset examples and activities.

1. Affirmations

Let’s start with a powerful tool towards shifting your mindset, affirmations and mantras. If you repeat “I am creative” to yourself often enough you might just start to believe it. If you start to believe it, you might just start to act that way and look for opportunities to develop and utilize your creativity. I suggest an affirmation slightly more specific to your own challenges, feel free to reach out if you need help developing one. If you can add visualization to this, even better. If you can read and consume some positive material on top of it, that’s best!

2. Meditation

This isn’t just some hippy stuff. There is a lot of research happening around meditation right now. Here’s an article about how developing your ability to observe might be the most beneficial type of meditation for creativity.

3. Journaling

The benefits of journaling are two-fold. Maybe three-fold and ten-fold. Try it and you might experience compounding benefits. One, you can see into your thoughts and discover your limiting beliefs.. From there you can practice gratitude and start to shape your beliefs. Second, unless this is third, journaling can be a free writing exercise which can help you capture your ideas. Don’t put a limit on it, there are no bad ideas in a brainstorm.

4. Exercise

Take a walk or engage in more serious exercise. This will clear your head as well as reduce your stress. Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers* is a pretty good guide when it comes to stress and coping with stress. Might I recommend yoga?

5. Do

One of my favorite authors on creativity would remind you to Do the Work. Sit down and write, start painting, do whatever it is you do. Read all of Pressfield’s books if you have to and overcome resistance, which is likely getting in your way of doing and being creative. Doing something creative will, here’s a shocker, help you be more creative.

There are so many other things I want to suggest, practice, and recommend. The five ideas above are not the be all end all. They just happen to be my favorite. The point is to pick something, anything, and find a tool that will help you begin your journey toward a more creative mindset.

in conclusion

It’s time to discover and develop your creative mindset. It starts with two simple facts. 1. You are already creative (somewhere deep deep deep down) and you simply need to connect with the creative within. 2. You have the ability to practice, grow, and develop your creativity. Pop over to: Creative Mindset: Step One to Unlocking Creativity

Remember, it’s a journey. We never want to let the phrase, “I am creative” allow us to be lazy and satisfied. While it’s a great affirmation that will allow you to impact your mindset, remember that it’s a journey.

*Links to Amazon are affiliate links.

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I’m Brenda Bergreen, one grateful half of a husband and wife photography team specializing in outdoor weddings and other adventures. Capturing people in nature and the mountain lifestyle is a passion that became a dream (that became a goal) that became a life.

Based in Evergreen, CO we travel throughout the state as Colorado mountain and adventure wedding photographers. We also frequently travel to California and other wedding destinations to document your love in a variety of memorable settings. Don’t hesitate to contact us and let us know how we can help! Be sure to follow us (weddings instagram & adventures instagram) and/or like us (facebook) to stay tuned.

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