​Photo by Kier in Sight Archives on Unsplash

Yoga Nidra, also known as yogic sleep, is a powerful relaxation technique that can offer numerous benefits to creatives. Here are some specific ways in which Yoga Nidra can enhance the creative process:

1. Stress Reduction: Yoga Nidra helps alleviate stress and anxiety, which are common barriers to creativity. By inducing deep relaxation, it allows creatives to release mental and emotional tensions, enabling them to approach their work with a clearer and more focused mind.
2. Enhanced Clarity and Insight: During Yoga Nidra, practitioners enter a state of conscious awareness between wakefulness and sleep. In this state, the mind becomes highly receptive and open to new ideas and insights. Creatives often find that they gain fresh perspectives and innovative solutions to creative challenges.
3. Increased Mindfulness: Mindfulness is a fundamental quality for creative work, as it cultivates present-moment awareness and helps tap into the flow state. Yoga Nidra encourages mindfulness by directing attention to various parts of the body, breath, and sensations. Regular practice enhances the ability to stay fully present while engaged in creative endeavors.
4. Deep Relaxation and Rejuvenation: Creativity thrives when the mind is relaxed and rejuvenated. Yoga Nidra induces a state of deep relaxation, allowing creatives to recharge their mental and physical energy. This renewed energy contributes to increased productivity, focus, and inspiration.
5. Access to the Subconscious Mind: Yoga Nidra takes practitioners into a state of deep relaxation where the conscious mind is quietened, and the subconscious mind becomes more accessible. This can be particularly beneficial for creatives, as it facilitates the exploration of hidden or untapped creative potentials, memories, and emotions.
6. Improved Self-Awareness: Yoga Nidra promotes self-reflection and self-inquiry. It helps creatives develop a deeper understanding of their thoughts, emotions, and creative processes. This heightened self-awareness can lead to greater artistic authenticity and self-expression.
7. Better Sleep and Rest: Adequate rest is vital for maintaining creativity and preventing burnout. Yoga Nidra not only provides deep relaxation but can also improve the quality of sleep. By helping creatives achieve a more restful sleep, it supports their overall well-being and creativity.

Remember that the benefits of Yoga Nidra for creatives may vary from person to person. It's recommended to incorporate regular practice into your routine and explore how it positively impacts your own creative process.

Are you finding yourself not creating as often as you would like?  Do you find yourself avoiding the art studio or your laptop altogether?  Procrastinating much? Do you have a tough time deciding which creative project to start?  Finding it difficult to complete a creative project?   Resisting marketing your creativity project or product?

If you find yourself with one or more of these symptons, you may be have creative anxiety.   According to author and creativity coach, Dr. Eric Maisel, creative anxietiy is "this kind of anxiety regularly stops creative people in their tracks and makes their experience of creating more painful than pleasurable. It stops would-be creative people entirely, preventing them from realizing their dreams. Anxiety is the number one problem that creative people face, and yet few know about it." Couple this with the uncertainty of a nearly two year old pandemic, socioeconomic crisis and social unrest, our ability to create at all can be at stake.

Just about every creative gets some form of creative anxiety at some point in their life.  The trick is to find a way to deal with it when it rears it's ugly head so you don't become or stay immobile as a result.   Creative anxiety is designed to keep you from being productive creatively....or the spend circles in fear, procrastination, "research" for your project or just not attempting anything at all.

So what can you do to deal with creative anxiety?  Here's a few ideas:

1.  Adopt mindful habits to deal with your creative anxiety:  Mindfulness activities such as meditation, yoga nidra, and other similar activities can help immensely.   If you are embarking on a creative endeavor, consider getting into the habit of doing a guided meditation focusing on creativity that will help relax your mind and focus on the task at hand.  If time is a factor, a series of deep breathing exercises (breathing in from the nose and out from the mouth) can help as well. 

​2.  High vibe sounds:  Consider having a playlist of favorite songs or music that inspires your creative impulses readiy when you begin to work on your creative project.  I find certain music like low-fi hip hop or jazz helpful when I am writing.  I like classic rock when I am creating.   Some people like classical or acoustic sounds.  Find what suits you and have it available when you create or write.

3.  Aromatherapy:   Aromatherapy, which is also known as essential oil therapy is defined as a "holistic healing treatment that uses essential oils to improve the health of body, mind and spirit."  Essential oils are made using natural plant extracts by steaming or pressing different parts of a plant and then capturing the compound which produces the fragrance.  Aromatherapy has many benefits including helping reduce stress and anxiety.   By placing a few drops  in aromatherapy diffuser, on your skin (check to see if the oil is safe to do so or needs a "carrier"  oil), or in the bath, the fragrance can help with creative anxiety before working on a project.  Some oils to consider include wild orange, lemon, tangerine, lavendar, peppermint, sandalwood, jasmine, bergamont, chaomile, and ylang ylang.

4.  Perfectionism:  As creatives we all want our work to be a near perfect as possible.  Quality control is imperative.  However, an obession with perfection can put us in a hamster wheel that can force us to never finish a project or get stuck because it's not "good enough".   Find a way to relax and write an affirmation that you can see that addresses that doing the best you can is enough or that all your efforts are enough.  Work with that affirmation to help overcome the anxiety that if things are not perfect it will never be ready to be completed or sent to the world.

Creative anxiety can get the best of us but also can be overcome.  How do you deal with your creative anxiety?  What would you add to this list?


 







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​​Who wouldn’t like to be more creative? You might think you have no creativity at all, but that’s untrue. You’re incredibly creative! You created the life you have, even if it was unintentional. Being creative in a more intentional manner is something that most would find beneficial.

Learn these strategies to release and enhance your creativity:

1. Try new things. Our thoughts and decisions are largely based on our experiences. Start trying new things.

For example, if you go skydiving or take a nude painting class for the first time, you’re bound to have a new perspective on the world.

2.  Look to your past. When have you had your best ideas? John Denver stated that he wrote his best songs after performing a stimulating outdoor activity, such as downhill skiing or flying his airplane.

It’s common to experience high levels of creativity when the mind is partially engaged, but still free to roam. Situations like mowing the grass or taking a shower would meet the criteria.

3.  Embrace austerity. Life can be way too chaotic. Go camping with nothing but a tent, sleeping bag, and bottle of water. Leave the distractions at home!

Focus on finding solutions as you fall asleep. Put your subconscious to work for the eight hours you spend sleeping each night.

4. Change the location. Have you ever noticed that you think the same thoughts in a given location? You think one way at home. At work, your thought processes are different. If you need to be more creative, try someplace different. Spend the afternoon walking in the woods or sitting at the bookstore.

-A change of scenery can allow you to think new, creative thoughts!

5. Choose your moments. While it’s unwise to sit back and wait for inspiration to hit, it’s possible to apply your creative talents during more appropriate circumstances. If you’re sick and grumpy, it’s probably a bad time to brainstorm. But you won’t know unless you try

-Take advantage of the periods of time when your mind is clear and alert.

6.  Exercise. Many believe that movement and creativity are closely linked. Going for a run or playing a round of golf can help get the creative juices flowing. If you need a brilliant solution, try moving your body more.

7.  Stay up late. Removed from the stimulation and clutter of the day, it’s possible you’ll be more creative in the late hours of the evening. Another possibility is getting up an hour earlier and spending some time in the peace and quiet.

8. Listen to music. Einstein claimed listening to Mozart enhanced his creativity. Consider how different types of music impact your thoughts and emotions. Experiment.

9. Meditate or get a massage. Anything that relaxes your mind can be beneficial to your creativity. Perhaps you’re only a nap away from an earth-shattering idea.

10. Practice visualization. Visualize yourself in unique circumstance, but focus on more than the visual aspects. Hear, see, feel, and smell the situation, too.

Stretching your brain and using it in new ways can enhance your creativity.

There are many ways to double your creativity. It’s largely a matter of trial and error to see which methods work for you. Whether you want to write the perfect song or solve a problem at work, having a higher level of creativity can only help.