What do you do whenever you need to be creative?
Some people strain their minds and ponder endlessly, yet no idea “comes out.” Then one day, while bathing, jogging, walking, or even sleeping, ideas suddenly pour forth. It seems that when the mind relaxes and space appears, the creative flow has room to pass through.
Each person has a different way of “opening the door” to creativity. But the common point is that before we reach the creative “Zone,” everything seems blocked. Once we enter the Zone, ideas pour out and connect seamlessly.
Creativity is not always a flash of lightning. It is a state of mind: focused yet relaxed, aware yet at ease. That is also the state of meditation. When you meditate, you stop forcing and “squeezing out” ideas. You open inner space, like clearing a room, to let fresh energy flow in.
Imagine: if a glass is full, how can you pour in fresh water? You must empty some out. The mind is the same. Filled with fragments of worry, fear, and stress, it has no room for creativity. Meditation is “pouring out old water,” clearing mental rubbish, and restoring quiet, empty space. In that still emptiness, fresh new ideas begin to take root.
Steve Jobs was a highly creative entrepreneur and also a meditator. He created not just products but an entire world and lifestyle—iMac, iPhone, iPad, iTunes, Apple.
Scientific research has also demonstrated that meditation reduces brainwaves at stress frequencies, increases relaxation, and activates brain regions related to creativity. Meditators often generate more ideas and are more capable of producing breakthrough solutions.
That is why major technology companies such as Google, and even financial corporations such as Goldman Sachs, encourage employees to meditate. They understand that creativity is a precious resource, and meditation is the key that opens that door.
So before rushing into creating, try sitting down, closing your eyes, breathing deeply, and clearing space in your mind.
Then open your eyes, and you will see ideas rushing in like rays of light.
Are you ready?
Meditate—then create!
Day 16/21 of Sowers of Peace
