Have you ever kept yourself from doing something because you thought you weren’t creative enough to pull it off?

Brace yourself because I am about to make a bold statement. When  you say that you’re not creative, it’s just another way of saying you are lazy.

Now before you get mad at me, hear me out.

I don’t think you’re lazy. You just might not have realized that creativity is a muscle that must be worked. If you don’t practice how can you expect to get good at anything? Sure there are people that have some pure raw talent, but they continually practice to hone their skills. Mozart practiced 5 hours a day and Bob Dylan continually stretched his creative muscle to help him write lyrics.

The point is, you ARE creative. Just think of all of the times you used your experience and knowledge to figure something out. You were being creative; in fact, I bet you get creative a lot more than you realize.

There are really only 2 things you need to be creative:

1.  Being open to the world and all of the insight that experiences can bring you.

2.  Be willing to practice, even if it seems hard, or silly.

To show you what I mean, I found this YouTube video of Bob Dylan doing exactly what I described above.

It’s hard not to have fun while watching this clip. Dylan simply used the words around him and began to think of ways to mix them up. It isn’t a new exercise, but it has always been a powerful one. The reason it can be such a powerful creative exercise is that we often get stuck in a perspective. That one perspective makes us see a situation in a specific way. To help us shake loose, we have to force ourselves to shift our perspective. That isn’t always an easy task, but exercises like these can help.

Now if you are wondering how Dylan’s exercise can help you and your business, you simply need to literally mix it up a bit. Start with whatever you are working on, a blog topic, virtual course, marketing, presentation, or training…you name it, and you can use this exercise to get those creative juices flowing.

Now pull out the main themes, words, and phrases and write them on a board or on index cards.

Now begin to move them around. Try different combinations. Just like in the video, don’t be afraid to be silly. It’s ok if they don’t make sense, that’s the point. It is in this experience of almost uncomfortable combinations that our mind begins to see things differently. You will be amazed at how these new combinations can help new ideas spring forth.

I just love how Dylan skips about with amusement as he comes up with new ways to use the seemingly normal words. Think of what wonderful new and creative things you can do with your content by simply being willing to explore the idea that there is more than one way to see things.

Are you feeling like there is something in your life where you are feeling stuck and could use a spark of creativity? Try Dylan’s exercise and let me know in the comments below how it went. And if you need help through the process, sign up for a free 30 minute whiteboarding session.