be playful? here are 7 ideas

recently, i discovered a new blog, and i immediately – what’s the word? – glommed on to it. beplayful.org, tha pathway through the forest in japanat’s the name, and it says it all. i was able to persuade david to write a post for change therapy. here it is:

i love being playful. being playful helps me to relax, to laugh with life, and to come up with new ideas. playfulness is at the heart of my creativity.

creativity and playfulness go hand in hand: when you are being truly creative, you are being playful; when you are being playful, your creativity and imagination can’t help but show themselves.

because of this link, i’ve found that being playful helps me discover my inner creativity.

here are some of the playful things that i like to do to bring out the creative me:

doodling
as a child i used to love drawing cartoons and treasure maps and random doodles. i’ve recently rediscovered this love of drawing, and i’ve found that doodling is a great way to bring out creative ideas or to let out any stress that is blocking my creativity.

mind maps
if you’re a visual thinker but doodling seems too abstract, you’re likely to find mind-mapping a great creativity-boosting tool. mind maps are brilliant for helping you to notice connections between ideas.

similar to mind maps, but more spontaneous, are rico clusters.

talking to myself
when i’m thinking out new ideas, i often find it helpful to verbalise them, giving them a physical presence.

conversation as an art form
if you’re not entirely comfortable with the idea of talking to yourself (i know i wasn’t until i realised just how much i do it anyway!), it can be equally helpful to share your ideas with others.

once you’ve found someone that you’re comfortable sharing ideas with, begin to see your conversation with them as a art form in itself. talking with others can be a playground of the imagination.

daydreaming
this is my favourite way of being playful, and the one that i find most difficult to do. living in a non-stop, 24/7 city it’s easy to feel guilty or bored when sitting down to do nothing. yet when i take the time to daydream is when my creative ideas flow best.

journalling
there’s something magical about writing down your thoughts, ideas, and parts of your life journey. equally special are the feelings and sounds as the ink of your pen glides, scratches and dries in your beautiful journal. isabella has written quite a few posts on this topic, for example a fun and crazy writing experiment.

go for a walk
or dance in the rain. or go peoplewatching, sitting with your coffee in a corner cafe.

breathing in the fresh air pumps oxygen to your brain, giving your thoughts an energy boost. breathing in the beauty of the world and of nature brings out the beauty of your inner world.

your thoughts
do playfulness and creativity really go together? what playful techniques do you use to boost your creativity?

did you enjoy this post? want to have more playfulness in your life? then visit beplayful.org or sign up for the beplayful RSS feed.

(i’d also like to thank astrid for featuring this post in the june 7 carnival of healing)

(image by kalleboo)

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