The Path to Emotional Wisdom: Creativity
A while back, I wrote a fun piece on creativity. This was during a time where I was living in Asheville, North Carolina and absolutely in love with the craft beer scene and community of my temporary magical blue ridge home.
While I still very much align with my views in that post, I want to come back to creativity as a core element on my path to emotional wisdom and approach it with a bit more depth as I craft (see what I did there?) a different perspective on its spiritual, emotional, and physical importance.
As I embark on my journey towards emotional wisdom, I have come to realize the profound impact that creativity can have on this transformative path. Truth be told, I always considered myself a non-creative person. As a middle school student, a teacher once announced to the class that a drawing I did was “something you squint at.” Clearly I’m still a little salty.
That shit was traumatic. The other kids in class were quick to put the dunce cap on my head and make sure I knew how shameful a poorly drawn political cartoon could be in the 7th grade.
That imprint, coupled with no other notable (or noted) artistic skills programmed me with this idea that I was not a creative guy. It’s taken a decade of new thinking and new perspectives to help me re-program creativity and give me a better sense of how important my own creative development would be for my overall personal growth.
Today, by embracing creativity, I open myself up to a world of possibilities, where self-expression and self-discovery become powerful tools for personal growth and emotional intelligence. I have learned and come to vehemently believe that creativity is not limited to a select few; it is a universal force that can be harnessed by anyone willing to explore and develop their creative skills.
To convey this belief, I want to hone in on the scientific, historical, and spiritual aspects of creativity. I will also offer some tools I’ve used to help develop creative skills, in an effort to help myself and others, enhance emotional wisdom and contribute to a more fulfilling life.
Creativity and The Brain
Hot take: Engaging in creative activities stimulates various regions of the brain, leading to a cascade of cognitive and emotional benefits. If you’ve seen movies like Soul, Moneyball, or Dead Poet’s Society (among MANY others) you can get a feel for how allowing creativity into your process can lead to important change.
By understanding the scientific underpinnings of creativity and its impact on emotional wisdom, we gain a deeper appreciation for its transformative potential, like those displayed in the movies.
The neuro-chemical responses, cognitive flexibility, emotional processing, self-expression, and empathy fostered through creative practices contribute to our overall emotional well-being and pave the way for personal growth and wisdom.
When we engage in creative endeavors, the brain releases dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with pleasure, motivation, and reward. Dopamine reinforces the positive feelings we experience during the creative process, creating a sense of fulfillment and satisfaction. This neuro-chemical response not only enhances our mood but also motivates us to continue engaging in creative pursuits, further deepening our emotional well-being.
Additionally, creativity promotes cognitive flexibility, which is the ability to adapt our thinking and behavior in response to changing circumstances. This flexibility allows us to approach emotional challenges from multiple perspectives, expanding our capacity for empathy, understanding, and problem-solving. By exploring diverse possibilities through creative thinking, we develop resilience and adaptability in the face of emotional complexities.
For those of us who feel stuck, stressed, frustrated, or annoyed, engaging in creative expression provides an outlet for processing and making sense of complex emotions.
Through creative activities (more to come on these), we gain insights into our emotions, create narratives around our experiences, and find symbolic representations for our inner world. They can serve as a channel for emotional catharsis, allowing us to externalize and release pent-up feelings.
This process of emotional exploration and expression promotes self-reflection, emotional integration, and a deeper understanding of ourselves.
Where I have found the most impact in my own life is in the way creativity has offered me a platform for authentic self-expression, enabling me to communicate thoughts, emotions, and perspectives in unique and meaningful ways. This work has not only lead to an arm of tattoos, but also has given me a way to tap into my own inner voice. I’ve been able to cultivate a greater sense of self-awareness by asking myself more creative questions.
This self-expression not only fosters a deeper connection to our own emotions but also allows others to connect with and understand us on a more profound level.
As we develop our creative skills, we refine and solidify our sense of identity, contributing to emotional growth and wisdom. We start to see opportunities to step into different roles, perspectives, or imagined worlds. This process of imagining and embodying diverse experiences enhances our capacity for empathy and perspective-taking.
I know. Holy shit.
The Creative Impact
Mahatma Gandhi is a famous dude. Perhaps not known directly for his creativity, it can easily be seen how important his differentiated and creative approach was to his to activism and leadership. Gandhi initially pursued a career in law and politics, but it was through his willingness to do things differently and innovative methodology that helped him discover his true calling as a leader and advocate for nonviolent resistance.
“Your beliefs become your thoughts,
Your thoughts become your words,
Your words become your actions,
Your actions become your habits,
Your habits become your values,
Your values become your destiny.”
― Gandhi
Gandhi’s creative approach to his personal and spiritual journey led him to embrace principles of truth, love, and nonviolence, which became the foundation of his philosophy of Satyagraha.
Gandhi’s differentiated mindset allowed him to challenge the status quo, envision a different future, and inspire mass movements for social change. His new strategies, symbolic actions, impactful communication, personal style, and spiritual reflection all contributed to his transformational impact on society.
Throughout his life, Gandhi demonstrated the transformative power of creativity in serving society. His ability to communicate complex ideas through simple and impactful means resonated with people from all walks of life. By harnessing his creative talents, Gandhi became a guiding light for social justice and inspired generations of activists to seek peaceful means of achieving change.
He incorporated innovative approaches in his activism, using his unique skills as a writer and orator to communicate his messages of peace, justice, and equality to the masses, in a very relatable way.
Gandhi’s creative approach to activism extended beyond words. He utilized symbolic gestures and acts, such as the Salt March, where he led a nonviolent protest against British salt taxes, to draw attention to the unjust practices of the colonial regime.
These acts of creative resistance not only captured the imagination of the people but also brought international attention to the cause of Indian independence.
Creativity as a Path to Spirituality
Continuing in the theme of creativity and spirituality, a deeper dive into creativity from a spiritual standpoint reveals its deep connection to emotional wisdom and personal growth. Spiritual traditions across cultures have recognized creativity as a sacred and transformative force that can lead to profound self-discovery, healing, and connection to the divine.
At the core of many spiritual paths, creativity is believed to arise from a connection to a higher source of inspiration. By opening ourselves to this divine flow, we tap into a wellspring of creativity that goes beyond our limited egoic perspectives. This spiritual understanding of creativity encourages us to surrender to the creative process and allow ideas, insights, and expressions to flow through us, fostering a sense of humility and awe.
Through this surrender, creativity can also be a means of transcending the limitations of the ego and connecting with something greater than ourselves.
My best example of this is when I am able to experience moments of flow, where time seems to dissolve, and myl identity merges with the creative energy flowing through me. As pointed to earlier, the movie Soul does a beautiful job showing the power of flow and the spiritual nature a flow state can have, but for a deeper dive, feel free to go to the source.
These transcendent experiences cultivate a sense of interconnectedness, spiritual alignment, and a deeper understanding of our place in the world. To honor this, many spiritual traditions incorporate creative rituals and sacred spaces to foster a conducive environment for creative exploration. These rituals and spaces provide a dedicated container for creative expression, inviting a sense of reverence and focus.
Whether it is creating an altar, participating in ceremony, or setting aside a specific time for creative practice, these intentional acts deepen our connection to the spiritual aspect of creativity and nurture emotional wisdom.
Spiritually focused approaches to creativity emphasize the importance of being fully present in the creative act. By cultivating mindfulness, we engage in the creative process with heightened awareness and intention.
Being fully present allows us to access deeper levels of intuition, creativity, and emotional insight. It helps us bypass self-judgment, doubt, and distractions, enabling a more authentic and soulful expression.
By embracing the spiritual aspects of creativity, we expand our understanding of its transformative power. The concepts of divine inspiration, mindfulness, transcendence, ritual, and symbolism all contribute to a deeper connection with our inner selves, the world around us, and the spiritual essence of creativity.
Incorporating these spiritual perspectives into our creative practices supports our journey towards emotional wisdom, helping us cultivate a profound sense of purpose, meaning, and connection.
Creating Creativity
Coming all the way back to the top, developing the tools for understanding and expressing my own creative skills and powers has been quite a journey. For over 20 years, I held the belief that I was simply not a creative person. As one may imagine, this was quite the limiting belief and actually hindered a lot of my physical, emotional, and spiritual development.
The first tool in any development process is awareness.
I had to realize that I was, in fact, creative. Perhaps not in the traditional sense. I still haven’t tried my hand at drawing or painting or sculpting (though as I write this, I feel a strange inspiration to try). I suppose what I needed to do was reframe my paradigm for what I believed “art” to be and thus, what I believed an artist to be.
Questions I started asking myself, in the context of creativity:
What do I enjoy creating?
Where do I find myself able to get into a flow state?
What do I tend to see or think about differently than others?
What creative aspects do I tend to notice in others?
What I learned, first, is that there are infinite questions to be asking myself as I settle into my new home as “creative human”. The more curious I get about myself, the more curious I get about people around me and the more my understanding and perspective around “what defines creativity” evolves.
For some, perhaps it is physical expression such as dance or music that helps them tap into their soul and express themselves creatively. In my case, when I play sports or go to them gym, I find flow and can connect with my body, release pent-up emotions, and cultivate a deeper understanding of the mind-body connection.
Physical expression becomes a vehicle for emotional release, self-discovery, and a heightened sense of embodiment.
For others, engaging in mindful art practices, such as painting, drawing, or sculpting, provides an avenue for connecting with the present moment, expressing emotions, and tapping into one’s intuition. As mentioned, this isn’t my natural forte, but I have worked closely with artists to create the tattoos on my left arm, helping me collaborate on artistic expression without needing the skills to produce.
Co-creation, interestingly, has become an incredible source of my creative expression. As a coach, my work is to co-create a space of inquiry, learning, and experimentation that helps the beautiful humans I work with, craft a path for their own emotional wisdom practices.
It is through creatively crafted conversation, deep listening, and radical inquiry that we can, together, create options, actions, and perspectives that deepen self-awareness and understanding of purpose.
As I write this, I feel the power of my creative abilities, both past and present. I feel emotional about the limitlessness of my creative abilities moving forward, as well.
How creative can I be in building the life that I want?
How differentiated am I willing to be in the process of testing my creative limits?
How many questions am I capable of asking that will help me develop even more tools on my creative journey?
The Creative Journey
As I journey towards emotional wisdom, I wholeheartedly embrace the transformative power of creativity. The insights and ideas above, among many other experiences, conversations, successes, and failures, have shown me that creativity is not just an artistic pursuit but a fundamental aspect of personal growth and emotional intelligence.
By nurturing and developing my creative skills, maintaining a state of inquiry into how I see creativity, and in dedicating my life to learning from and serving others, I deepen my capacity for self-reflection, self-awareness, empathy, and resilience. Creativity becomes an integral part of my path to emotional wisdom, guiding me towards a more enriching and fulfilling life.
I will leave you with some questions. I hope they inspire you as they inspire me.
How are you creative?
How might your view of creativity be limiting your infinite capabilities?
What role does creativity play on your path to emotional wisdom?
