Trying to get things absolutely right is the death of creativity. Many great artists have to go through many ‘failures’ before they find their style, and the most unique ideas are often found when you least expect them.

Perfectionism is a very modern issue, with online profiles that show only the best of everything, we don’t always get to see what goes wrong. In some areas of life, of course we need to aim to get things right, being creative is not one of them. The simple act of saying ‘it doesn’t matter’ is really powerful, and it’s the first step in being truly creative.

As adults we often we feel like there has to be a purpose to everything we do - there doesn’t!

By removing the idea that you’re creating something so you can post it on social media, or as part of a professional project, you have zero limitations, and it all becomes a lot more fun and expansive! Without end goals in sight, you can just do what feels good, and get into the realms of enjoying creating again.

We were taught from a young age that learning had to happen in a certain way. Partly this comes from education systems, and the need to have some way to measure success (i.e. exams). Unfortunately some people are just not great at exams, but this doesn’t mean they cannot learn.

If you think back to being a young child, there were many things you learnt very instinctively before you had to think about passing exams. Many people have a great sense of what will look, feel or sound beautiful, without there being any good reason behind it. By starting to learn new skills as you did when you were younger, just by trying and playing, you can find your own way of learning that feels right for you.

A big part of creating is just practicing. No great creative got where they are without honing their craft, so you have to expect to spend time recreating your work again and again. In some ways the creative process is like an experiment, you have a hypothesis, you try it, and see the results, then you try a new hypothesis. This practice is key, so we want to help you find something you feel you want to make a part of your life in the future too.

Take plenty of time to do absolutely nothing.

Just as our muscles need rest days between workouts to grow stronger, our minds need periods of idleness to process. We do so at night while dreaming; during the day, our minds tend to process through daydreaming.

In a series of studies, researchers found that subjects who were asked to do mundane, boredom-inducing tasks were more creative afterward. Boredom is a “variety-driving emotion,” meaning that it primes us to seek out new and different — therefore creative — experiences and solutions. Boredom naturally fosters the foundational facet of wonder, openness. A ready openness to new experiences and to one’s environment leads to more potential creative insight.