Cultivate Your Creative Energy

[00:00:00] Protecting your energy in a productivity obsessed world. Creativity isn't a nice to have. It's a business asset. Most systems kill it. Let's talk about what it really means to protect your creative energy and why your best ideas won't survive in a system designed for output over insight.

So. When I talk about the energy equation and protecting and fueling your energy core, one of the primary energies in that core is your creativity. In our culture and a lot of business communication, we talk about productivity as a, as a priority, and. And typically that means doing a lot of tasks, right? Pushing yourself through. And creativity on the other hand is when you are really in that place where you're bringing that unique aspect of what you have to offer to the community, to the work, to the contribution, and [00:01:00] providing that.

And I know that in any system of people, it can be a little tricky, right? Because you've got some one person who maybe always takes the trash out and someone who never notices that the trash needs to go out. And it can turn into something where people get sidelined into doing only those administrative, functional things.

And so I would say there's a caveat to that. Which is that if you're in a system and you've never done any of those administrative tasks. Maybe take a moment and figure out where and how to do them. So I'll put that in there. And overall, my experience with functioning teams and thriving teams and dysfunctional teams is that when everybody can be in a place where they can be in that creativity and that part of who they are, that is very powerful and unique, everybody's happier and the [00:02:00] work is so much more- impactful and well done and beyond what you would expect. And definitely beyond what you expected when you started. So what drains creative energy and, and what fuels it? A lot of folks think of those things that they do in that very unique way, that gifted way.

They often approach it from a perspective of seeing it as kind of magical. And they don't really wanna investigate it too much because they're a little afraid of shutting down that magic. And really that's the opposite. And, and I, once again, like anything, there's a lot of nuance. And the important thing to remember is yes, there is a bit of magic in your creativity.

A hundred percent. There is something that happens when you're in that zone that defies rational understanding. And what drains it and what fuels it can be understood, cult cultivated and [00:03:00] protected. And I talked about that a little a couple of weeks ago. It, and it's something I'm probably gonna talk about a lot. Because I see so often people really devalue the things that fuel that creative energy because they are not obviously productive often they are not directly income generating, and frequently they are, uh, schedule inhibiting.

And what do I mean by that? For me, one of the things that I learned is I need a few hours, a couple times a week, where I can wander mentally and or physically. And I worked in a shared office space with someone several years ago, and I would sort of say, okay, from nine to 12, I mean, I have that wander time. And it might look like I was just staring at a space or kind of not doing anything. And I could do certain things and not disrupt whatever that was. But there was, I, I call it a back brain time. It's like when the, it's like the little gerbils [00:04:00] in your head, uh, put things together. It's, you know, similar I think to what happens when you're sleeping. But I can do it when I'm awake as long as I don't actively engage whatever that part of my brain is.

So I have to do things that take a very light focus. That are a little bit inconsequential. And frequently after that period of time, a lot of the projects that I was working on, some door will be opened in my, you know, ideas or I'll solve a problem that I was wrestling with for a while. And so it's a very important part of my workflow. And it was incredibly difficult for my coworker to understand.

She would constantly talk to me, ask me to do tasks. And I would be really frustrated when I would say that I needed to do what I was doing. 'cause what it looked like I was doing was kind of ridiculously unimportant compared to maybe the thing that she wanted, on a surface level. However, it was, it was what fueled my ability to do these other things that [00:05:00] she actually really needed me to complete so that she could do the next part on her next part of the project that she had on her plate.

So, really getting to understand what that is, what it looks like, what fuels it, and what drains it. And the other part to understand too, is like we've talked about before, you can draw on that creative energy in a way that isn't draining. And yet if you continually draw on it without replenishing it, that will drain it.

So for example, if you're an artist and you paint. You love to paint, you might draw on that creative energy to paint. And then you might find that because you haven't done whatever it is that fuels that, over a period of time, you find yourself uninspired or unmotivated or unable to focus because you're, you're drained in that way.

So there's two things you can do, activities that drain it. You can disrupt your refueling. And you can draw on it in a way that, and without making space to replenish it. And all three of those will end up with the same result, which is that your [00:06:00] creative energy is drained. So well, what do you do about that?

How do you address it? First, obviously understand what does and doesn't draw, drain and fuel. Second, look at your schedule and identify what you need in that. If you need hours of uninterrupted time. That is difficult to get. And it's possible, and if you prioritize it, so many other things will work so much better that make that a non-negotiable for yourself.

I work with someone who is clearly benefited by working out. And I consider that to be a business priority for this person. Because that is one of the things that helps them to be a, a perpetual motion machine in their own life. And that's really important to, to recognize and understand that for yourself.

For some folks it's uh, time with friends, family. For some folks it's time alone. A lot of [00:07:00] people find nature to be very rejuvenating. And I highly recommend really prioritizing that. Put that on your calendar. Be non-negotiable about it. That's the other part that can be so difficult because we will deprioritize the things that are critical for us. Because we haven't really identified that they are, it's, it's not that we aren't interested. Or we're being really flexible and accommodating, and a little bit of that is of course, necessary. And be aware. Having a structure is important. And being aware, like I said, of what you need to do to keep yourself on point and, and replenishing.

Being too rigid, going too far the other direction has its own challenges. And I like to say, you know, leave a little room for things to breathe. I had a meditation instructor who, who would say, hold your conclusions lightly. I think that's a great perspective. Life is what happens when we're making other plans, and so you can create your [00:08:00] schedule.

You can create your structure. And then allow it to, to, to live and breathe on its own. And if, if you find that you are consistently deprioritizing those things that fuel your creativity and replenish your creative energy. Then you do need to maybe be a little bit more rigid while you're developing those patterns.

So think of it like a little baby plant. When you first plant that seed. It needs a lot of your attention. You need to be very strict. You need to water it and, and watch its sun and the shade. And, and protect it from animals. And then as that plant grows, it becomes more self-sustaining. And while you still need to perhaps create protections from things like aphids or weeds, you don't need to be quite as on top of it every five seconds. And so as you're building this supportive structure, you may find that you need to be rigid with yourself as well as others to develop this habit and pattern. And [00:09:00] after about three months, just check in. And look at what you can do to back off and to let it kind of flow on its own.

Because in the end, that rigidity probably won't serve you any more than being overly accommodating does.

Thank you so much for listening. Next week, I'm gonna talk about connection, energy, and why you feel disconnected even when you're showing up.

Aicila: Thank you for tuning into business. As unusual. Remember in this ever evolving world of modern business, it's not about fitting in. It's about standing out. See you next time, stay curious, stay innovative and always keep it unusual.