The surprising way to be happier + boost creativity

Do you like getting messy?

Maybe it feels fun for you to make a mess in the kitchen, or in the garden, or with paints or clay.

Or, like me in years past, maybe the idea of things being messy makes you cringe.

The colors in my box of pencils needed to be neatly arranged according to the rainbow. A counter covered in spilled flour as I mixed up a batter drove me crazy. Precision and order made me super-happy.

How I learned to tolerate (and appreciate) a mess

I will never forget the day my coach and I were beginning a creative exercise and he dumped out the contents of my pristine box of 48 perfect new pastels.

Many of them broke. Dust was all over the place. The pastels were in a heap and I was furious.

He laughed.

I moved ahead with the process with gritted teeth. I hated that I could not choose each color from the box and return each to its precise place every time I used a color. 

And what happened next was wonderful.

With the irreparable heap in front of me, I slowly let myself connect to the music and simply play with colors — choosing a bright green on the fly, tossing it back on the pile, and picking up a rich blue that caught my eye. On I went, not pausing to put anything back in place. I focused on the combination of colors and shapes I was throwing together on the page.

It was not long before I totally forgot how irritated I’d felt. I was absorbed in a great process and felt free.

Having been forced to give up the control I was accustomed to, I got to feel what happened when I allowed myself to relax.

And I realized that in that new relaxed state, that many things had happened that would not have been the same had I been focused on keeping everything neat.

I was happy to start bringing that freedom into other parts of my life.

Why making a mess is good

While many of us feel it’s fine for kids to get messy, we fail to consider why it is healthy for us as adults to make a mess, too.

Engaging in messy play sparks our senses — no matter our age. 

Messy play opens avenues of curiosity, and creativity of every kind flows from there.

Allowing ourselves to be free opens our hearts and brightens our spirits. 

Spontaneity and surprise, and the “accidents” that show up in the process, bring things to light that would have never likely occurred otherwise. 

Rather than focusing on having to know it all or sticking to a plan, or keeping things neat and tidy, when you allow for some messiness — in both play and the ways you approach everything in your day — truly amazing things can happen. 

You are likely to spawn big new insights that can become the launch-point for exciting projects and initiatives.

And best of all, you will ignite your spirit.

How might you explore messiness?

If you have been holding on tightly, trying to keep everything under control and “just right”, maybe introducing a little messiness will enable you to loosen your grip a bit.

You might start with play, experience how that feels, and then introduce bits of serendipity into other part of your life. Meaningful surprises are likely to follow.

If you are looking for ideas, or want to share your experiences (positive or not) with messiness, I’d be happy to connect. Email me and let’s connect.

Are you ready to stop struggling?

You have likely heard the Buddhist quote, “Suffering is optional.”

I noticed it coming up in different contexts lately. And when things show up with frequency like that, it is a sign for me to pay attention.

Most of us hold on to hurt, resentment and anger

I don’t know about you, but in the past it was a challenge for me to “let go” when things happened that felt unfair or unjust.

It was easy to stew in the emotion, to turn it over and over in my mind, and to talk about it at length with others — which often fomented more upsetting emotion about the issue.

This went far beyond processing and evaluating.

More often than not, upsetting thoughts about the matter at hand grew and festered, often leading to distraction, stress and poor sleep.

After decades of suffering in this way when such issues arose, I found it was possible to approach things differently.

“Don’t let it land”

This sage advice was offered to me by my husband years ago, when someone said something to me that felt deeply hurtful.

I have no recollection of the offending remark, but I never forgot the concept he suggested I adopt.

However, I was a slow learner.

I found it difficult to let the hurt roll off, to not “land” and get lodged in my thoughts.

Fortunately, with much practice, my ability to keep things from landing has improved. I am grateful to have been gifted this sage concept.

And not long ago I was offered yet another juicy bit of wisdom that I am glad to share with you.

You can drop the rope

When we are in a struggle — with someone else, and even within ourselves — there’s a lot of tension.

That tension usually involves tugging. Think of the tug of war games we all played at camp, or outings in the park. Can you recall how much effort you expended?

What if, instead of the pulling and tugging and huffing and puffing, you chose to drop the rope and stop?

While the back and forth struggles we tend to engage in as we try to defend a position, make a case, convince someone, and even beg for reasonableness can sometimes lead to something more positive, there are many times when that is not the result.

We sink deeper into pain, frustration, and even alienation from the other party.

And who do we hurt the most?

Ourselves.

That is when we can choose something else — to simply drop the rope.

By letting it go, we spare ourselves. And the other party often looses interest, if (as can be the case) they no longer get the satisfaction of provoking you.

When I have made the choice to drop the rope, I have felt remarkably liberated.

We get to choose

We often have to endure things that are not as we wish, or deal with pain. How much we suffer, however, is within our control.

Why not choose your own peace of mind and wellbeing?

Why not choose to stop tolerating things that you are able to be free of?

When we make intentional choices like these, we have agency in our lives. We create a new and better way to move through our lives.

See what I did there? I shared a small but meaningful way you can create the bigger, happier life you desire.