Is it only for artists to be creative? Pah! We'll show you a method that will help you develop your own creativity. And for the morning pages method, you only need a few minutes a day …
Be creative at the push of a button? Okay, it's usually not that simple, but creativity can be learned and encouraged. Here you can find out why you only need a little paper and pen to get a new boost in creativity.
That's behind the morning pages
Some people find it easier to be creative than others. However, this does not mean that there are only creative and uncreative people and that this division is set in stone! The US-American author Julia Cameron is known for her self-help guide "The Artist's Way", published in 1992, among other things. There she describes a 12-week program that should help to unleash your own creativity. And the morning pages are an important part.
The creativity method is no longer an insider tip, it is used to overcome one's own (writing) blockages. If you look at the experience reports on the net, you will find many positive examples. Curious if it works for you too? All you need are three blank pieces of paper a day and of course a pen.
That's how it's done:
- Reserve a slot every morning for the morning pages (approx. 20 to 30 minutes).
- Put pen and paper to hand, preferably by the bed, and sit down on it as soon as you wake up …
- … and just start writing until all three pages are completely filled.
It doesn't matter what you write! It's not about writing a perfect story, or having to write a story at all, it's about writing down your thoughts. That can be anything that comes to mind, like
- … experiences of your past day
- … the to-dos of your coming day
- … an argument that burdens you
- … a fictional story
- … incoherent sentences
- … feelings that are currently ruling you
- … scraps of dreams from last night
- … thoughts, how stupid this method is.
Why all this if it doesn't matter what I write anyway? The method may seem banal at first and has no obvious purpose, but the advantages take time to become apparent.
Do's and don'ts of the morning pages
- Do not sit at the PC: Write the three pages completely by hand!
- Don't stop writinguntil the notes are written on. It's best not to stop, just keep writing.
- Do not think! The tip is reminiscent of the phenomenon of the pink elephant, of course! The prohibition of thinking "do not think of a pink elephant" achieves exactly the opposite. However, the aim of the tip is to ensure that you get into the right flow in the first place and that you e.g. B. do not dwell unnecessarily with formulations or topic selection.
- Write in the morning after you get up. Sure, you can turn on the washing machine first, check your emails and … you're stuck in the middle of the day and don't have your head free. If the pages are the first thing you do in the morning, you are even more free and your thoughts are unfiltered.
- Stay tuned! After a day or two with the morning pages, you may still feel no effect, no breakthrough change in you or your life. Give it a try and stick with it for four weeks.
Advantages and effects of the creativity method
When writing, you don't have to develop anything, evaluate it, formulate it well, pay attention to spelling, you don't even have to pick up the morning pages after writing. You are welcome to keep them, but you don't have to. It's not about the writing, it's about the fact that you wrote. What can have the following advantages and effects:
- You have no pressure, because there is no other stated goal than just to fill these few pieces of paper. There is no right or wrong, you just start writing, no matter what comes to your mind and that really helps to get started and get into a flow.
- You can really clear your head – as it is also practiced with braindump. The only difference is that in retrospect you don't continue to work with what has been written down (you may of course …). You can allow anything, whether you let off steam, write down what you are grateful for or what you still want to do today.
- Not only writers and hobby writers have blockages, sometimes the creative spark is simply missing in other hobbies or at work. We ourselves are a reason for the blockage! We evaluate and discard before we tried – before we even started – and don't even allow our creativity! With this method you stop your inner critic.
- Perhaps you notice patterns through the daily morning pages or topics that occupy you a lot, for example – the pages can also be a means of self reflection be.
- Who does not know it, you are about to fall asleep and suddenly you have a good idea! This Relaxation is usually still there in the morning after waking up before we plunge into hectic everyday life – and that's exactly what we need to use. And who knows, maybe you will write down ideas that you would never have thought of before?
Write the morning pages in the evening
In the morning you are not so fit and more of a morning grouch – you are certainly not alone with that! You are free to use the method as you like. However, you should keep in mind that for a reason they are called Morning Pages and should be written at this time of day:
- You're not exhausted in the morning
- You benefit from the morning rest phase
- Your head is not yet overloaded with impressions, problems and events
- The day is still ahead of you – you can now set the course for it
Tip: In the BRIGITTE community you can exchange ideas with others on all aspects of personal development!