Creativity can seem like a vague concept; a discussion around problem solving and beauty and meaning making through expressive forms. But what does creativity really look like? The answer isn’t straightforward because it looks different to everyone. Every creative has to tap into their own creative frequency by finding what resonates with them out in the world, and learning to transform that resonance into a piece of work.
Creatives function like a tuning fork. Introduce a topic or an art form or an idea into our space and watch us hum with its energy. The creative needs to learn how to read these tuning moments, the way a tuning fork helps guide a musician back into perfect harmony. If the resonance that is surrounding you doesn’t feel right, you are not in harmony with that particular creative pursuit, idea or craft. When you strike your tuning fork against an idea or craft that resonates with you, harmony hums through the very air.
The beauty of being a creative soul is the exploration that comes with being a tuning fork in the world. Because of the vulnerable sensitivity of many creative people learning to sense the world through experience, becoming in tune with the experiences of others and the world around you, becomes an expressive superpower. The more in tune you become with the creativity around you, the more precise you can become in developing a creative proactive that serves you instead of one that takes more than it gives.
Tips to Help You Find Your Frequency
It’s all well and good to talk about being a tuning fork and honing in on what makes you feel excited, but sometimes it can be hard to develop that sixth sense.
Tapping into your learning style - Earlier on the blog we did a deep dive into learning styles and what creative pursuits may resonate with each of them. Click HERE to pop over and have a quick read if you haven’t already! Basically, the idea is that our learning style reveles a lot about how we are wired to consume information and therefore how we may excel at expressing it as well. We learn by consuming information, art and ideas. It stands to reason then, that we learn how to display and share our own ideas and creative insights in the ways we consume them.
Exploring creative disciplines that you enjoy consuming - It’s not only how we consume that can point us in the right direction creatively, but what we actually enjoy consuming in the creative realm. For example, I have always loved to read, particularly fantasy. The first writing project I ever embarked upon, and is still a work in progress, is an ever evolving fantasy novel that I affectionately call my passion project. What I loved to consume resonated with me so well, that I turned around and wanted to engage and create in that style myself.
Following your expressive style - We may not all be taught to value creativity or artistic pursuits, but we all learn how to relate to others in the world, problem solve, and communicate, whether from our parents, social settings or school. Over time we develop our own generational and personal communication habits. How we relate information to others can be an indicator for us to use on our tuning fork journey to finding our creative frequency. If you like to talk things through, perhaps writing, singing, music or blogging may be creative pursuits to try. If you express yourself with movement and hand gestures, dancing or painting might be for you. These are only small examples of expressive style and their potential creative extrapolations.
To Dial in or Switch the Station
This idea to pursue only what resonates with you doesn’t mean stagnation. Tapping into your creative frequency only enhances your capacity for growth through creative expression. Dialing into your creative frequency doesn’t mean losing your natural sense of creative curiosity or sense of adventure.
I find writing blogs, novels and content, dancing, choreographing, working out, and making orthotics resonate with me. At their root they all involve education, teaching and collaborating with others. Although I enjoy exploring other creative forms like sketching and karaoke, I know that they do not resonate with me. That doesn’t stop me from participating in these activities, or trying to learn new creative forms. It simply means that I do not pursue them as a source of creative expression. Things I’m bad at may resonate with me as well. The opportunity to learn and hone skills is one of the best things about being a tuning fork. You may stumble upon something new that clicks with you, and now the journey of learning begins anew.
There is so much hunger in this world for creative work. Regardless of how you create and what you resonate with, there is a need for it. Too often creatives fall into creating on the trend or chasing a creative craft that they believe will be more marketable - especially if they want to create an income from it. If we just hone in on what resonates with us, if we can listen to that inner tuning fork, we can cultivate creativity that brings us joy, and will in time, grant us whatever forms of abundance we are pursuing through creative avenues.
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