Home » Mindfulness » Page 3

Category: Mindfulness

Being creative – the path to fun and mental clarity

1 Comment
Get Creative - A colour wheel

I feel that finding your particular creative “thing” is very important – because creating is all about focusing in the now.

Being creative talks directly to your Limbic brain. This the part of your brain that has no language, no sense of time, and can put no context to anything you experience. It’s where your gut reactions, your “feels” originate.

When you say “That doesn’t feel right, but I don’t know why” about something, that’s your Neocortex (or Rational/Cognative brain) trying to rationalise and contextualise the emotion being passed to it by your limbic brain in that moment – and failing. Because you can’t rationalise gut feelings. They just are.

The Limbic brain responds to images, colours, smells and textures – It’s working with the information your senses provide it in that moment, and only in that moment. Which is why mindful/positive thinking and creativity are so powerful.

The limbic brain responds to creativity by producing a state of happiness, a “this feels right” vibe – As a result, these positive vibes translate into your “this is how life is now” vibes, rippling and manifest themselves through your whole life.

By doing your chosen act of creativity –  painting, cooking, dyeing, knitting, origami, bonsai, decoupage, etc. etc. –  you are being fully committed to the moment. Consequently, this creates “good feels” in your Limbic brain. Which ripple wonderfully out into your life.

Me? I get my creative on by dyeing and by knitting. I love playing with colour, feeling the textures of the fibres, creating wearable art.

Want to get creative at home?
Watch my tutorial on dyeing with food colouring:

So, how do you get creative? Has my video peeked your interest? Do you now want to throw colour at things? Or do you get your art on in a totally different way to me? Leave me a comment below and we can start working toward connecting those dots.

Catch you next week!

Mindfulness – some thoughts

No Comments
Zen - by Steve Hodgson

One of my day-job colleagues that knows I hold a generally “mindful” philosophy asked:

“Can mindfulness be used as a technique that can support people who might feel they are lacking morale as they go through change? Just have a team that are struggling. Lots will leave. They’re on a low ebb.”

This is my reply:
“Mindfulness is about self change and self acceptance. Showing up fully in the moment & being, kind, curious, compassionate and the best you can be in that moment. Also, knowing the universe will look after you and also, more importantly, give you what you are thinking…

So, yes, if someone is willing to make a step toward mindfulness it will help them, but the person has to be willing and open to the idea.

In our deeply scientific world, it can be dismissed as “a bunch of woo-woo” – “people” live inside their own box, don’t believe in “magic” and stick to their own personal negative scripts – constant worry about the future, never enough time, not enough money, etc etc…

People shy away from self-analysis and keep blinkers on their minds because to analyse “self” can be painful, we are very much taught to “accept our lot” and “trudge on” / “make the best of it”

However, “words shape our world” – Mindset change to “positive language internal monologue” and fully engaging in the current activity really does bring good things. (This is to do with the way the Limbic brain (which has no language or communication skills beyond “feels”) and the Rational/Analytical brain interact)

It’s work to change the way one thinks, thinking is deeply programmed from when we learn to talk pretty much… but it’s very rewarding when one does. If nothing else, being positive towards the world makes one happier for sure!”

I like dropping pebbles in the pond of the Universe, creating ripples is good thing. 🙂 Has this post created ripples of thought for you? Leave me a comment below and we can start working toward connecting those dots.

Catch you next week!

Image https://www.flickr.com/photos/craiglea/4806744754 – Zen by Steve Hodgson
Used Under Creative Commons Licence: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/