Uncategorized
Creativity: Good for your health, and your bottom line
Published
9 years agoon
By Jackie Rainford Corcoran
Explore Big Sky Health Columnist
In addition to being a holistic health coach I’m also an artist and art teacher. Lately, I’ve been hosting art parties – “Canvas and Cocktail” type events – and after witnessing hundreds of people light up as they explore their canvas with brush strokes, I’ve been giving a lot of consideration to the real value of creativity.
Albert Einstein said, “Creativity is intelligence having fun.”
A study titled “Openness to Experience and Mortality of Men” was discussed in the August 2012 edition of “Scientific American.” The study’s author, Nicholas Turiano, stated that, “Individuals high in creativity maintain the integrity of their neural networks even into old age.” He added that stress, which can be harmful to our cardiovascular, immune and cognitive systems, is reduced in creative thinkers.
When we’re in our creative groove, time seems to stand still and self-consciousness falls away. It’s very similar to how meditation focuses the mind. This is evident at certain moments during art parties when a room full of 30 people becomes Zen-like in its in quiet purposefulness. Since meditation and creativity can bring us to a similar place, perhaps their health benefits overlap for similar reasons.
But beyond health, honing your creative skills is good for you bottom line.
While introducing the iPad 2 to the world in 2011, Apple’s then CEO Steve Jobs said, “It’s in Apple’s DNA that technology alone is not enough. It’s technology married with liberal arts, married with the humanities, that yields the results that make our hearts sing.”
Richard Florida, an American economist and author of “The Rise of the Creative Class. And How It’s Transforming Work, Leisure and Everyday Life,” writes that “…human creativity is the ultimate economic resource.” According to Florida and other economists, we are in the “post-industrial age,” and the workforce now relies heavily on creative thinkers.
So how do we get into this creative zone if our jobs and education don’t require it? First, discover what truly motivates you. Is it playing an instrument, wood working or writing poetry? If you’re passionate about something, you’re more likely to pursue it, take risks and stick with it.
Second, cultivate personality traits such as curiosity, persistence and humbleness. They allow you to have the necessary openness that creative thinking requires.
Third, and perhaps most important, check-in with your inner critic. If you have a vicious voice that tells you to hang it up before you even begin, this is a great opportunity for self-exploration, self-love and self-acceptance.
That critic is your ego trying to protect you from failing or looking foolish. Or perhaps it’s not even your own voice but judgment passed on from someone else in your life like a family member or friend. Let it go and grow. You have nothing to lose and so much to gain.
Jackie Rainford Corcoran is an IIN Certified Holistic Health Coach, an NASM Certified Personal Trainer, a public speaker and health activist. Contact her at jackie@thetahealth.com, or find more at thetahealth.org.
Megan Paulson is the Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of Outlaw Partners.
You may like
Upcoming Events
april, 2024
Event Type :
All
All
Arts
Education
Music
Other
Sports
Event Details
Children turning 5 on or before 9/10/2024:
more
Event Details
Children turning 5 on or before
9/10/2024: Kindergarten
enrollment for the 2024-2025 school year can be completed by following the
registration process now.
Children
born on or after September 11, 2019: 4K enrollment is now open for
families that have a 4-year-old they would like to enroll in our program for
the 2023-2024 school year. Please complete the 4K Interest Form to
express your interest. Completing this form does not guarantee enrollment into
the 4K program. Enrollment is capped at twenty 4-year-olds currently
residing within Big Sky School District boundary full time and will be
determined by birth date in calendar order of those born on or after September
11, 2018. Interest form closes on May 30th.
Enrollment now is critical for fall preparations. Thank you!
Time
February 26 (Monday) - April 21 (Sunday)
Event Details
Saturday, March 23rd 6:00-8:00pm We will combine the heart-opening powers of cacao with the transcendental powers of breathwork and sound. Together, these practices will give us the opportunity for a deep
more
Event Details
Saturday, March 23rd 6:00-8:00pm
Time
March 23 (Saturday) 6:00 pm - April 23 (Tuesday) 8:00 pm
Location
Santosha Wellness Center
169 Snowy Mountain Circle
Event Details
We all are familiar with using a limited palette, but do you use one? Do you know how to use a
more
Event Details
We all are familiar with using a limited palette, but do you use one? Do you know how to use a limited palette to create different color combinations? Are you tired of carrying around 15-20 different tubes when you paint plein air? Have you ever wanted to create a certain “mood” in a painting but failed? Do you create a lot of mud? Do you struggle to achieve color harmony? All these problems are addressed in John’s workbook in clear and concise language!
Based on the bestselling “Limited Palatte, Unlimited Color” workbook written by John Pototschnik, the workshop is run by Maggie Shane and Annie McCoy, accomplished landscape (acrylic) and plein air (oil) artists,exhibitors at the Big Sky Artists’ Studio & Gallery and members of the Big Sky Artists Collective.
Each student will receive a copy of “Limited Palette, Unlimited Color” to keep and take home to continue your limited palette journey. We will show you how to use the color wheel and mix your own clean mixtures to successfully create a mood for your paintings.
Each day, we will create a different limited palette color chart and paint a version of a simple landscape using John’s directives. You will then be able to go home and paint more schemes using the book for guidance.
Workshop is open to painters (oil or acrylic) of any level although students must have some basic knowledge of the medium he or she uses. Students will be provided the book ($92 value), color wheel, value scale and canvas papers to complete the daily exercises.
Sundays, April 14, 21 and 28, 2024
Noon until 6PM.
$170.
Time
14 (Sunday) 12:00 pm - 28 (Sunday) 6:00 pm