Do you remember when you were a kid? That is harder for some of us than others. When you were a kid, you had the whole world ahead of you. Your dreams ran wild and free. You lived in a world where anything was possible. Your spirit was untainted by reality and the constraints of logic and reason.The only limitation you had was the boundaries of your imagination. Some days I was a superhero, others I was a space explorer and still other days I was a soldier. The decision of what I wanted to be when I grew up was as simple as making the decision to change my mind and stick with that decision. What ever happened to that kid?

Many of us lose this kid as we grow older. It is inevitable for most. The closer you reach adulthood, the quieter your exorbitant dreams become. That kid is stripped away by conforming to the accepted norms of the world, the negative “you can’t do that” of others, and the fear of failing. If you don’t understand that, go out and try to find an old movie called “Drop Dead Fred” and watch it. It’s a comedy but it illustrates my point. The good news is the kid is still inside. Some of you may have to look harder than others because you buried that kid deep. But the kid is still there and Entrepreneurs tap into that childish creativity and brazen attitude when they have a new idea and start new ventures. However, as time goes on and they begin to get bogged down in the day to day mire of running their business, Entrepreneurs can begin to lose sight of their colorful child and enter the world of grey (trudging along day after day without inspiration). I will give you a few ideas to help bring inspiration back when you notice you are stuck in the land of the grey.

Play with a kid! I do not mean go out and watch them play. I mean actually get in the dirt and play with action figures or sit at the table with the dolls and drink the imaginary tea at the tea party. Play along and get into the mindset of the kid(s) you are playing with. Let your mind wander without the inhibitions of reality. Yes you can cook a gourmet meal on a plastic stove and feed talking stuffed animals. And sure, a towel is a real superhero cape that can deflect bullets. This may sound silly, but what it does is free your mind from the constraints of reality. After all, people thought the world was flat, man would never fly and that it was impossible to walk on the moon made of green cheese. But people with imagination, free from constraint, believed that the world was round, man could fly and that we could make it to the moon and walk on it. People with imagination pioneered some of the worlds greatest inventions, discoveries, and worked of art. Tony Robbins has a saying in one of his audios that I repeat to myself often, “Everything in your outside world began on your inside world.”

Do something that is crazy and against your nature. Let me give you an example. My wife is scared of heights and of the water. So what did I do to get her to jump start her imagination and bring that little girl back out? We went para-sailing! That’s right. We were in Grand Cayman and went para-sailing out over the ocean hundreds of feet in the air. She was scared out of her mind. But it helped free her mind to other possibilities. She faced two of her fears and now there is almost nothing that my wife doesn’t believe can’t be done. Since that little adventure, she has helped me launch two businesses and a website to help women. If you have to plan everything out, take a trip and play the whole thing by ear. Do something that you wouldn’t normally do because of some type of laden fear and you will surface feeling invigorated and a little more confident. Confidence aides in creativity because it help break down the barriers of what can and can’t be done.

Do something that you love to do and increase the frequency. Many of us get caught in the doldrums of day to day life and do not actually get out and live life. I have written about your “Why” before. Why do you work and battle in the war of business each day? One of my “Whys” is my children and my wife. I want to spend more time with them. I noticed I was working all the time to one day be able to spend time with them. I realized that if something didn’t go right or tragedy befell my family that the “one day” in the future may never arrive or arrive to late. So, I have started to actively plan more things that include me being with my family. They don’t have to be big events. I take off from the office early two days a week to watch my kids in gymnastics and tae kwon do. I have a date night with my wife at least once a month. I plan get-a-ways for the weekends with them. This helps keep me out of my day to day doldrums. And when that doesn’t cut it, I vacation. As many of you know, I am a big advocate of taking vacations. If you enjoy fishing, reading, jogging, what ever it is that puts you into a state of happiness, you need to make time to do those things. Doing things that make you happy will allow your imagination to run wild. It allows your mind to momentarily detour form the normal track of cash flows, labor, inventory, etc. and just wander free enjoying your moment. A happier “you” is a more productive “you.”

Last tip, meditate. I am not telling you to concentrate on one word ohmming your way to peace. If that works for you, great. Some will meditate while riding the lawnmower while others will do so while driving. For the purpose of this writing, meditation is clearing the mind of all thought and being at peace with yourself. That may sound easy, but unless you have great control over your body and mind, it is a difficult task to accomplish. Do not try and be a marathon runner in one day. What I am referring to is, do not try and meditate for an entire hour at one time on your first time. Start with a few minutes. Something that has helped me on my journey to find my way to this state of mind is to sit in a quiet room when I wake up or as I lay in bed at night and concentrate on the sound of my breathing. Do this for a few minutes. Once you find your way to this clear state of mind, it is easier to find your way back. After you can actually sit there and concentrate on  the sound of your own breathing for a few minutes every day, then move on to longer sessions. Schedule them if you have to. Whether it is taking a drive, going to the massage therapist, mowing the yard, or simply sitting on the porch watching the sunset, make it a habit to clear your mind. I have a 3 acre yard and some of my ideas pop into my head while mowing. My mind will be clear and I will guide my rider from one end of the yard to the other and ideas begin to flow and then compound. At times I get off and get a notepad so I don’t forget them. The point is, when you are at a state of mental calm and clarity, your imagination will kick in and creativity will begin to flow.

There are many other techniques to coax that creative kid inside you to come back out and play. These are some of the methods that have worked for me and they may work for you as well. Whatever the procedure, get started. Do not let the attitude of “that is impossible” enter your mind. I teach my kids that absolutely nothing is impossible, some things may be improbable, but nothing is impossible. That is a very powerful statement. If you can say it, believe it, and teach it to others, many of your own barriers will fall. Regardless of your current situation, your only limitation is your mind. Remember, everything in your outside world began in your inside world. So get that kid to come out again and start breaking down those mental barriers that are holding your imagination hostage. Let your inner kid run wild with your imagination and let your outside world flourish because of it.

This entry was posted on Friday, August 1st, 2008 at 3:21 am and is filed under Life. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.