Archive for the ‘Creativity’ Category

It is possible for you to accelerate your learning if you want to, you know that don’t you? Not besides helping yourself to learn faster, you can help others as well.

Whether you’re a trainer, a coach, or even a parent, this can be invaluable for you.

Everyone processes information differently -We all learn differently. A person who process thing in a certain way would learn faster using a particular method, using other learning methods would only slow him down. Now do you know why some people study so hard but could not do well in exams? That’s because the teaching method taught in school does not fit his way of processing information.

To start off, we have basically 3 ways of learning and processing…

The Examiner

The Examiner is an analytical person. If he is doing a math problem or applying a new job, he won’t understand it until he can mentally break down the process and fit it back together in his head. He has to memorize the process on the back of his hand before he can feel comfortable with the task or problem.

The ideal way to help the Examiner to accelerate his learning is to give him a great amount of time in the classroom or lab so he can devour the material and learn at their pace – without the pressures and distractions.

The Performer

The Performer is exactly opposite of the Examiner. If you want to help the Performer to learn faster, throw him in a room with the task or problem and let him play with it “physically”. He learns best if he can practice it with his own hands and learn with OTJ (On The Job) training. He’s one that would make a couple of mistakes, but that’s the gist of learning for The Performer. If you have a Performer, do not punish her for mistakes. He may make a few mistakes but he is on the process of learning. Punishing him may lose make you lose a valuable employee. And if you’re teaching your children, understand their learning strategies and praise them for their effort. This will actually encourage them and they will in turn learn faster.

In fact the more mistakes they make, the faster they learn.

The Observer

The Observer could also be called “The Modeler” or “The Imitator”. When the observer is in a classroom, he may seem to be the slowest learner. From outside, it is true that he is a slow student, but it’s certainly not true to say that he is a slow learner. The only people slow between the two are those who do not understand the learning processes of “The Observer”. The Observer understands in a holistic way and can only excel when he sees how everything links together. Only teaching in a holistic way would then provide them with an environment conducive to study.

Whether you are a teacher or a student, learning can be a nightmare or it can be fun. One thing for sure though, unless you know the person’s method of learning, it can be extremely hard to succeed in a particular field or subject.

Having said all of these methods, they are not the only ways people learn. But with these 3 main types, hopefully, with this information, you will be more equipped to train yourself up or groom another genius!

Discover the 7 Step Study System That Finally Reveals The Secrets to Score As’!

Learning to be creative is a skill that is a bit more complex and challenging. Some people are gifted in this area. There are also people who are not necessary creative but would desired to enhance these skills. Even those who are already gifted in the area , they still  desired to further improve these skills.

To enhance this skills, you need to observe at your everyday surroundings. You need to take notice of the people that you meet everyday. Taking the effort to actually observe these people or things show you fine details that you did not notice before.

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When you are given a project in school or at work, do you immediately make a step-by-step list of the tasks that you should perform in order to complete the project? Or, do you do everything that you can randomly and just try to organize and put together the project in the end, when you gathered have enough material?

If you have chosen the first option, then you may not be making the most of your mind’s potential. Making a linear, step-by-step list of the things that you need to do in order to accomplish a goal is much like how a computer’s ‘brain’ works.

On the other hand, if you have chosen the second option, then you have a wider array of choices when it comes to the paths that you can take to achieve your goal, since this is basically how mind mapping works.

Mind mapping is a concept or technique wherein your thinking process will be externally reflected in the form of an illustration or diagram. This was developed by Tony Buzan, who, in his web site www.imindmap.com, encourages people to “unleash the remaining 99% of their brain” through mind mapping.

This concept essentially follows the natural way that the human brain works. For example, when you think of or visualize the color red, your brain instinctively associates the word ‘red’ with apple, blood, cherries, a scarlet shirt that you may have worn at one time – anything that is associated with the color is what comes to your mind instead of just the word itself. So, from just one root word, your brain will immediately associate it with other words to broaden the scope of the topic.

This natural working of the brain, when illustrated on paper, is mind mapping. You can start by writing in the center of a piece of paper one word, representing one idea. From there - through the process of association – you can come up with several branches which all connect to your central idea.

The relationship between the main idea and all the branches that will stem out from the central theme is how the end process will look like. With mind mapping, you can organize your thoughts more coherently, new ideas will be better expressed and developed, you can retain information faster because of the fact that visual illustrations that you mapped out yourself is easier to remember than any list – all these and more are the benefits of mind mapping.

Aside from these benefits, there are hundreds of instances at work and in your home life where you can make use of the process of mind mapping to maximize your brain’s potential and save you a lot of time and effort when planning.

Most of us find it hard to express our feelings, because voicing out what we feel is difficult for most. Oftentimes, when we try to say what we want to say, we end up being tongue-tied, misunderstood, or worse, we end up saying the wrong thing. So instead of risking  exposing ourselves to humiliation or rejection, we tend to keep everything to ourselves. Keeping our feelings to ourselves could harm us health-wise. Bottling up emotions has psychological and physical consequences: things that we would  do well to avoid. 

If you do not want to risk getting rejected, there are ways for you to let go of your emotions without needing to talk to anyone. Below are some suggestions on what you can do to release those bottled-up emotions, minus the criticism you might get if you open up to someone else.

Start a Journal. Keep a journal on hand whenever you need to discharge any emotional turmoil. With today’s technology era, where writing using a paper diary is considered passé, creating a blog or online journal is the rage. This is a fun, albeit more public alternative to pen and paper. Whichever you choose, the important thing is that you use the journal as a tool for catharsis. Writing down what you feel purges you of everything you’ve been keeping inside. If you are a person who really craves privacy, don’t leave your (paper) journal lying around. If you chose to make a blog, don’t give your blog’s URL or address to anyone. If you are about to talk about a very private, very sensitive issue, it is advisable to use a diary instead, or a blog that has an option for private posts or password-locked content. James W. Pennebaker PhD, author of the book “Opening Up,” stressed that “If we can create a cohesive personal narrative of our lives and if we can link up our emotions with specific events, then we have the power to take control of how those emotions and events affect our lives.” 

Engage in Creative Dramatics. This is most advisable if you have your own room. Just face a mirror and talk to yourself on how you feel at the moment. You can even pretend you are talking to the object of your emotions. Say what you want to say, and censor nothing. Who knows, it just may hone your acting skills.

Write a Letter. Are you dying to let this guy know how you feel? Or do you want to confront your parents about how bad you feel about their stringent rules? If you can’t muster enough guts to talk to these significant others face to face, why not write a letter addressed to them?  Say everything you want to say then seal and keep it, unless you genuinely want to let them know how you feel. 

Unleash Your Creative Side. If you can’t say it, write it. Write it in prose or poetry. However you want to express your feelings, just go and write! You just may have an inner Ernest Hemingway or Elizabeth Barrett Browning in you? According to a study by Boysun and Smyth, “The simple act of writing about bad times can be a potent, and low cost, method of relieving pain and symptoms of chronic illnesses.” Whoever thought writing could be close to a panacea?. 

Finding ways to release your emotions in a way that need not involve another is limited only by your imagination. If you are the religious type, and your beliefs involve prayer, you can talk to your Supreme Being about your feelings. If you are in a belief that does not have a concept of a Higher Being, then you can meditate your strong emotions away. The bottom line is that you have an outlet for your emotions. Don’t wait for your emotions to be displaced on someone else or for it to eat you up. Express them, and move on. You can never go wrong with that.

 

Wouldn’t it be nice if you have a genie at your disposal?  You know, that gigantic magical creature appearing from the opaque smoke of Aladdin’s lamp who can grant three out of this world wishes?  Oh, how you’d love to give up a limb to purchase such an impressive product, right?

Fame, fortune, good health, loving relationships…all these would then be yours for the taking.  It’s like staring at a catalogue of the universe and pointing out the ones you want to be delivered at your doorstep.

But all those are just wishful thinking!

Well, not exactly.

There is actually a secret kept hidden from men that can allow the realization of their deepest desires and aspirations.  The secret is creative visualization.

Basically, creative visualization harnesses the power of your inner mind by converting your abstract thoughts into concrete reality.  It is founded on the premise that whatever exists in the physical level must first take place in a higher plane, which is the mental level.  Just take a look at the visual masterpieces of some of the greatest artists known to mankind like Michaelangelo, Vincent Van Gogh and Pablo Picasso.  Before they have picked up their respective paintbrushes, mixed the paint in their palettes or set up their reliable easels, they already have a well-defined image in their mind of what they are about to paint, one that is bursting with different vibrant shades.  They just didn’t go about splashing random colors on their canvass and prayed for the best.

Just like them, it would take serious effort and intense concentration to achieve your masterpiece.  Here are some guidelines for a calming creative visualization.

First, seek out your comfort zone.  Whether you prefer to meditate in silence at a church, a secluded oratory, a tranquil temple, in your disarranged cubicle or even in the comforts of your own bedroom, the most important thing you have to remember is that you have to be at ease.  Noise should be reduced at a minimum so that you can shut out from your actual environment.

Second, decide on your goal.  What is your pressing need for the moment?  If it is good health, then focus on attaining a healthy body. Imagine your medical examinations with positive outcomes and laboratory results on a normal level.  If you want abundance, imagine cash coming in your house.  Conjure images of checks in your name arriving at your mailbox.  Should you decide to heal a broken relationship, visualize yourself shaking hands with your partner.  Just create a distinct mental image of what you really want and let it stay on your mind.

Third, give positive feelings to your mental image. Be optimistic. Suffuse yourself with pure, unadulterated joy during that moment.  Feel exhilaration, excitement and peace.  Strip yourself of all the negative vibrations.  Let go of heartaches and heartbreaks.

Be consistent in performing this exercise.  If possible, set aside a few minutes of your time every day, preferably upon waking up in the morning and before going to sleep at night.  This will solidify your expectations and put you in the right mood as you go through the motions of your daily life.  Believe that the best will happen to you and your dreams will be realized sooner than expected.