The video is here.
Creativity is important because great ideas give meaning to our lives and profit to our businesses. We often think of their arrival as magic and mysterious, or mundane in the sense that new ideas are just part of the planning process… or we can just hire a consultant or marketer to come up with them. The reality is that we should be waking up at night and dreaming during the day to generate those breakouts “routinely.” It’s part of being Spirit-filled! A key ingredient for being entrepreneurial – be yourself.
Most of us are honestly “not creative” because our upbringing and education train us to “think critically.” That is, we use our mind to defeat new ideas. You know the process well. A new idea comes along with risks and rewards. Our minds focus on all the risks and veto it before it has a chance to birth. Pretty soon we’re in the mode of no new ideas and no hope for a better course. Worse yet, we have no friends who are creative because we are prone to be critical of their ideas, too. That translates to no ideas of our own and no suggestions from anyone else = “stuck”!!!
Intentional creativity starts when we realize the purpose of our mind. It’s a computer that assesses possibilities. It isn’t really creative at all, and it shouldn’t have a leadership role. The mind is a beautiful thing if it serves creativity – a monstrous task master if it leads. The mind is the left-brained analytical ox that carries out the wishes of something much more creative – the heart.
This Heart is the real source of personal creativity. It’s also the organ God uses to give us an outside input. If we’re not listening, missing that input is a big deal. When we learn to hear our own heart, that’s the pathway to hearing God’s heart and hearing the hearts of other people. “Heart” is the wellspring of creativity. It’s the right-brain, intuitive, inventive, courageous, and imaginative fountain of leadership.
We’re programmed to believe that we analyze facts and draw conclusions. The opposite is closer to the truth. Hearts have revelations and inspirations, and our mind simply provides a rational justification for why it’s true. Now you can see why people come to opposite conclusions and can’t use intellectual analysis to reach agreement. Reasons never prevail over revelations. The corporate culture of hearts always defeats management systems. We are all led by the lion of our heart, not the ox of our mind. That’s the way God created us, and it doesn’t matter if most people don’t believe it – it’s still a fact of life and human behavior.
Leveraging your heart toward creativity – The next incentive to pay attention to your heart is that God writes the script of your destiny there. Wisdom is learning to flow with your natural gifts and callings instead of against them. Religion and intellectualism are both forces that can take us away from our hearts. Creativity starts to flow when we work with our hearts instead of against it. Mental self-discipline is vastly overrated. Our heart needs a reason for a different direction… and already has one for our present direction! Translation – Rules don’t change behavior. Neither do procedures, standards, laws, codes, regulations, or managers that impose them.
Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules: 21 “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!”? 22 These are all destined to perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings. 23 Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence. Col 2:20-23 NIV
Here are a few concepts that will release your heart into its inherent talent for creativity.
- Liberty – Give your heart permission to dream. Expect to find God-ideas in the process. Always be prepare to write new ideas down. Revelation is like a flash of light. If we don’t capture it when it comes, we risk losing it.
- Be optimistic – God writes ideas in our heart that work. Intuition, faith, imagination and experiences are the language of the heart. Think of meditation as imagineering experiences in accord with the desires of your heart… give yourself time to do it. Shaping your future begins in your heart and God’s heart.
- Heart plan – Be intentional about capturing the plans of your heart in writing. Your heart plan is the foundation for God to speak into your dreams and goals. It’s also a great way to identify lies in your heart that form the roots of behavior leading you down a wrong path. We use a Heart Plan to help people navigate this process – works great. Creativity flows naturally from an intentional plan that you know has God’s blessing. A course appears, doors open, results happen.
It’s spiritual and wise to have a plan for your life… foolish not to. Intentional creativity flows from purpose, conviction and destiny. What’s the biggest key to success in your mountain? Your entrepreneurial idea is a labor of love that flows out of your heart and leads to your destiny. It’s fun! Michael Gerber does a great job of making this point in this video.
The mind of man plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps. Prov 16:9 NASU
A plan in the heart of a man is like deep water, But a man of understanding draws it out. Prov 20:5 NASU
