Creative Mastery—One Disciplined Habit at a Time

One of my mentors, Twyla Tharp, is a creative genius. Not only because she has devoted her career to being creative as an iconic dancer and choreographer, but also because she didn’t rely solely on her innate creative talent. Instead, she made it a daily habit to hone her skills. Today, in her 80s, she’s still moving, writing, and challenging how we view age and mobility.

I highly recommend her book, The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life. If you’re an auditory learner who prefers YouTube, you’ll find Brian Johnson’s Philosopher Notes helpful. If you’d like to know how Twyla sees the world, this HBR article might hit the spot.

Creativity is an instrumental part of my life and business. The following creativity-related habits have helped me push limits, explore farther, and think bigger than I ever imagined possible. They’re a blend of habits I’ve developed over the years. (If you’d like to dive deeper into the topic of habits, Atomic Habits by James Clear is excellent.)

1. Create Space to Refuel Your Brain, Body, and Soul: For almost 20 years, Fridays have been blocked on my calendar for creative and strategic thinking. I refer to this time as “board meetings” (and by that, I mean “surf” board). Fridays are when my body, mind, and soul recharge and relax. On Fridays, I do (and eat) something I love, light candles, dive into a thought-provoking book, and allow my brain to recharge. In the beginning, I felt guilty. I had so much on my plate and here I was taking “time off” to relax or play. Was I not serious about my business?

I’ve come to view these Friday board meetings as essential to my business (and me as its leader). This is when I carve out time to “think beyond,” allowing my mind to wander and think about what’s possible.

It happens effortlessly when I allow my brain to enter an “alpha” (or mellow) state. A former runner, I had some of my most profound business revelations during long runs when my body and mind entered a “flow state.” Today, that happens when I do long-distance stand-up paddling. Any physical activity that becomes repetitive over the long term can produce a flow state.

Setting aside time is an art. You are most likely to stick to a new habit if you create systems or routines around it. Start by carving out time when you’re most energized. This is your productive time. (You can learn more about this concept in the blog, When Are You Most Productive?)

Because my productive time is first thing in the morning, I write immediately upon waking and beforeexercise. I’m usually more mellow after exercise and in the afternoon, so I reserve this time for reading. Meditation is a daily habit, but on Fridays, I take a nap instead (preferably with my dog). It feels luxurious to take a break and allow the body to rest and restore. (More on that here, Rest and Restoration: How to Reach the Next Level.) It’s virtually impossible to think creatively when your energy resources are spent. Rest and restoration are essential to creativity.

2. Eliminate Distractions and Excuses: This is easier said than done in a world filled with interruptions and distractions. We’re inundated with emails, messages, pings, and vibrations. Energy-zapping electronic habits become “creativity leaks.” To measure my energy leaks, I tracked how much time I was spending on social media, including “business-related” LinkedIn activities. The results horrified me—into action.

Recognizing that the time and energy I was spending mindlessly scrolling could be better spent resting or creating, I thought about how I could better use that time to grow personally and professionally. This helped zap some energy drains (a process I’m still working on).

Breaking habit-forming addictive behaviors requires an unwavering commitment to being more creative. Twyla knew her body needed to be strong and healthy to be creative, so she committed to visiting the gym–every day! Without a car in New York City, she takes taxis to the gym. She says her ritual (or discipline) starts the moment she hails a cab, not when she gets to the gym. We could argue that it starts the moment she puts on her gym clothes.

Excuses tends to sneak in if we leave room for them. My trick is wearing my bathing suit under my work clothes. That way, I have fewer excuses for not surfing or paddling. We are all busy. There are plenty of good “reasons” for not doing something or switching gears. Consider what you’re spending energy on. Is it feeding or draining your creativity?

3. Travel or Change Your Normal Routine: When your brain receives new information, it rewires. If your surroundings and people are always the same, it’s hard for the brain to develop new synopses that allow you to think differently or creatively. In 2011, I hit major burnout (working 80 hours a week caught up with me). When someone suggested I retreat to Costa Rica, I was too exhausted to argue. That trip transformed my business and me.

I remember flying over mountains and being struck by how green the landscape was. The flavor-packed foods evoked strong feelings, too. (Until you bite into a just-picked warmed-from-the-sun mango or banana, you haven’t truly lived.)

Ticos (Costa Ricans) speak Spanish. Because my Spanish vocabulary consisted of just three words, I didn’t understand anything and couldn’t communicate. So, I surrendered. I slept, sat, pondered, and processed. I listened and didn’t speak. I moved my body to music and released energy. Out of that experience, my life and business pivoted.

For the next six years, I traveled to Costa Rica every year, staying longer each time. On my sixth trip, I decided to move to Costa Rica and build an intimate retreat center where people like me could have space for their creative outlets, get out of their “normal,” and spark creativity.

You may not be able to travel abroad, but you can break your routine. Take a bus instead of your car. Visit a new restaurant and eat something you’ve never tried. Use your non-dominant hand to write. Select a new food at the grocery store and learn how to cook it. Habitually interrupting your “normal” allows your brain to expand and your creativity to flow.

4. Adopt and Learn from Mentors: Twyla is my mentor. She just doesn’t know it. I’ve never actually met her. I adopted the “phantom mentor” concept from her book. At the beginning of her career, she was in awe of the famous choreographer George Balanchine. Unfortunately, he was no longer accepting students. Undeterred, she “adopted” him as her mentor and pictured him at the corner of the studio when she practiced. She pondered what feedback he would give if he were there. She pushed herself to new heights with her “phantom” mentor. If you have a mentor or admire someone, study and talk with them. Copy what they are doing. Take from others the traits and habits that you admire and adopt them as your own.
5. Engage in Juxtaposed Activities: Juxtaposition allows for side-by-side comparisons. If you want to be a more creative leader, for example, consider roles in which you must follow. When I work with executive coaching clients who want to deepen their leadership skills, I pair them with dance coaches they must follow (since they don’t know how to lead in this scenario). We refer to this coaching as somatic (soma means body). Intellectual learning is absorbed through the body to create more profound impact. If you’re overly structured, consider activities in which you must surrender control (skydiving, for example). If, on the other hand, you lack structure or discipline, consider taking an Aikido or other martial arts class to experience the benefits of structure and order. To unleash your creative thinking or habits, consider what activities allow your mind and body to think, act, and process differently.
6. Ask Yourself BIG Thought-Provoking Questions: I have a mental database with questions I ask myself when I need to spark creativity or get out of my day-to-day “thought rut.” While you’ll benefit most by creating your own, here are some go-to examples that force me to think beyond.
   • If time or money were no object, what would I do (daily, yearly, short-term, long-term)?
   • What genuinely sparks my passion right now?
   • What would I do professionally even if I didn’t get paid?
   • What does the world need from me?
   • What does my business need me to do differently over the next five years to thrive?
   • Is this the best version of me? If not, what would be? What changes do I need to make to do so?
   • What habits must I add (or let go of) to be more creative?
   • Who do I want to be in 10 years?
   • What experiences do I want to have this year, next year, before I die?
   • If I could meet anyone (past, present, or future) who would it be? What would I hope to learn from them?

The purpose of these questions is to challenge my mind to think more creatively.

Ten years ago, I hired a marketing company to refresh our brand. When the work was nearly finished, I went on vacation. During that trip, I had a conversation with a man who focused on what he did flawlessly, rather than trying to fit others’ expectations. That was a wakeup call for me. I realized I wasn’t being authentic—and neither was my rebrand. I was projecting a version of my business and self that I thought clients wanted. I avoided revealing my true essence, fearing rejection of the real me.

I asked myself what it would take to bring my authentic business, brand, and self to life. The answer was a complete branding revamp. I went back to the drawing board and posed bigger philosophical questions about what my business and I really offered the world. What you see today is the result of that one interaction AND the big questions I asked myself.

To live bigger, more creative lives, we must be willing to challenge ourselves and let go of what used to be. Only then can we become truly authentic versions of ourselves. As we grow and develop, what once was a great fit may no longer work. What was authentic 10 years ago might not be so today. By consistently asking yourselves big questions, you’re sure to find opportunities to become more creative personally and professionally.

You might not be able to draw, sing, or dance, but all of us can become more creative thinkers. We can commit to practices that allow our brains, bodies, and souls to unleash creativity that could change our lives, work, and world.

Isn’t it worth a try?