Have you ever heard someone say “I’m not creative”? There are many ways to be creative and unfortunately the world seems to equate creativity with artistic pursuits. What about creativity in business? Have you ever considered how your body language affects your business creativity?

Business Creativity

Have you ever been asked to think “around the problem”? Have you ever been in charge of coming up with money saving ideas, corporate event themes, training icebreakers, the list is endless! All of these can fall under the “creative” label. Every time you have to explain something to a co-worker or a client in a different way than they heard it the first time, you are being creative!

Creativity is not relegated to the artistic, quirky or solo drummers among us. Every person has the ability to be creative because our brains are wired for it. Anytime we take action out of our normal pattern or habit, we are stretching our creative muscle.

So what’s this body language connection?

You can use your body to put your brain in a more receptive place to be creative. Just as you can give signals to others with your body, you can also give signals to yourself by changing how you are moving. The body and brain are connected. You can’t engage one without affecting the other.

If you feel like you were more creative and imaginative as a child- you were! As children, all of us used our bodies in more creative ways because we were less conscious of what others would think of us. You don’t have to run around the playground to be more creative. Here’s what you do:

Stretch

Take a minute to expand your arms out or twist your spine. Gently roll your head around or take a lunge to stretch your legs.

Why does this work for creativity?

It gets the blood flowing. Oxygenated blood goes to the stretching muscles and it feels great! Our minds instantly feel more active and awake when the blood gets flowing.

When you expand your body and take up more space, you signal the mind to expand as well. Your mind is more open to creative possibilities. Suddenly, tackling a business challenge is easier.

Wiggle

When we wiggle our bodies, we engage our spine. Our skeleton is all connected at the spine; the spine houses our spinal column; our spinal column connects with the brain!

Why does this work for creativity?

Wiggling is fun and bit childish which connects to our more creative past. Our brain gets the message it’s okay to be silly and think “outside the box.”

Shake it off/dance it out

Shaking our limbs can literally shake out the cobwebs in our brains. Dancing makes us smile, connects to our spine, pumps our blood and sends good hormones coursing through the body.

Why does this work for creativity?

When you have been focusing your body and brain for any period of time, you must break the focus and tell your brain to do something else. Watch this quick video about the focus of our virtual calls harming out ability to think creatively:

When you know you need to be more creative about a business problem, turn on the tunes or give your body a quick shake.

Need more creative ideas? Contact Moving Image Consulting! We specialize in developing fun training to get your teams on the creative train for better business!