How to Be Creative in Five Minutes or Less (No Matter How Busy You Are)

Posted on March 01, 2016 by Amy Scott Grant, One of Thousands of Spirituality Coaches on Noomii.

Busy executives and high achievers often think they don’t have time for creative pursuits. Yet, with a little digging, we often find that it’s not merely a matter of time. In many cases, they’re actually blocked creatively.

If you know anything about the chakra system (spinning energy centers located within in the energy of the body), then you know when one chakra is out of whack, you can’t be in flow. Flow is the phenomenon that’s created when all chakras are open and balanced. As a spiritual healer, a big part of what I do is helping people to get unblocked.

But what does this have to do with creativity? Excellent question.

The second chakra (known as the sacral chakra or the sex chakra) is your center for creativity. But when that sacral chakra is blocked because you can’t (or won’t) make time for a creative outlet, then this often also affects your sex life and your finances, because the sacral chakra also governs sexuality and abundance.

In other words: if you don’t make time to play, then you can expect that a disappointing sex life and a less-than-thriving financial situation will likely follow suit.

But what’s the answer if you’re a busy high achiever who doesn’t have time for Thursday night pottery class, a weekend at an artist’s colony, or even a paint and sip event on the weekend?

Haiku. Yes, you read that right. Writing haikus is an excellent form of “creative therapy” for busy people. It’s easy to learn, and the process is quick and easy to follow (plus, it’s rather fun and, if I’m being honest, slightly addictive).

If you’re the analytical type, it make take you a bit longer to settle down into a space of creating a haiku, but once you get the hang of it, you’ll be off and running.

• A haiku is short and sweet. It is the easiest form of poetry to learn and create
• If you tend to be long-winded or take awhile to get to the point (or if you get stuck in story), haiku is great for getting you to focus on the core issue and be succinct
• If you’re at all blocked creatively, writing a few haikus will help you to get un-stuck fast and get that mojo flowing again. Unlock/unblock that sacral chakra with a haiku or two.
• Best of all, it’s crazy fun! And you just might find out you’re better at it than you expected.

A haiku (“hi-koo”) is a simple 3-line poem. The style hails from Japan, but you can write a haiku about most anything. There is a simple pattern to stick to:

It may have a title (very short – from one to three words, usually).

The first line has exactly 5 syllables.

The second line has exactly 7 syllables.

The last line has exactly 5 syllables.

Here’s the first one I wrote during my own “creative therapy” exercise:

I wrote a haiku.
It’s not anything fancy,
But it is all mine.

And here’s a funny one I wrote with my kids, a week later:

My kids are the best.
While sleeping, they are quiet.
Awake, not so much.

Now here are a few which were created by my clients. See if you can relate to any of these. I should mention, this was their first time writing haikus, ever:

Locked in a small box.
Trying to grow and expand.
Why is this so hard?

All good things need space
To allow divinity
Room to move and shake.

Why oh why can’t I
Stop responsibility
From taking me down?

A princess fairy
Living a life of purpose
Happy as can be!

One’s voice always heard
Always seen, always spoken
Received in so many ways.

Amazing, right? Anyone can do this—especially you. Just remember 5/7/5 – that’s the number of syllables per line.

So what do you say? Are you willing to give it a shot and write your own? Drop me a line, I’d love to read you haiku.