My previous blog about play and experimentation was inspired by an “I wonder…?” question of my own. Recently, I discovered my first mandala hidden amongst my old high school graphic folder. I was curious to see what it could look like with different colouring. So I created my own colouring page and tried out a different colour combination, and then another. Without too much trouble or planning I had stumbled onto finding something to play with.
The other day I started wondering about what the mandala outline would look like in orange and green, which subsequently got me wondering about how many different ways I could ‘colour in’ the colouring page. This train of thought then lead me to wonder if I could colour in the same mandala page every day for a week. In doing so, I reasoned that it would be a great test of my creativity and inventiveness, while also giving me plenty of discussion and blog fodder by exposing me to common creativity issues, like making mistakes, persistence and being open and comfortable with the unknown.
But then, a week didn’t seem quite daring enough. Would it really push my limits? So what about 3 weeks? Hmmm… What about 30 days? A 30 day challenge? But the term ‘challenge’ didn’t seem to convey the right spirit. I really liked the idea of playing around and seeing this as a fun exploration, but I really had no idea where this exercise would take me. And then it dawned on me – I’d call it a ‘play adventure’!
So starting Monday 6 April, I have embarked on a play adventure where I will ‘colour in’ my Mandala Colouring Page each day for 30 days (Just in time for my Exploring Mandalas class that starts on Wednesday 6 May 🙂 ).To make sure that I stay accountable and increase my likelihood of delivering on what I propose, I’m making this promise publicly on my blog with the intention of posting my daily efforts on my Inner Creative Facebook page. You can see my first day’s effort below.
Who knows where a little wondering and play will take me? Continue reading
One of my favourite ways of getting to the quick of this is to use the Stop, Start, Continue tool. It’s very simple and can be useful in any context – from creating a personal vision for the year, finding ways to be more creative, or setting fitness goals, to holding a team building session, or reviewing your business plan. Basically, you can use it for anything that you would like to change or a problem that needs picking apart.