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Why It's The Best Time Of Year To Get Creative

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When was the last time you made the most of your creative skills?

Often, creativity gets overlooked amid the daily demands we face. We’re just so busy that there never seems time to think, invent, or create. But being creative can help us be innovative, can lead us to inspire others, and can be hugely satisfying, as well as fun. It can also help us stay productive, as it gives us a chance to recharge and think differently.

Now's the time to take your creative project, dust it off, and commit some time to it. Maybe you’ve been meaning for the whole year to get round to writing that book – but have never quite found time to get started. Or perhaps your art has been put to the bottom of the list again and again this year – something else always taking priority.

Often we get caught up in a cycle of work, work, and more work. And sure enough, every time we tune in to our email, social media, or smartphone, there’ll be someone asking a question, or making a demand. The information stream never stops, and if we’re not careful, we can spend all of our time listening and responding to it.

But if you want to pursue a creative project, you need to get smart and fence off some time for it.

Step back for an hour, a day, or a week, and let the creative side of yourself have some time and attention for a change. After all, who knows what you might create? What is it that you’re interested in creating? Do you want to write, draw, or paint? Or photograph, design, or act?

As the new year approaches, it’s a great time of year to think about what you really want to spend your time on. Where do you want to place your energy? What deserves your attention?

The end of one year and the start of the next is the perfect time for this, as other work demands gradually slow down. We’re in the mood to set goals, reassess and get motivated. What better time to start something new and exciting? Rather than just consuming information, as we often spend so much time doing, by stepping back from scrolling, searching and sending, we can draw on inspiration and create. There's satisfaction in the creative process itself, and it’s refreshing, too.

Back in the workplace you’re also likely to think more creatively and be more productive.

These creative thinking skills are a valuable asset, as innovation is being neglected in many businesses as people get caught up in information overload, leaving no time and space to think. So why not use the end of 2014 and the start of 2015 to get creative? It’s a great way to see out one year, and welcome the next.

At the end of the year, I’ll be guiding a group of writers through this process, and I can’t wait for the writing sparks to fly.

Frances Booth is running a free Winter Writing Workshop in association with Do What You Love from 29th December to 4th January. Sign up here to register to take part