When deciding on color scheme for your office or home, it’s important to consider what you’ll be doing there.  If your home is your primary creative work space, or if your office is, the color blue is an ideal shade to foster creativity.  According to Imagine by Jonah Lehrer:
A recent experiment studied the effects of color on imagination.  600 subjects were selected they were asked to perform a variety of tasks while in red blue and neutral backgrounds.  While those in the blue group performed worse on short term memory tasks, they did far better on those requiring some imagination, such as coming up with creative uses for a brick or designing a children’s toy out of simple geometric shapes.  In fact, subjects in the blue condition generated twice as many creative outputs as did subjects in the red condition.  We can now begin to understand why being surrounded by blue walls makes us more creative.

Imagine
Page 103-104

So what Jonah Lehrer is saying here is that creativity is open to anyone, not just a select few.  We only have to know how to tap into it.  This book shows how easy it is to discover ways of finding your own path to creative thought.

Being a creative, right brained person myself, I clearly see the effect of the color blue on my own creative process.  I understood this concept and had heard about using the color blue to foster creativity when I was living in my family home and because my writing time was spent in my bedroom, I ensured that it was painted a shade of blue.  I found when I wrote elsewhere I didn’t produce my finest work.  I choose to believe it was because I wasn’t in my comfort zone, my creative blue domain.  Not only did the color  blue help my creativity, when it was time to turn off all thought and sleep for the night, the blue shade on the walls lulled me into a relaxing state.

If you’re looking to discover your own creativity, I highly recommend reading this book.  And as I suggested on Wednesday while you’re at it, take a look at Daniel Pink’s Book:
A Whole New Mind and might I suggest reading both books in conjunction with each other as they both discuss similar topics but come at them from different paths.

Okay.  I understand I’ve sort of gotten off topic here somewhat with this blog column today.  I also understand I’ve been devoting a bit of time to discussing Imagine recently.  Once in awhile I get the whiff of something and it can be challenging for me to stay away.  We’ll get back on topic soon, but I feel I have something to contribute with thinking about creativity.  So bear with me while we travel down this detour.  After all, sometimes you find wonderful gifts if you make your own path.
Do you have any tricks that you use to foster your own creativity?  Would LOVE to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

Be Happy!  Be Well!  Be Positive!
Blessings to you.
—
Chris