I’m delighted to welcome author, speaker, and transformational coach Theresa Nutt to the blog today! Read her wonderful post below, and then be sure to check out her website–and her new book! Take it away, Theresa:

Nurture Your Relationship With Your Imagination

Once you have created a sacred space in your internal and external world to call your creativity home (read my previous post Calling Your Creative Home), it’s time to discuss how you can nurture your relationship with your imagination.  Nurturing a relationship with anyone or anything requires tending.  I like to think of it like tending to a small child, a pet, or a special plant you love.

Speaking from experience, I can forget and neglect myself, and therefore, at times a pet or special plant in my life.  But there are ways to make it easier to remember to tend to the intentions we have for our lives.  Here are my top tips for nurturing your relationship with your imagination.

Top Tips to Nurture Your Relationship with Your Imagination

• First, it helps to create a routine that fits into how you already go through your day. What can you marry your relationship to your imagination with that you already do?  For instance, when you brush your teeth, can you ask your imagination if there is anything it needs to let you know?  Or maybe as you are showering, you check in with your imagination.  It’s not necessarily about doing something new, but about changing your attention when you are doing routine activities.  This way you never send the message that your imagination is the one more thing that you just can’t find time for in your day.
• Second, consider mapping out time on your calendar.  If you do best when you have appointments or to do lists, use what you know as a connection with your imagination. I have appointments for creative expression on my calendar and I treat them just like any other appointment.  A little tip here – if you see your creative time as negotiable and keep cancelling your creativity appointments to do “more important things,” you are sending a message to your imagination that it is not valuable.  This may not be the right technique for you if you keep bumping up against this challenge.  Or you may need to ask yourself how you can strengthen your commitment to your relationship with your imagination if this is a technique you want to use.
• Third, create a list of commitments that you can review each day.  How will you have your imagination’s back?  The more you review this list of commitments, the more you will live them out in your daily life.  Here’s a sample of my commitments to get you started.  “I will always value the voice of my imagination by making time daily to check in.  I will make routine time that is nonnegotiable to connect with my imagination in ways that make it feel loved and supported.  I will give my imagination just as much weight and understanding as the louder voices of responsibility and the need to care for others.”
• Fourth,invite more fun and playfulness into your life and let go of the need for specific outcomes.  Here’s where it gets joyful!  Imagination thrives when you make space for fun and playfulness and let go of the need to produce a specific outcome.  Even starting your day by asking, “How can I invite more playfulness into my day?” is enough to get this process flowing.  Imagination will thrive in an environment where play and experimentation are welcome guests.
• Finally, stay inspired and seek support.  Here are 2 of my favorite links on the topic that will give you additional ideas for staying connected to your imagination. Tending the Neglected Side Yard, and Nurture Your Creative Life.

It’s Simple to Nurture Your Relationship with Your Imagination!

It really is simple.  Take the time to nurture your relationship with your imagination.  A daily practice of some kind is going to help you create a life that gives you the inner spark and sense of feeling alive inside that you crave.  There are as many ways to do this as there are people to come up with the ideas.  Be creative, be inspired, and have some fun with this process while being consistent.  Do something every day to signal to your imagination that it is super valuable!  You are tending a delicate and new relationship and it will serve you well.

Please share your favorite ways to stay connected to your imagination in the comments below.

Theresa Nutt is an Author, Speaker and Transformational Coach.  She helps very competent and capable women who feel empty and disenchanted with the daily grind to become vibrant, imaginative, and unforgettable.  Her favorite topics of discussion and exploration are transformation, feminine presence and power, and creativity.  Her creative pursuits include writing, singing, pastels, dancing, and cooking.

Her new book, “30 Days to Reignite Your Inner Creative Genius” can be found at www.theresanutt.com/resources/