Creating a clear vision
“Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes, having fun”
Quote is from the actress Mary Lou Cook
During the month of May there is a National celebration of how arts, culture and connection can support health and wellbeing. This festival is a partnership between London Arts and Health and the Culture, Health and Wellbeing Alliance, supported by Arts Council England.
Unsplash image by Bob Osias
In conjunction with this celebration I am offering an evening workshop on Wednesday 20th May, which will run from 6pm to 8:30pm in High Kelling, just outside of Holt, in North Norfolk. This workshop is going to be focusing on creating a more positive and inspiring vision for the future. Together we will be looking at creative ways to stay more grounded in these challenging times.
This workshop will allow you some time out to reflect, away from all the noise and busyness of day to day life. We will have a look at your values and your beliefs and set a new intention that best reflects these for you at this time. Taking a birds eye view of different areas of your life and what you would like to focus on. Then armed with this new knowledge look at ways to refocus your energy and attention.
From a neuroscientific view point once we have more clarity around our life and what we want next - by bringing these specific things to our conscious mind - we can set out our intentions. We then have far more of a chance at reaching our desired outcomes in whatever way suits us the best. Sometimes we can do this alone, at other times though we may feel that we need some extra support and guidance.
“You create your thoughts, your thoughts create your intentions and your intentions create your reality” Wayne Dyer
While putting this workshop together I spent time thinking more about what creativity means to me and how the creative process makes me FEEL. Being ‘creative’ can mean so many things and is such an individual process and of course whatever you choose to do to get ‘creative’; garden, cook, paint, weave, sew, knit, dance, sing or perform I think that what is important is the process, the feelings and what this does for you on so many levels.
It is not always easy as there is a certain element of ‘letting go’ and surrendering and as Elizabeth Gilbert says in her book Big Magic
“Fear is always triggered by creativity because creativity asks you to enter into realms of uncertain outcomes”
As I was writing and researching I was also drawn back into the work of Dr Tara Swart, as in both of her books ‘The Signs’ and her earlier work ‘The Source’ she has chapters about ‘connecting with creativity’ and talks about neuroaesthetics which is the study of how the brain processes art and beauty.
“In addition to beholding beauty, neuroaesthetics has also studied the benefits of making and participating in creative pursuits, whether that is sketching, playing an instrument or writing poetry. And the good news is that your skill level does not equate to the benefits you get from those neuroaesthetic practices - simply being creative, in whatever form works for you, is going to be beneficial to you in lots of meaningful ways”
She says that if you are struggling with feeling low, experiencing grief or negative thought patterns then you can boost the ‘DOSE’ hormones in your body by doing something creative. These hormones help to shift our state, improve our mood and will help to calm our nervous system.
“Appreciating beauty shifts the brain from a fear state (cortisol) to a love/trust state (oxytocin), also moving our autonomic nervous system from sympathetic to parasympathetic, which further helps us to access hitherto clouded intuition and a willingness to take healthy risks”
It also helps us to ‘forge’ new neural pathways.
“creating the environment for your brain to be filled with joy, leaving little room for fear and doubt”
Image via I Stock 2026
What do you do to find these feelings? What really allows you to ‘escape’ and find some joy? What other creative things would you like to try? To do more of? Or to explore for the first time?
I know that I will always be very happy to welcome in more joy and ‘replace’ those unhelpful emotions of fear and doubt, who have been visiting me a bit more than I would like, especially of late. Doing something creative also helps us to be more present and then the benefits can ripple out, making significant changes to how we feel and in turn how see things in our life.
So my offer is simple really, I would love you to come and join me for a fun and relaxing evening and learn more about why creative ways of thinking can help to support you. If you are not local and cannot join us then why not seek out something in your local area, or recruit a friend and go and visit something new that may inspire you. There are so many different things on during this week and the links are here.
Creating a positive and inspiring vision can help with our feelings of hope and optimism for the future - Image from unspalsh in 2025
As Elizabeth Gilberts says
“A creative life is an amplified life. It’s a bigger life, a happier life and a hell of a lot more interesting life”
If you would prefer some 1:1 support you can find out more about this here.
If you want to know how aromatherapy can help you, you can learn more here about what I offer.