Welcome to my new FLASH FRIDAY series on how to create each day using our Creative 15 method.  How do I come up with the energy to be creative? This series will help you get crafting 15 minutes at a time. You will be amazed at how fast those 15 minute increments can add up to beautiful creative layouts.

Here is a week in my crafty journal (travelers notebook) to capture brain dump ideas and what I want to work on next.

INTRODUCTION TO CREATIVE 15
Research has shown that being creative each day makes you happier. We have all seen those articles and know its true, but how do we carve out that time to be creative? I know my life has changed significantly since my daughter was born almost 7 years ago. I no longer have large blocks of time to commit to scrapbooking and being creative. After several years of being completely away from my creative self, I have determined to FOCUS on my creativity this year.

WHAT IS CREATIVE 15?
I know my creative cycle needs to look different than it was 7 years ago. So I set out to determine what needs to change and what do I need to focus on? I took some advice from Dr. Robert Epstein on what to concentrate on this year. He recommends a few common practices and among the most important is “Routine Creativity“.

Now that I don’t have large blocks of time, I knew I needed to break up my creative time into smaller increments. That is where the CREATIVE 15 was born. What can I do in 15 minute increments (we can all find that time) that will help me be creative everyday and also create building blogs to getting projects done.

YOUR CREATIVE 15 ASSIGNMENT:
One of Dr. Epstein’s primary recommendations is to “Capture your new ideas”. Your assignment is to figure out how you are going to capture your new ideas.

Here is my messy brain dump electronic note in OneNote. You can also see my structure of tracking notes and when I get more ideas, I create a separate note under my Brain Dump category.

Here is how my idea workflow works so hopefully this will give you some ideas on how to capture your new ideas:

• All of my notes are stored electronically in OneNote. OneNote syncs to my computer, my iPad and my phone simultaneously. I always seem to have one of those nearby.
  • If not, I have little dollar tree tiny notebooks and a pen near all my favorite places: my purse, the kitchen, my chair in the living room, and by my bedside. They are great for capturing those random ideas when I don’t have electronics around.
• In my creative notebook in OneNote, I have many sections where I track different projects and I also have a brain dump (my first section), which is the first place all ideas go.
• From the Brain dump, I can evaluate an idea, create notes on it and then eventually move that idea and notes to the proper section so I know if it’s a technique to try, a story I want to scrapbook or craft organizational project.
• I like to print out the brain dump list about once or twice a month and have it on my crafting desk. I prefer to print in half letter size (5.5 x 8.5) so I can put it in my A5 planner to refer back to. I also will print it in 4×6 and add it to my crafty notebook to keep ideas handy. It’s a great reference to jog those temporary creative blocks.

Post your thoughts in the comments below on how you are going to capture your new ideas and stay tuned for next week’s ideas and assignments.

Check out all the Creative 15 posts