Creativity is something innate in almost every person. The ability to express this creativity however, is very difficult to manifest. People often believed that they have no talents with creativity. But sometimes, the simple things they do, like the way they put on their clothes, the way they organize themselves and the way they arrange their decorations at home is creativity. However, one might lose creativity especially during stressful periods. Here are three ways to maintain your own creativity.

1. Find Inspiration

The modern world and your work forces you to work with your mind rather than with what you actually want. What makes daily work so difficult is because you have to force yourself to do your tasks to meet needed deadlines. Living in this particular kind of world makes it difficult to find inspiration. However, strong emotions, just like a particular loathing, or a random act of kindness from a stranger can serve as inspiration. Keep a list of many unique things you find inspiring during the day; from wanting to escape your work to finding a woman smiling at you across the street, to the skies showing Mars has become visible in broad daylight, you can certainly find your inspiration.

2. Your Discipline of Choice

Know what type of person are you. No, you are not talentless as you might think. Try to draw a few lines on paper and see if you can make something up. If you enjoy music, you have the potential to be a musician. If you like movies, you can be a writer or a filmmaker. Why people think that they’re talentless is because they are afraid to make a mistake. Art and creativity is all about making mistakes. Some paintings and songs in the world became famous because of a mistake. To maintain your art discipline during times of stress, apply the inspiration above to inspire you to create something using your discipline. Sometimes, you will have to force yourself to work even if you are tired to ensure that you maintain your creativity at all times.

3. Raise the Creative Level

Every once in a while you start noticing that you are lacking interest in your creative discipline. When you feel this way, it might be time to raise your creative bar. If you enjoy sketching, trying new mediums is a new way to re-ignite your passion. Learning to play new instruments or studying complicated music composition structures can help you find more ways to write music. The possibilities are endless.

Depression is one of those things that you can’t easily shrug off. It can stem from a quarrel with your life, poor work performance resulting to termination, a disillusion of something and  a broken heart. Getting over depression is not something one can do overnight.  While science can mention it as a chemical imbalance in the brain, depression does not need any invasive surgery to cure. All it needs is your determination,  persistence and willpower to find beauty in all things that at one point may seem to have betrayed you. Here are a few ways to begin your journey into finding your self-worth and actualization.

1. Keep a Diary

This might seem too ‘high-school’ for you, but noting down your thoughts and feelings on paper greatly helps you ease the burden of depression. Having a daily post on a blog or an actual notebook can help you have a bird’s eye-view of your current emotional state. Having a diary helps you record your progress from depression to being completely better. Remember, emotions are very difficult to control, let alone try to stop.  The only way to ease your depression is to deposit those feelings harmlessly, and this is where a diary helps. Write about what hurts you, what you feel, what triggers your depression and what you think about when you get depressed during certain parts of the day.

2.Practice Self-Control

Being emotionally unstable is comparable to being drunk. You are not in control. Your emotions are fluctuating. Sometimes, you can feel a mix of happiness and depression and you might think you are going insane. But you are not.  You just lack  control over your actions due to the depression you are feeling. Without self-control, you might lead yourself to physical dangers and at the mercy of consuming vices that temporarily make you feel better.  Establishing self-control is a very difficult task; you might find yourself getting frustrated practising it. But trying is different from not trying at all. A key rule here is to do the opposite of what you want to do.

3. Talk To Friends

Aside from keeping a diary, talk to friends. People who are depressed will need social interaction, even at a bare minimum. Talking to friends about your problems in private is very important because it relaxes your mind and your burdens. Even if they give advice or not, a friend who listens can help a depressed person know that there are still people who treat them as important.

4. Achieving Self-Worth

Disillusion and depression is a very difficult thing to overcome. One can have so much attachment on a person, place, routine or  even an object that a core part of their lives had been removed. The only way to overcome this is to achieve self-worth. Achieving self-worth means placing objectives for yourself to achieve on a daily basis. It does not have to be anything grand; it only needs to be some simple things you find difficult to do. For example, if you find it shameful to bike to work, then bike to work. A rewarding experience it is to try something new. Then move to pushing your limits, like challenging yourself to write a song, clean the whole house at least once a week and other simple things that can help you gain self-worth and keep you busy.

5.Detachment and Acceptance

Almost everyone gets attached to a certain idea, person, thing, routine or place. Detachment is very difficult, especially in the later parts where you have gotten used to the presence of  something you are deeply attached to. Detachment is not a form of indifference, but rather an acceptance of two outcomes. It is when one knows that things, relationships, anything in the world does not last, and that which has passed, cannot be brought back. This is the cause of most people’s depression, and also the most difficult to overcome. Again, trying is different from not doing anything at all. Getting frustrated is a sign that you are on your way to getting back on your feet.