Lure Your Muse Out Through Travel

Travel is such a creativity sparker! Our Muses – that part of us that represents our deep creativity - love it when we get out of our routines, go to new places and venture out of our comfort zones. Here are a few reminders about what to do to make your Muse happy while you are traveling.

Open your senses. Summer is the season to indulge all of our senses. The feel of the warm air on our skin, the smell of fresh cut grass and barbeque, the sound of the ice cream truck connect us to memories of our childhood. Alongside the memories are new opportunities to create new sense memories and to be fully present in the moment.

Try new foods, drinks, places, and people. Your Muse loves new. She loves things that spark her imagination. What new places can you find? What people bring you a fresh way of seeing life? What food have you heard of but never tried? Give it a go now!

Engage your body. Indulge your body with swimming, lying on the grass, the beach, eating juicy fruits, bicycling, hiking, dancing. Mmmmm. Our creativity is expressed through the body and released when we give our ole body loving attention.

Initiate conversation with strangers. Some of the best creative accidents happen when we interact with others. Be willing to sit next to a stranger at a café or make a comment to someone next to you at a museum. Use your instincts to choose your new friends. Forget what your parents taught you about talking to strangers and be open to new interactions.

While you’re at it, forget conventional wisdom entirely. It’s the bane of the creative experience. While it’s tempting to get advice from people about what to do and see while traveling, take it with a grain of salt. Let your Muse lead you to adventurous experiences instead.

Get lost and be open to discovering new routes, perspectives and ideas. Huh? Can't figure it out? Great. That not knowing opens you up to possibility, the field where your Muse loves to hang out. The ability to dwell in the unknown is the key to being able to let your Muse have your way with you. If you’re too concerned with looking good, playing safe and being a know-it-all, kiss your Muse goodbye.

Give yourself time and space to do nothing. Sit on a bench, on a beach, in a café, wherever you can just chill out and let nothing happen. Your Muse loves to whisper ideas in your ear, but when you are constantly moving, it's difficult to get your attention! Stop and take breaks and let life, and your creativity in.

Capture inspiration when it’s happening. Take time to jot notes, save ephemera (museum tickets, cards, metro tickets) in your notebook. Capture words or dialogue that strike you. Don’t think that you need to chronicle everything in narrative form – it will take too long and you’ll end up not doing it. By recording your experiences while you travel rather than waiting until you get home, you’ll have a richer experience in the moment.

Enjoy these ways that getting out of your normal zone can open you up to new creative ventures. Your Muse will thank you!