17 Benefits Of Being Creative

Before I get to the benefits of being creative, let’s start by defining what creativity is.

According to Wikipedia, it is “a phenomenon whereby something new and somehow valuable is formed. The created item may be intangible (such as an idea, a scientific theory, a musical composition, or a joke) or a physical object (such as an invention, a literary work, or a painting).”

So, it may be any of the following (which is not, of course, an exhaustive list):

• Creating something from scratch that never existed before (e.g. a piece of art, a story, a brand new tool, an app for your phone).
• Combining existing items and using them to create something new (e.g. the spork, a recipe).
• Using an existing item to solve a different problem than the item was originally created for.

From an evolutionary standpoint, being creative is one of the factors that allowed humans to become the dominant species on this planet – the ability to create tools (e.g. to hunt and cultivate food) was of enormous benefit. (It’s interesting to note that other animals are beginning to reach that same evolutionary stage, where they are learning how to create tools for themselves.)

But that’s in the distant past now, so what are some of the more relevant benefits to being creative that affects us today?

Courage

Most creators have a solid vision of what they are trying to achieve, and this requires two traits that will stand you in good stead through life:

1. Confidence, because you are certain that what you are producing has value (either tangible or intangible).
2. Courage, because you do not know (or may not care) what others may think about it once it’s complete.

Dementia

This sounds like a bold claim, but studies have demonstrated that involving people with dementia (or Alzheimer’s) in creative activities can not only help relieve symptoms of depression, but also sharpen their senses and regain their personality again.

Demonstration Of Affection And Love

If you’re a parent, then I’m sure you’re familiar with that feeling you get when your child hands you something they made all by themselves.

Objectively, it may be hideous or incredibly badly made – but that is not important, of course. What is important is how it made you feel when your child took the time and effort to do something special for you.

Making a unique item (e.g. handmade chocolates, a sweater, a painting, a poem), that only you could have produced, allows you to create highly personal gifts for others, which you know they will appreciate for the same reason it works when children craft something for their parents – it took time and effort.

And something as simple as this can really help strengthen any relationship, whether it’s a friend, colleague, or your life partner.

Fun

Creativity can be a lot of fun (which isn’t to say that it can’t be frustrating at times too – e.g. a writer struggling to find precisely the right turn of phrase), and when you’re having fun, you are happier – and that’s good for you.

Happiness

I’m sure most people, at some time or other, have become so engrossed in what they were doing that they lost all track of time, and seemed impervious to any distractions.

This is what’s known as “flow”, and being in that state can boost your mood, reduce anxiety, and slow your heart rate down.

It also turns out that some repetitive activities (e.g. crocheting, drawing, knitting, knotting rugs, writing) that are associated with creative tasks can also put you in a state of flow.

This is because you are creating something, and when you are successful in that, your brain receives hits of dopamine, which is sometimes called the “feel good chemical”.

Immune System

One creative activity, daily journalling (i.e. writing about your thoughts and feelings and experiences), the benefits of which I talk about in another article, has been shown to boost your immune system.

The immune system is one of several functions that is nowhere close to being fully understood yet, but there is a hypothesis that suggests this benefit is because writing increases your CD4+ lymphocyte count, which is crucial to a healthy immune system.

And while not exactly creative per se, listening to music can apparently rejuvenate your immune system too.

Lifelong Learning

A pursuit of any creative outlet requires you to be learning constantly – new techniques, keeping abreast of new developments – whether you realize that at the outset or not.

Your passion for whatever it is that you enjoy creating won’t let you do anything else – and learning is one of those activities that keeps our brain active and young, minimizing, for example, cognitive decline.

For example, I don’t have as much time to do fiction writing as I’d really like, but I still read articles almost every day on ways I can improve.

Mental Health

Engaging in creative pursuits (e.g. gardening, sewing) can help focus your mind in a similar way to meditation because it helps calm your mind and body.

It also has the ability to decrease anxiety, depression, and stress. In addition, research discovered that painting, for example, can help people deal with negative emotions and trauma, even when they find it difficult to put their experiences into words.

Perseverance

When you try anything for the first time, it is quite possible (or even probable) that you will not be as successful as you had wanted.

What sets successful people apart from most, however, is that they don’t give up when the going gets tough.

I’m sure you’ve heard the saying, “Winners never quit, and quitters never win.”

Well, here’s the thing – you are probably going to have to make multiple attempts at your creative project before you are happy with it. For example:

• Authors may need to write several drafts (and do extensive editing / rewriting) before their work is publishable.
• Inventors almost always need to construct a multitude of prototypes before they discover a design that works and does what they want.

But if you have that end vision in mind, you won’t stop trying until your creation matches that vision.

Physical Health

This may be dependent on your chosen area of creativity, of course, but when it comes to dance, there are numerous studies that show:

• Aerobic dancing can help with weight management.
• Dancing in general can help you lose weight.
• Dancing can also improve a person’s body image.
• Hip-hop can not only help with mood improvement but also reduce fatigue.
• Zumba can reduce blood pressure and triglyceride levels (high levels of which can be a precursor to heart disease and pancreatitis).

In other studies, it was discovered that art therapy helped patients who suffered from chronic pain.

Problem Solving Skills

Creativity and problem solving go hand in hand – creative people can use their creative skills to solve problems.

Almost all creative activities require you solve some sort of problem (e.g. how best to reveal pertinent details as your novel unfolds, which colours to use on a painting for maximum effect, what sort of joint to use when undertaking carpentry projects).

However, while it may appear that masters of creativity can effortlessly solve those problems, this is often because they fully understand all of the fundamentals of their trade.

If you know the advantages and disadvantages of all the tools and materials at your disposal, you can combine those in a way that produces exactly the effect you’re looking for, but if didn’t know that a certain tool or material was available, you might miss out on the most effective solution to your problem.

Allied to this is a better ability to be resourceful, because you can come up with alternative ways to solve problems based on what you have to hand.

Save Money

This can be a double-edged sword, of course – some people spend an absolute fortune in pursuit of their creative pastimes, but on the other hand, it can also save you a lot of money.

For example, if you enjoy creating your own recipes, you can save money compared to buying the finished products from the store (and it will often be healthier for you too).

Self-Understanding

Undertaking a creative project (e.g. art, writing) requires some degree of self-discovery, and the better we understand ourselves (e.g. who we truly are, what motivates us, what’s important to us and what’s not), the better we are able to decide what our purpose in life is.

And the sooner we know our purpose (which is something we create for ourselves), the more likely it is that we will be happier, because we will be doing what we know is important to us.

Sense Of Accomplishment And Pride

There is nothing quite like finishing a creative project and thinking, “I did that!”

Everybody has probably created something in their life (e.g. for me it’s been, and still is, books, poems, designs, magic tricks, recipes, software applications), so I’m sure you can look back at some of your own projects and remember the feeling of pleasure and accomplishment you felt.

For some, the knowledge you achieved something important to you is enough, but for others, external approval can be a huge ego boost, but either way, humans like to feel they have succeeded. Neither of these approaches is right or wrong, of course – it’s 100% personal to you.

Sense Of Purpose

Even if your creative passion is not your main or secondary source of income (e.g. it’s purely a hobby), creating something can be all the purpose you need. For example, maybe you feel you have an important perspective on society that you strongly believe needs to be said, and your art is the best way you can share that view with others.

Smartness

If you are creative though playing musical instruments, then you’ll be pleased to know that you are more likely to have better connectivity between the two hemispheres of your brain, which leads to improved cognitive abilities.

Socialization

Humans are, for the most part, social creatures, and it is well known that extreme isolation is not good for us.

Participating in a creative activity (e.g. drama, painting, photography) often leads to people joining clubs whose members all share a passion for that same interest.

That makes it likely that you will strike up new friendships (and even relationships) with other members of that club. (It obviously requires more than one shared interest to spark a true friendship, but at the very least, you know you have something in common to get the ball rolling.)

Conclusion

Any one of the above benefits (e.g. because it’s fun) is all the justification you need to try creating something – but the chances are that you’ll enjoy more than just the one.

We can all do it – we used to when we were children, but somehow the act of growing up (or, getting older, at least) seems to replace our child-like imagination and sense of wonder with prosaic rationalism.

I know, as adults, we have practical issues to attend to, like paying our bills, but that doesn’t and shouldn’t mean that we cast aside all of our creative instincts, which are still there, buried within us.

So think about the fun you used to have a child, and promise yourself that you will try to recreate that version of you for at least some of your time – because it’s good for you in all sorts of ways.