Inspiration can come in a shape of a shadow cast on the wall or from a word you hear in a conversation. The first time I truly felt inspired was at the age of seven. I remember looking through my parents’ lawn, searching for my neighbor’s Pittsburgh Steelers pin that fell off his jacket. While weaving through the lush blades of grass, I saw amazing shapes and patterns. I couldn’t wait to draw them. I ran into the garage and retrieved my container of chalk and began to draw on the sidewalk. I soon ran out of chalk and went into the house to grab my old shoe box of crayons and continued to draw for hours. I had filled the sidewalk, the walkway to the porch and the driveway. I was so proud of all my hard work that left color everywhere. Unfortunately, my father thought differently and grounded me for two weeks for using crayons on the concrete. Later that night I watched from the porch as he poured lighter fluid on my work to melt and burn off the crayon. The color of the flames and melting wax inspired yet another project I couldn’t wait to start.
Now that I am an “adult,” and in a career where one is expected to be inspired all the time, I have found myself staring at the four walls that create my office or my “box.” And I begin to ask myself: what in here is inspiring to me? What will make me think outside the box, while being contained inside one. Sure, I could use the old standbys and look at what others have done to inspire me. But I wonder what would become of an idea if we were to set aside the standbys, and have a brainstorming session during a walk surrounded by nature, or look for inspiration on the walls of a museum, or while staring at the drawings of kindergarteners. What would happen if we let ourselves out of our boxes to create something outside of one? Let’s fill a stuffy board room with music, or have a meeting outside in the sun. I think that during this stage in my life that is so full of tight deadlines and schedules, I forgot what once inspired me, and could again. Inspiration is still all around me. I just have to allow myself to step out and see it again.
Tags: creative, Marketing Communications
