The beauty of wearing many hats is the rich opportunity to see things from several different perspectives. Having lived in the country and earning our family income from the land for most of my life, I feel the “farmer” hat has given me a scope on the cyclical and rhythmic nature of what is possible in art and in life.

The progression of problem solving and forward planning necessary to be a successful farmer is very much like the creative process. Like a farmer, you will prepare the soil, plant the seed, water, cultivate and feed your creativity.

We have the power to create and/or rewrite our own possibilities and experiences.

Creative thinking can be consciously broken down into a process of 5 steps – and I will even add a 6th step, as I believe that we can take something from the farming experience that will set us up for future successes.

1. IDENTIFICATION
   Identify the problem to be solved, such as planning a quilt, designing a landscape or learning a new medium. Nothing creative will happen until you identify what you want to do.
2. PREPARATION
   Evaluate possible solutions and research possibilities by considering what you have done previously with similar problems or what others have done. You make sketches, plan color schemes, and establish boundaries for your creative activity. This is the thinking stage of your project.
3. INCUBATION
   Put the project on the shelf for a while. Your unconscious mind sorts and assimilates the information you accumulated in the preparation phase like a computer. This stage may only take minutes, while you set up to work or take a little break. This is what I call the percolating stage~ if you drink tea instead of coffee, then maybe you would call it the steeping stage.  Or it may take much longer for a fully realized solution to surface. Sometimes it comes to you when your mind is doing something else, like driving, talking on the phone, brushing your teeth or taking a shower.
4. BREAKTHROUGH
   The solution becomes immediately apparent. This is not inspiration, but the result of your earlier thinking~ although it sometimes seems amazing when the insight suddenly does come through. Maybe that is where the lightning bolt metaphor comes from.
5. RESOLUTION
   Once the breakthrough has occurred, a resolution step completes the cycle or process. You are ready to try your solution and see how it works.
6. FOLLOW-THROUGH
   Is about tying up the loose ends to finish strong~ evaluating what worked, what didn’t, and taking notes on how you could improve next time. You are creating a solid platform to begin again with renewed energy, knowledge and experience from the growing season or problem-solving activities. You are already thinking about the next crop/project and planning ahead to ensure your groundwork has been an investment in YOU and your productivity and creativity, making it much easier to repeat and build on your recent success. Success breeds confidence, confidence breeds more success!

I am sure you have all experienced this creative process to some degree but perhaps were not conscious to the stages of development your brain was going through. Knowing what is happening and deliberately guiding yourself through the process is very helpful to progress your ideas and bring them to creative fruition~ an abundant harvest on all fronts!

Creative people see opportunity in misfires and other things that didn’t turn out quite like they had imagined. In fact we are adept at spinning that so-called negative around and using it to springboard into new possibilities and creative solutions.

So now it’s up to you to rewrite your own creative possibilities!

Gnarly by Georgia Mansur