3 Reasons Why Surprises Are Good For You, And How They Can BOOST Your Creativity!
and why you should be surprised, at least once a week.
Maybe you think there is nothing new about a surprise.
We all have had surprises, surprise birthdays, gifts, meetings, lots of unexpectedness and shouting involved.
Surprises might make you nervous because you think the organizer of the surprise has done something you might not like, you might feel shame, embarrassment or fear. I am myself not a very good surprise receiver, still I love surprises. And this all came a bit as a surprise when I discovered the power of a good surprise.
A good and well-designed surprise that has a specific purpose will leave you open, smiling, amazed and pumped with adrenaline…not to speak about the after-effects.
Let’s take a close look.
Surprise!
What is a surprise exactly?
according to the dictionary surprise is:
an unexpected or astonishing event, fact, etc.
… that can cause (someone) to feel mild astonishment or shock.
Surprises can open up a new world opening. They reveal something you did not know, notice, heard or expected in one single moment.
This creates the surprise.
It’s not about scaring people or being terrified.
There might even be one thing that you might not know about the aftereffect of a surprise that might- yes -surprise you.
The Science Behind The Surprise
A good and well-organized surprise creates a tiny shift in our mind. The shock of the surprise makes the mind pause. This shock effect creates an tiny shift.
A tiny shift, just enough to create an opening for something new to enter and to expand.
This shift is proven by scientists to leave you in a different state.
And it is this tiny moment that makes all the difference in the world.
Creativity as we all know thrives on curiosity and the willingness to try on new things. Most of the time new things, the unknown and unfamiliar create discomfort.
We’d rather just drink day-old coffee than fling ourselves in any unknown situation.
There is something about the unknown that we don’t like. It can cause:
- anxiety,
- fear
- indecisiveness
- feeling out of control
…just to name a few.
All this emotional turmoil is also the biggest enemy of creativity.
The unknown is uncomfortable because we never quite know what to expect.
It causes blocks and creates resistance.
Well Designed Uncertainty
Especially now, in this strange pandemic period in time, we rather not be in uncertain situations. They make us terribly aware of not being in control. It’s like letting go of the rudder of your boat, in the middle of a storm. Not good!
Most of the time fear turns up and we forget about the whole thing.
We take uncertainty as dangerous, we just never know what to expect and we decide in an instant to ‘flight or fight’.
We run away.
Fear, uncertainty, unknown situations are a trigger.
But there is an upside we can master the uncertainty by exercising our mind to expand, to open up. To not trigger fear or blocks
Surprises, if done carefully and are well designed, can open us up to a new situation by taking away the first uncomfortable feeling, because it opens up the mind.
Due to the surprise effect, we pause: we forget to ‘flight or fight’. Our brain needs a second to connect to the situation and by that time…all danger has passed and we are indeed in a new situation.
Without having passed out cold, being highly uncomfortable or sick with fear.
Boosting Creativity For Creative High Achievers
This is to make like magic and I use this exact system in my creative experiences. The surprises open up the mind and the heart to be open to new, unknown and everybody who experiences this will become more open.
You will be able to dig deeper into your creativity and will not be feeling as much fear when faced with an unknown situation.
You see most creative processes are based on creating new, discovering unknown or making nothing into something. This process is based on the ability to be open to the unknown.
Adding the surprise effect will help you BOOST your creativity, make room for explosive new input.
Reason One
Your will expand your mind.
Reason Two
Open to new.
Reason Three
Boost creativity
This is exactly what creative high achievers need. room to create more, new and unexpected. This will show itself in your ability to use your creativity on a much larger scale due to less blocks and resistance.
And if you are like me, you are willing to dive into a surprise if only because you never know what to expect. It causes an adrenaline rush that will even deepen the experience and will have a lasting effect.
Why a surprise routine might be just the thing
Just imagine what your life would look like if you would be surprised by well-designed surprises and not only expand your mind but also BOOST your creativity.
Suppose for a moment you start doing this…what would that look like?
The surprise routine should be a regular exercise you do like going to the gym or your daily run through the park. You should see it as the new meditation program, instead of relaxing the mind, finding focus, you will be training your mind to expand, open up and have less fear of new things. While doing so you’ll create an enormous creativity boost that will last. And the more you will do it the more creative you will become. it will become like a well-trained muscle.
A well-designed surprise can do just that. This means the surprise you yell when you surprise somebody for their birthday will blow their socks off but may not have the desired effect I just spoke about.
Things to remember:
- Make surprise a routine.
- They should be well designed.
- if done with a groups, the adrenaline of the connection will deepen the effects even more.
Curious?
If you got curious and want to try out a surprise, join me in the “Surprise Club”. I am going to offer weekly Surprise Experiences…I’d love to tell you more but that would of course-ruin the surprise.
Want even more? …. I will start the first season of my Creativity Experience an Interactive and Surprise based online Experience to boost creativity and not only light your creative fire (again) but also unlock and unblock.
So just sign up and see what it brings….www.maurilledesmalen.com
