The need for change and creativity – are they connected, or do we change things around us when something is actually unsettled inside? After last night’s dream, I started thinking. First about the blog, then about all the drawers, rooms and projects I have rearranged, sorted and changed over the years.
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I was sitting here thinking after last night’s dream.
I suppose the thoughts had already started somewhere in the dream itself. But then they carried on in my head, and suddenly I thought:
Maybe I should change the look of the blog?
So I looked at it.
And then I realised – no.
It feels calm. There is space. I like it.
It is good.
It is enough.
But then another thought appeared.
Hmm.
Why do I want change when nothing is wrong?
Is there something unsettled inside me?
Something that does not quite feel right?
Because if everything is fine, why would I need to rearrange, change things and create something new?
Or perhaps that is not what it is about at all.
Maybe it is simply the creative part of me wanting to do something differently.
That is something I need to think about.
Because when I look back, I have probably been doing this for a very long time.
I used to move furniture – now I move other things
Before computers became part of everyday life, I rearranged the furniture at home.
I still do sometimes, although not nearly as much.
Whether that is because I have already moved every piece of furniture in every possible direction, or simply because I am getting older, I do not know.
But the changing is still there.
On the computer.
In rooms.
In cupboards and drawers.
I sort things, move them, try another way, come up with a new project and start somewhere else.
It reminds me a little of when I returned to KonMari in my closet. Of course it was about clothes and creating order, but something also happens inside me when I get to take things out, sort them and decide what should stay.
And that makes me wonder:
What does all this actually mean?
The need for change and creativity – what does psychology say?
Of course, I became curious and started reading.
What I found interesting is that psychology does not give us a simple answer saying that people who often want to change things must be doing so because something is wrong.
There is research on curiosity, openness to experience and creativity. We can seek new possibilities simply because there is something new to discover.
Curiosity does not always have to begin with a problem.
It can begin with:
I wonder what would happen if I did it this way instead?
And I recognised myself in that.
Because that is exactly what happened with the blog.
I thought:
Maybe I should change the design.
Then I really looked at it.
No.
It is calm.
There is space.
It is good as it is.
And then I was able to leave it alone.
Perhaps I did not actually need the change.
Maybe I simply needed to explore the possibility of change.
Maybe I create because I enjoy creating
That led me to a different thought.
My first thought had almost been:
Something must be unsettled inside me because I constantly want to change things.
But what if that is not necessarily true?
What if creating, changing and exploring are simply part of the way I function?
I write.
I build things.
I change the blog.
I develop ideas.
I sort drawers.
I move things around.
I find new projects.
And very often it starts with the same little thought:
What if I…
I recognise that sentence.
And perhaps I do not always have to carry out everything that comes after it.
Sometimes it may be enough to explore the idea and then realise:
No. This was actually fine the way it was.
Perhaps that applies to more than just the blog.
But sometimes the drawer may actually help
Then there is another side to it.
Our surroundings affect us too.
Environmental psychology has looked at how our homes, rooms and the things around us can be connected to recovery, emotions and our sense of control.
That does not mean I can simply say:
I sort the drawer because I am trying to sort my feelings.
It is probably not that simple.
But I still find the thought interesting.
Because there is something satisfying about opening a messy drawer, taking everything out and beginning to sort.
This belongs here.
I do not need this.
These things belong together.
And suddenly there is one small, limited part of the world where everything has found its place.
Perhaps there are days when I create order around me because I need a little more order inside me.
On other days I may do exactly the same thing simply because I am curious and enjoy creating.
And sometimes it may be both.
Here on Malix, I often write about things like this – ordinary moments that begin to say something more when I stop and really look at them.
Between the lines
It started with a thought about changing the look of the blog.
It ended with a question about myself.
And perhaps that is exactly why those small, everyday moments are sometimes worth stopping for.
I do not need to immediately decide whether my need for change means that something is unsettled inside me or whether it is simply creativity.
I can be curious about it instead.
Perhaps there is no single explanation.
Sometimes I may sort things to create calm.
Sometimes to create something new.
Sometimes simply because I saw a drawer and thought:
I could do something with that…
And maybe that is an answer too.
Questions for you
- Do you also feel a need to change things, rearrange furniture or sort things?
- What happens inside you when you create order around you?
- Do you often start new projects even when there is nothing wrong with the old ones?
- Is change a way for you to create calm, or a way to express creativity?
- Is there something you keep changing again and again?
- And when you really think about it – are you sorting the drawer, or are you sorting your life?
You can also read Who Reads My Blog? – another post where I reflect on the people who meet here through words.
Would you like to follow along?
I continue to write about everyday life, ADHD, relationships, presence, creativity and all the things that happen while life is going on.
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“Live today, right now – yesterday has already happened, and you know nothing about tomorrow.”
Carina Ikonen Nilsson – Malix.se
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