A CREATIVE FORMULA

By Todd Puntolillo

“Talent,” says Thoreau, “is created in silence; but character, in the stream of life.” Let’s talk about creating in silence and experiencing higher outcomes in our reality.

A number of years ago, my dream came true. I had been mentally fishing in my imaginary dreamboat for years. Now, finally, I bought the real thing. She was shiny and new and had all the contraptions a mariner could wish for to find and catch those rambunctious, silvery, blue-plate specials I enjoy so much.

It didn’t take more than two or three trips, though, to realize that I had bought a tub. The freeboard was wrong, the floors were slick, and the draft was too deep. I had waited and saved a lifetime (hopefully only half a lifetime) for my ship to come in, and when it showed up, it was the Hesperus!

After sleepless nights and pacing in the gloom, my thinking slowly evolved from what I should have bought to what I could do to create a new, improved dream boat. The process moderated from being immobilized by discouragement to detached observation and acceptance of the moment.

What I did next worked so well that I recommend it to anyone who needs a creative solution to any problem. First, I sat in silence and stilled my critical mind. In this quieted state I began to write down what I wanted it to be versus what I actually had.

I realized that I didn’t have a problem, only an unanswered question.

I walked past the boat and imagined it looking the way I wanted. In silence my answers came. They seemed radical and illogical, but I made drawings anyway, designing the perfect vessel for my purposes. The process continued for a few days as it evolved.

I don’t remember how I found Robby, but after a few phone calls, I was on a 550-mile round trip journey to have plastic surgery (or should I say fiberglass surgery) performed on my tub!

“Ouch!” He gasped, as I showed him the barge. “I didn’t know you wanted me to saw a brand new boat in half!” (Horizontally, of course.) However, two weeks later, when I reappeared at his door, his wizardry and my ideas were one. It was a sleek, mean, fishing machine like none other in the world, and at an unbelievably reasonable price! It was like converting an Edsel into a Mustang! My fishing buddies and I enjoyed many great adventures in my brand new custom craft.

I suspect that others have had similar experiences in problem solving.
Even if people are unclear about the benefits of meditation and visualization, when forced to find solutions, they may meditate and don’t even know that’s what they are doing. Meditating can be as simple as quieting the mind, relaxing, trusting, and experiencing mentally what is not yet seen in the physical world. It requires listening and allowing. It is powerful! Proven benefits, by physicians, scientists, and meditators, include better respiration, digestion, and sleep. It can slow aging, reduce stress, focus the mind, aid in healing, and allow answers to appear where none seemed possible. The process allows our intuition to bring us a plan. If we write it off as illogical, we usually end up saying, “I knew I should have listened to myself, but whoever dreamed it would turn out this way?”

We can take our creative ability and put it to work, silently meditating and visualizing delightful outcomes for ourselves, our families, friends, country, and planet - and watching them appear!

Consider meditation, visualization, and making “expectancy of good” your basis for creative thought. In this way we will surely create a better world...or a better boat, whichever comes first.