Creating Time: Using Creativity to Reinvent the Clock and Reclaim Your Life Hot

Most of us chronically wish for more time to do everything we want to accomplish, and there are many time management books available to help us better use the time we have. This book, however, takes a completely different approach to this issue. Instead of trying to manage time better, author Marney K. Makridakis helps us to change our relationship with it by learning to experience it differently.

Throughout the book, the author, who is also a creativity expert and founder of ArtellaLand.com, includes creative exercises, called ARTsignments, to help readers use their creative instincts to deepen their understanding of the ways we can experience time. These exercises include writing and artistic components that weave together to explore each experience.

The first section of the book guides readers into exploring their current relationship with time, including their beliefs about time, their experience of it, and the effect of different activities on how time feels. The second section contains a wide variety of methods for creating time through specific creative techniques, such as ritual, gratitude, stillness, metaphor, and flow. Each method is supported with personal stories, scientific concepts, and ARTsignments. The third section explores how to apply each of these methods to address specific time challenges and gives the reader ideas for developing their own ARTsignments to continue their exploration of creating time after completing the book.

This book is filled with inspiring, full-color illustrations of artwork created by the author’s students who have worked with these methods, along with personal stories and descriptions of the pieces they created. Artistic ability is not necessary to learn from the techniques, but a willingness to work with creative art and writing activities will enhance the reader’s integration of new ways to experience time.