Creativity is far less subjective and ethereal than some make it sound.
—Gary Gonzales

Someone once asked William Barclay how he had become such a prolific writer. The key, he said, is learning to apply the seat of your pants to the seat of your chair.

Creativity is far less subjective and ethereal than some make it sound. As much a function of our habits as our "genius" or inspiration, creativity takes discipline.

Here are four ways to enhance your creativity.

Know your moods

Perhaps you've heard the old saying about diet: "Mornings are gold, lunch is bronze, and dinner is lead." Well, the same applies to personal energy levels.

A few months ago, a lay leader handed me a newspaper article outlining the body's daily rhythms. It underscored how, for most people, mornings provide peak energy and concentration. Quick recall and analytical reasoning are strongest in the a.m.

Conversely, the infamous "afternoon grogs," the inability to focus, hits from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m., with a short reprieve from ...