June 26 - July 3, 2012 10 AM to 1:30 PM each day

The Creativity Workshop in Crete

Program Overview

The Creativity Workshop in Crete will help you get more creative in your personal and professional life. To this end, the Workshop uses the tools of creative writing, memoir, art, photography, storytelling, mapmaking, and guided visualization.

The Workshop will take place near the cafe-lined harbor of old Chania, the Island of Crete's most picturesque town. You will have time after class to swim in clear waters, sit in sunny cafes, and sight-see this magnificent island.

The Workshop meets for 3 1/2 hours a day. You will have the rest of the time free to swim in clear waters, sit in sunny cafes, and sight-see this magnificent island.

The Creativity Workshop is attended by people from many different countries and professions, including business, education, psychology, the sciences and the arts. Experts agree that creativity is key to success in all professions. It also helps individuals feel more fulfilled, relaxed, and happier.

What will you learn?

The Creativity Workshop is an experiential workshop of doing and experimenting. You will go straight to the source of your imagination and outrun creative blocks and negative self criticism. The Workshop's exercises, techniques and instructor talks are focused on helping you:

Learn practical techniques to stimulate your creativity and imagination
Get in touch with the innate creativity you already have
Explore creativity as a way of life: a process rather than just a product
Find inspiration in the world around you
Get over creative blocks and the fear of failure
Learn how to make time in your life for creative work

Daily Schedule

Here is a sampling of just some of the exercises and techniques we will be working with in class. Participants tell us the time in workshop seems to fly by. The order and kinds of exercises and the instructors' talks may vary. Some exercises are done individually while others are collaborative.

Tuesday, June 26, 2012: Arrival. Free day

Time for you to settle in and relax.

Wednesday, June 27: First day of workshop

Introduction to the hows and whys of The Creativity Workshop. Exercises in relaxation technique and guided visualization.
Relaxation: Exercises in relaxation techniques to help your imagination flow.
Guided Visualization: Calling forth the vocabulary of your imagination using the myth of the hero's journey as a framework.
Automatic Drawing: Finding your hidden imagery,
Show and Tell: Retrieving and sharing childhood memories to spark new ideas. This exercise will sharpen your storytelling skills.
Instructors' talk: How some famous writers, scientists, and artists found their inspiration, and how you can use some of their methods to find yours.

More on Daily Schedule

Thursday, June 28:

Relaxation.
Guided Visualization: Map-making as a way to find, chart, and communicate your creative process and projects.
Automatic Writing: How automatic writing (also known as “free writing”) can help you create in new and surprising ways. How you can use automatic writing to outrun your inner judge, get over creative blocks and discover new ways of developing and editing written work. How alternating between writing and drawing can help you develop creative flexibility and mind dexterity.
The Interview: Listening to and experiencing a life outside your own. How listening is as important as doing in creative work.

Friday, June 29:

Guided visualization: Letter writing as a way to express voice, character and audience.
Miniature Theatre: Storytelling with found objects.
Automatic Writing: Writing in Groups. How writing and/or drawing with others can stimulate your imagination and expand your point of view.

Instructors' talks may include:

The importance of play in creative work
Valuing creative process over product
How to do on-going creative work in short modules of time
How to use luck and coincidence to jump start creative projects

Saturday, June 30:

Guided Visualization: The Myth of the Other. Imagining yourself living a parallel life. What would you do that you aren't doing now?
Trips to the Past: Using a foreign environment to invoke memory and inspire transformation.
The Close-Up: Using photography and drawing to focus on details and change the way we see.
Instructors' talks may include:

Following your innate creativity and listening to its intuition
How to rekindle fearless imagination
The Power of the Magic phrase: “What If”

Sunday, July 1:

Guided Visualization: The Legend of the Hand.
Automatic Drawing and Writing continues with a new twist.
Cafe exercise: Writing, drawing, photographing people you find in local cafes.
The Illuminated Manuscript: A collaborative exercise in combining mediums and perspectives.
Instructors' talk may include:

The Gift of the Amateur
Creativity is a Muscle: Use it or Lose it
Making your home and work environments inspiring
How to stay creative after The Creativity Workshop ends

NOTE: There are no classes on the final day of the workshop. This day is free for participants to put to active use the various techniques learned in the workshop by exploring the cultural, historical and natural riches of each location and its people.

Excursions are not included or arranged.

Monday, July 2: Free day - Suggested visit:

Trip to Knossos, the mythical home of the Minotaur of the Labyrinth.
Trip to Samarian Gorge (for those who enjoy trekking).
Or Trip to the interior of Crete and its mountain villages and monasteries.

Tuesday, July 3: Departure

Tuition and accommodations packages

We offer tuition and accommodations packages for most of our workshops.

PRIVATE ROOM (2 stars): $1,950
This package includes tuition, 7 nights hotel (with A/C) and breakfast in a private room with private bath at Hotel Porto del Colombo (2 stars).

PRIVATE ROOM (3 stars): $2,200
This package includes tuition, 7 nights hotel (with A/C) and breakfast in a private room with private bath at Hotel Samaria (3 stars). Hotel Samaria is in the center of the city this is also where our classes are to be held. It is a 15 minute walk from the old harbor and our other accommodations.

PRIVATE ROOM (3 stars): $2,550
This package includes tuition, 7 nights hotel (with A/C) and breakfast in a private room with private bath at Hotel Porto Veneziano (3 stars). Hotel Porto Veneziano is a 20-minute walk to the classroom.

We have special hotel prices for participants bringing a spouse, friend or family members. Check with us for details and pricing.

TUITION ONLY: You can register for The Creativity Workshop and make your own housing arrangements. Check with us for pricing.

To reserve your place: full payment is required.

By registering you agree with our Terms and Conditions.

The Creativity Workshop will take place at Hotel Samaria (3 stars).

NOTES

1- We cannot guarantee the quality, cooling level, or functioning of the hotels' air conditioning. Air conditioning in Europe is seldom up to American standards of cool.
2- European hotel rooms tend to be smaller than American ones.

DISCOUNTS

$500 off for participants taking the workshop for the third time or more.
$300 off for participants taking the workshop for the second time.
$150 off each participant for groups of 4 people or more registering together. (Prague, Dubai, Crete, Barcelona, Provence, Singapore and Florence workshops only).
$100 off Bring a friend to one of our Prague, Dubai, Crete, Barcelona, Provence, Singapore or Florence workshops and get $100 off.
$100 off each participant for groups of 3 people registering together. (Prague, Dubai, Crete, Barcelona, Provence, Singapore and Florence workshops only).
$50 off each participant for groups of 2 people registering together. (Prague, Dubai, Crete, Barcelona, Provence, Singapore and Florence workshops only).

Share a double room with another workshop participant and save on the package price.
Special offers and discounts cannot be combined.

Spouses/companions who would like to travel with their partners but do not want to attend the workshop may share a room for an additional fee.
Vacancies are limited and hotel rooms will be assigned on a first come, first served basis. We encourage early registration in order to obtain the level of accommodations you seek.

By registering you agree with our Terms and Conditions.

“A perfect blend of relaxation and stimulation. The assignments fostered discovery and creativity, yet left us plenty of time to enjoy the wonders of Crete. I came away from the workshop with an array of techniques that I can call upon to encourage my creativity.”

Patricia Lancaster, Ph.D. Dean Emerita of the Hamilton Holt School and Professor Emerita of French, Rollins College, FL

Upcoming Workshops
2012

New York June 8 - 11
Crete June 26 - July 3
Barcelona July 5 - 12
Provence July 15 - 22
Florence July 24 - 31
New York August 17 - 20
New York October 19 - 22
Dubai December 5 - 10

2013
Singapore February 13 - 18
Prague March 24 - 30

On-Site Training
Personal Mentoring
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“This was my fourth time taking The Creativity Workshop, and every time it has been different and special. These workshops have helped me transform my life.”

Kelly Hevel, Pfizer Project Manager, currently Ex-pat Business Consultant, Istanbul, Turkey

Questions?
Call us: +1.212.203.3252
Email or go to our FAQ

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The Creativity Workshop Return to top Register Now

The Creativity Workshop in Crete

Program Overview

What will you learn?

Daily Schedule

Tuition and accommodations packages

About Us

Special Information

Take a Workshop

On-Site Training

Testimonials

Pricing

Register

Contact us