Want a surefire way a way to become more creative? Let your rascal out.

Your Rascal in the Corner

Dennis the Menace was always being put in the corner for doing something bad. Yet the bad thing he did caused us to laugh because there was something so real and true about that person in the corner.

Many of us have put the rascal part of ourselves in the corner, banished. The one in the corner is unpremeditated, impetuous, mischievous, impish, prankish, high-spirited, capricious, idle, playful, spontaneous, fun-loving, irrepressible, incorrigible. I could go on and on.

And this one laughs a lot and makes others laugh. So why is it kept in the corner so often?

The Ubiquitous Appropriate Person -- Yawn!

Because our society has a different list of adjectives to apply to the Appropriate Person: responsible, reliable, liable, dependable, capable, efficient, moderate . . . you get the picture of this Appropriate Person. These adjectives certainly do not describe the wrong way to be, unless they are the ONLY adjectives that describe a person. Boring.

If we let him or her out, the one in the corner may do something inappropriate. He or she may speak a nugget of truth around which everyone else tiptoes. Or dress in colorful clothes unworried about matching one garment to another. Or sing at any time Û off-key. Or skip through the dining room. Or take a bite of someone elseÌs dessert. Who knows what might happen if the rascal comes out of the corner?

Guess Who Came to Dinner?

I would much rather have dinner with the rascal in the corner than with the Appropriate Person. The meal likely would be much less boring and probably filled with much more laughter. With whom would you rather have dinner? Honestly, now. The rascal or the Appropriate Person?

Grow UP, Amount of Laughter Goes DOWN

Children laugh a lot. Adults laugh much less frequently. Something happens to lessen laughter. Part of what decreases the laughter is putting our rascals in the corner.

Arthur Schopenhauer said, ÏThere is no absurdity so palpable but that it may be firmly planted in the human head if you only begin it before the age of five, by constantly repeating it with an air of great solemnity.Ó It is silly to diminish laughter but it is firmly planted in heads of many of us by the time we are adults that it is not appropriate to laugh frequently.

The one in the corner still laughs a lot.

Please Come Out to Play

So many benefits to letting the one in the corner out to play. If you do not, you must expend lots of energy to keep it in the corner. It is irrepressible and looks for ways everyday to come out. Watch for it.

And if you do let it out, it probably will not do anything that naughty. And if it does, so what? It will give you energy and originality and creativity and memorable moments, and lots of laughter. Promise.

And Today . . .

At 9AM, noon, 3PM, 6PM, and 9PM, check in with yourself and locate your rascal. Is he or she in the corner watching the Appropriate Person? Out having a good time? Where else? Record your rascalÌs whereabouts. Be sure to let him or her out at least once today -- maybe to play with someone elseÌs rascal. LetÌs hold an enormous gathering of rascals. What a time that will be. You are officially invited.

©Copyright 2002 Stephanie West Allen. Article reprinted with permission.
Stephanie West Allen, JD, brings humor and motivation to organizations. http://www.stephaniewestallen.com She coaches people in using the two Merry Maxims, WYTUG (What You Think Upon Grows) and LULU (Loosen Up, Lighten Up), to achieve health, wealth, creativity, and harmonized relationships. Contact her at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Subscribe to her daily motivational ezine Upsy Daisy Daily by sending a blank e-mail to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .