Well: Welcome to the Creativity Challenge!

Let's start with some doodles.

All Newsletters Read online For subscribers June 2, 2025 The 5-Day Creativity Challenge These quick and fun exercises will help you feel lighter, happier and less stuck. Erik Winkowski Welcome to Day 1 of the Creativity Challenge By Elizabeth Passarella We all know that art and beauty can lift our mood. It's why we take a walk outside after a stressful meeting or hug a great book when we finish the last chapter. But if you are feeling stuck or simply bored, the remedy might be tapping into your own creativity. That's what this challenge is all about. My name is Elizabeth Passarella, and I'm here to guide you through it. I think of myself as a creative person, one who took poetry classes (and almost failed statistics) in college, then chose writing as my career. Every day this week, we'll give you a new activity to help make your mind more limber, based on exercises that experts use themselves. We'll prompt you to try things outside your comfort zone and ask questions that might not come naturally, all in service of thinking more freely and expansively. Creativity isn't a rare gift reserved for artists. We're all creative in some way, whether or not we think so. And being creative comes with big health benefits. Research links it to happiness and well-being. It can sharpen your problem-solving skills and even lessen burnout. Click here to get started on Day 1. We're going to ask you to draw — don't worry, it should be fast and loose and fun. Thanks for joining us, and good luck! Erik Winkowski Today's challenge: Warm up with some quick doodles. → Thank you for being a subscriber Read past editions of the newsletter here. If you're enjoying what you're reading, please consider recommending it to others. They can sign up here. Browse all of our subscriber-only newsletters here. And follow The New York Times on Instagram, Threads, Facebook and TikTok at @nytimes. Have feedback? We'd love to hear from you. Email us at well_newsletter@nytimes.com. If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here. Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. You received this email because you signed up for Well from The New York Times. To stop receiving Well, unsubscribe. To opt out of other promotional emails from The Times, including those regarding The Athletic, manage your email settings. Explore more subscriber-only newsletters.Get The New York Times app Connect with us on: Change Your EmailPrivacy PolicyContact UsCalifornia Notices The New York Times Company. 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018