Have you had days when you’re bubbling and bursting with creative ideas followed by days when you simply can’t get moving on anything? Times when you have spent most of your day staring at a blank laptop screen, feeling extremely tired to function and like you have completely exhausted your creativity? Don’t worry; this is nothing but a creative block and it happens to most creative people.

Creative blocks come and go. The issue is, for creative professionals (like bloggers, photographers, copywriters, designers, entrepreneurs or anyone whose work involves a creative element), having a creative block translates into low income, inability to meet deadlines, loss of projects, etc.

Here are five simple ways I use to gain my inspiration back when I am going through a big, fat creative block.

 

Work Consistently, Stubbornly.

No, I don’t mean force yourself to churn out work. I mean, whatever it is you do, make a habit of doing it every day. It could be a diary entry, a small logo, a painting, or just a doodle. As a blogger, I ensure I write something every day. This helps recover flow of thought. Sometimes, I just write without worrying about editing, and in the process I find my next big idea. Doing this task every day will also help improve your creativity. Be pig headed, keep at it.

 

Pro Tip: Get off your laptop for this task. Use conventional methods like writing with a pen and paper to put down your thoughts, painting on canvas, etc. This will help spark creativity.

 

Read and read some more:

No matter what kind of creative skill you are an expert in, there is so much material available on the web. Spend the days during your creative block to learn something. I spend a lot of time reading styles, grammar articles, and novels. My reading inspires a lot of my writing.

 

Pro Tip: Visit your old work like blog pieces, paintings, and graphics; these could be starting points for a new idea.

 

Talk to people in the creative community:

 

If you want to pick somebody’s brain, it might as well be someone who is creative. Talk to someone in your circle; discuss your creative block or an idea you are stuck on. This will help you move ahead. Remember, most creative people face this problem so you are not alone.  Great work and good ideas are not born in an isolated mind.

Pro Tip: Collaborations are a great start. As a blogger, collaborate with designers and painters for your posts, or as an artist, collaborate with food-lovers to create a new style. When two streams of creativity come together, they produce innovative results.

 

Try something new:

‘Doing something new keeps your brain from rusting and puts it in action mode’, say Drs. Kumar & Ratteman from Better Brains.  Try any new medium whether it is alternate software for design, a new language, or just painting with your non-dominant hand.  Most of these actives get your creative juices following.

Pro Tip: Creativity is all in the mind; ensure you keep your brain active at all times to bring out your creative best. I have signed up for a program with Betterbrains to help me. 

 

Give up:

No, I don’t mean give up on being creative but I mean give up for that particular hour or day. Sometimes all you need is a good night’s rest, a new start, and coffee to get going again.

Pro Tip: After a creative block, I start on a fresh note on every count. I clear out the mess in my head as well as in my physical space so my mind is able to work better. A clear space is a clear mind.

This article is a product of the five ideas I mentioned to help me move past a creative block I have been suffering for a couple of weeks. What do you guys do to get past your creative block? Share your ideas with me in the comments section below.

[The author of this post, Krupa Kumar is a digital media enthusiast and a blogger based in California. She blogs here]

 

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