Have you ever booted up your computer system, fired up your word processor, eager and ready to start pounding your computer keyboard, only for you to sit and stare at a blank screen with no inspiration? Have you ever rushed into your art gallery, set up your canvas and color palette in place, only for you to start brainstorming about what you want to do and no ideas are coming forth? Welcome to the club, my friend. You just experienced a creative block!
It happens to the best of us, whether you are a writer, an artist, songwriter, seamstress, designer, etc. You just hit a mental rut or roadblock and don’t receive any inspiration to get going. This could lead to stress and being overwhelmed, thus preventing you from producing something original.
What, then, do you need to do when you hit a block in your creativity? Everyone who has a skill or talent has been able to fashion their own organizing systems, tricks, hacks, the ideal time of the day when they are at their creative best as well as what gives them the needed inspiration that boosts their creative juices.
But when you hit a block in your creativity, it can be very exasperating. Creative blocks cannot be defined satisfactorily since it is an abstract perception or impression. The only definition that seems to be passable when it comes to defining creative block is that it is a period in which a writer, artist, designer, etc. can’t create new work or call up their inspiration. Creative blocks arise, most of the time without warning and could be as a result of severe criticism, emotional or physical drain or an inexplicable drying of ideas in the mind.
Here are some tips that will help you to cure a block in your creativity and get those creative juices flowing unhindered.
1. Take a walk
It does not even matter whether it is night or day. Go out the front door and into the open. Head out to a nearby park or café. This change of pace could set off your inspiration. All you need is a shaking up of your mind which could lead to an instant generation of divine ideas.
2. Clean up your workstation
Your workspace is a creative environment and therefore must be treated specially. If your workstation is cramped, dusty, and cluttered up, there is no way you can be creative. You can only put in and perform at your innovative best when you are comfortable and relaxed. Clear your desk, get those loose papers and books organized and tidied up.
3. Use colors to your advantage
This can be tied in with the point mentioned above. Make sure your environment or workspace is covered with good colors. Colors have been discovered to play major roles in our lives by influencing the way we create, feel or relax, according to research. This implies that colors are important to our overall well-being. Suffuse your workstation with knick-knacks that will enhance your creativity.
4. Do something else
Yes, leave your workspace and do something else that is entirely different from your normal work. New ideas can be found in the most unlikely places, or in the most unlikely activities. You could play a video game, paint or draw something that is not related to your project or just engage in an activity that has nothing to do with the project at hand. You could pick a book and read it or cook a delicious meal all on your own.
5. Take some time off
Sometimes, when you work on too many projects back-to-back, you could end up stifling your creativity. You may be getting burned out and not even realize it until you hit that creative block. Therefore, take a break from your work to grab some personal time with yourself. That means switching off anything that has to do with technology viz. watching television, hopping on social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter, chatting on your cell phone, etc. Downtime is very important to the human mind as this allows the mind to process information effectively. Learning processes are thwarted when the brain is constantly motivated according to a professor.
6. Keep a journal or sketchbook
Good writers or artist go around with sketchpads or notebooks with a pencil or pen everywhere they go. This is to enable the capture and write down any ideas that come their way during the course of the day’s activities. This will not only help you to keep track of whatever improvement you are aiming at but will also get those arbitrary ideas down as a motivation in the future.
