When you own a creative business, you rely on your creativity just as much as being a small business person. I’ve been pretty open about the fact that I struggle a lot with burn out trying to balance my life with my business and my desire to grow this blog.
That feeling of burn out usually leaves me dried up and out of ideas when it comes to planning topics for the blog or writing for the topics that I do have planned. Trying to do too much is what typically causes my creative roadblocks. It can also make it hard to come up with new products for my shop and so much more. Feeling burned out, hurts my creativity and my desire to keep motivated.
Today I thought I’d share a few of the things I do to help break my creative block.
Take a break:
Whether it’s getting up from your desk for 10 or 15 minutes to go get a cup of coffee or cup of water or 30 minutes to take a walk or even a vacation, taking even a short break can greatly help clear your head and get the creativity flowing again.
Do Something Else:
Read a book, look through a magazine, do some gardening, go for a bike ride or simply work on more mundane tasks. The key is to never force creativity and instead, when you just aren’t feeling creative, find something to do that requires no creativity. If you must keep working, focus on tasks that don’t require creativity such as filing, organizing, cleaning, etc.
Eliminate Distractions:
I have found that one of the greatest killers of my creativity is all the environmental distractions. From internet to TV to the traffic outside, my smartphone. More often than not, my inability to be creative is more about my inability to focus and get into the “zone” than actual burn out. When I move away from my desk and computer, turn off my phone and find a quiet place to work, it never takes long for those ideas to start flowing again. Try it, you may actually be surprised!
Find a change of scenery:
There is nothing like a new perspective to get that brain going again. Whether it’s simply sitting at a different desk or in a different room to taking your laptop to a local coffee shop or getting away for the weekend, a change of scenery and perspective can do wonders for giving you new ideas.
True Story: I’ve been having trouble getting my editorial calendar planned out past 1-2 weeks. Our mini 4th of July Vacation to my family’s property in the woods allowed me the peace and quiet to really focus and in just a few hours, have the blog planned out through the end of October. I’m telling you from experience that it’s amazing how much simply giving yourself a new perspective can help get those creative juices flowing.
Whatever your causers for your creative roadblock, you don’t have to be completely hindered from moving forward. Allow yourself the time to regroup by clearing your mind. Whether it’s taking a break and going for a walk, working in a new location or changing tasks to thing that don’t require creativity, your zone will return.
Do you have anything you do when you’ve hit a creative roadblock? I’d love to know how you deal with it.
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