Here's What Over 100 Creatives on Twitter Taught Me About Overcoming Creative Block
Creative block is something I struggle with quite often as a creative.
Almost like clockwork every couple of months I run out of creative inspiration. I find it hard to string a few sentences together to write an article let alone design something like a Twitter graphic.
When this slump hits, I feel like I'll never get my creative mojo back. Then when I eventually recover, I just zoom along until the next block happens and I'm back to square one.
I needed a way to mitigate the worst effects of creative block when it inevitably hits.
So, I took to Twitter and researched how other creatives overcome their own creative block. I ended up looking at over 100 creatives during this process and most of them had these 5 tactics in common:
1 Go Outside For A Walk In Nature
It's simple and it works; not just for creative block but also for stress and anxiety. There's something about being outside near green trees and grass that does something to your mind and body to promote creativity.
Even if there's no greenery where you are, the act of changing your attention to something else like being outside for 10 - 15 minutes works wonders for unclogging your mind.
2 Switch To Pen & Paper
When you work in a design tool, for instance, you often get bogged down with how the tool itself works as opposed to what you want to create.
Taking a step back and working with pen and paper removes this friction and allows you to get clear on what you want to do. Once you've figured it out on paper you can go back to your design tool and knock it out.
3 Take A Break & Work On Something Else
Switching your attention to something less creatively demanding for a while helps to unclog your thinking. It gives your brain time to work in the background while you're doing something else.
When you return to the original creative work, you'll find you have an abundance of ideas that immediately come to mind.
4 Ask For Advice
An underrated but effective tactic. Ask for advice or help from peers, coworkers, or even your Twitter community.
For instance, plenty of creatives ask their audience for videos they should make when they can't think of any. Or you could share your idea with a coworker to get some advice on how to proceed.
5 Break Your Routine
Shock your system by doing something completely different. Go to a coffee shop or a library to do your work for a change, work outside for a few hours, or work in a different room of your house.
This will stimulate your mind and do a fantastic job of getting your creative juices flowing.
Is there anything particularly original here?
No. But, plenty of other people agree these tactics work.
Try them out and keep the ones that work in your creative arsenal for the next time you hit that creative block.
This article was originally published over on my website: Here's What Over 100 Creatives on Twitter Taught Me About Overcoming Creative Block