Here’s a guest post by – Sobia Hameed
So often ideas for overcoming creative block are merely ways to fill time while waiting until inspiration hits. What if we thought of creative block completely differently? Instead of allowing it to be something you can’t overcome, why don’t you try to tackle it head on. Challenge yourself to push through these moments and you may just become a better and more efficient designer.
1. Don’t Give It a Name
By calling less productive times “creative block,” you are giving it more power than it deserves. Try to just think of those tough times as a different form of creativity instead of a “block.” Maybe your creativity is being shy or lazy and needs you to coax it out of hiding. Challenge yourself to push through and try different techniques – creativity is never wrong, you’ll just like it better creative block sometimes than others.
2. Push Through
Don’t sit around and mope that you have “creative block,” that’s not helping. Instead, find your conviction and push through the tricky period of creativity.
3. Put Off Perfection
A really great technique can be to continue working on a project with little regard for perfection and final polish. Editing and fine-tuning can be done at the end. Go ahead and grind out some solid work and put off the little details until your focus is feeling better.
4. Meditate
Visualization, breathing techniques, and meditations have been shown to increase concentration and expand the mind. Instead of focusing on your creative difficulties, envision your creativity coming effortlessly and your project completed ahead of schedule.
5. Have Faith in Your Creative Powers
Try your very best to squash your doubts. Even the most brilliant people have off days. It’s completely normal, don’t let it get you down and have faith that it’s just a less productive time.
6. Embrace the Challenge
Embrace this challenge as a chance to better your craft and expand your mind. There’s nothing more empowering than persevering through a challenge and coming out on top. See this as an opportunity for growth.
7. Discuss Your Ideas with Someone
Instead of turning inward with your creativity, push it outward. Talk with someone about your ideas, projects, successes, and challenges. Sometimes saying concepts out loud can help you process ideas completely differently and can be its own source of inspiration. You can also bounce ideas off others creative people you know – they may even have their own ideas on how to tackle this.
8. Have Some Caffeine
Caffeine is a stimulant that can help your concentration. Go ahead and have that extra cup of coffee or tea, it might help.
9. Diffuse Essential Oils
Bet you haven’t thought of this one yet – there are a number of essential oils that have been shown to be really effective in increasing concentration. In a study where vetiver was diffused among children with ADD, there was an increase in their test scores and concentration. Nearly all of the citrus oils have shown to increase energy and focus.
10. Look for Inspiration Elsewhere
Look for inspiration in all different places. The Internet provides more outlets than ever before –blogs, tutorials, graphic design software, websites, and social media groups provide communities of information and inspiration. Be sure to utilize them to their fullest.
11. If All Else Fails – Take a Break and Do Something Different
Of course, if you’ve exhausted all these options, sometimes walking away from a project is exactly what you need. If you’ve tried to tackle this creative stalemate with every idea above with no luck, by all means, take a break and give the project some breathing room.
Let us know your ideas for overcoming creative block in the comments below!
