Getting into a Creative Space
Writers block. Creative slumps. Artist funks. Everyone has, from time to time, fallen into spaces of less-than-average inspiration – and when you’re a creative business owner, this sucks balls.
Likewise, as a creative business owner, it’s not exactly ideal to sit around waiting for the lightning-bolt that is inspiration to strike. Let’s face it, you don’t exactly have control of when that will happen. You could see an ad on the subway and immediately have fifteen billion ideas, or sit… waiting… for months for the next bout of inspiration to smack you in the face.
Which is why, I highly, highly recommend getting into the habit of curating that creative lightning bolt all on your own. That way you DO have control over when it strikes, and you can slide yourself right into that headspace whenever you need it.
Sounds magical, right?
And the best part… it’s actually relatively easy to implement practices that make this happen.
When it comes down to it, it’s mostly about knowing yourself (everyone’s worst nightmare, right?) In order to curate a creative mental space for yourself, you need to know what makes you tick. You need to track your own habits, and see what makes you feel… slumpy… and what does the opposite.
And then work these preferences into your life in such a way that you can go back to creating at a moment’s notice.
It sounds easy, but unfortunately it’s not as simple in practice.
Learning about Yourself
For me, it meant learning that I feel most creative when I’m exposed to work in a variety of styles, and when I GET to work in a variety of styles. I stagnate when my work feels so consistent that I seem to be doing the same thing day in and day out – whether that’s in my writing, my art, or my design work.
For me it also meant learning that I feel most creative when I’m in spaces that AREN’T dedicated to what I’m doing. Read as: my home office ISN’T where I feel most creative. I feel creative in public studios, on a bench in the park, and outside in the garden. And I’ve had to learn to harness that creativity and bring it home – spending time in those spaces to birth ideas, and then actually bring them to fruition in my own space where I have the resources to complete a project.
For you – this might look different. You might feel most creative when you DON’T engage with ANYONE else’s work. You might feel most creative when you’re in your bed, or in the shower, or in your office. But what it comes down to, is this:
The Steps to Creativity
If you’re looking to curate a creative mindset, determine your own patterns.
- WHERE do you feel creative? Is there a pattern?
- WHAT TIME of day do you feel most creative? Is there a pattern?
- Are there TOPICS of conversation that tend to spark ideas for you?
- Do certain ACTIVITIES help you come up with fresh content?
- How can you integrate your answers into your day-to-day, so that when you want that spark… you’re a moment away from it?
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