What do you do when you feel out of touch with your creativity?
When being creative makes up so much of your own person or livelihood, feeling disconnected from it is often like looking into a void. The density of pure silence is shocking, at first. We allow ourselves to grow restless and frustrated, desperate to feel our creative ‘normal’ again. But in trying to force ourselves to be creative, we risk missing the opportunity staring right at us.
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If you embrace the void, you’ll find that there’s a certain peace in it. An energy that you haven’t tapped into before. A whisper leading you to something new and invigorating.
Creativity is multifaceted. It ebbs and flows, changing direction with your subconscious and your experiences. Sometimes what we consider to be a void, is actually a resting period. A moment of self care that allows us to connect with our thoughts and see through a new perspective.
Sometimes the feeling of being disconnected is actually the process of reconnecting.
To Jumpstart, or Lean In?
You might be tempted to jumpstart your creative process with a familiar or new routine. Or, allow yourself to take a break with abandon, assuming that your creativity will come back at its own will.
When creativity begins to ebb, listen. Watch your habits and the subtle recent changes around you. Create and foster self awareness that allows you to observe and absorb without judgement. In these moments, you’ll begin to find your answers and stop looking for solutions.
The truth is that the reason you aren’t feeling creative won’t always be the same, nor will your answers. In watching my own process, I’ve learned (often begrudgingly) that allowing myself to ease back into a routine works much better for me than jumping back in. When I try to push myself to jump back in, the end result is never quite the same.
Sometimes we want to be able to do things in the way we think is the most effective, when in actuality we’re rushing towards an unrealistic goal that often leads to frustration again. We’re looking for a solution instead of accepting the answer right in front of us.
Once you embrace that there is no right or wrong when learning and honing your process, moments of creative silence become moments of opportunity.
Related Post: Being Creative Vs. Feeling Creative
Try Creative – But Differently
Without knowing you, I’m willing to bet that since you’re creative you likely have a multitude of interests and hobbies. I know I do. I’m not always in the mood for every single one though. Some days, I crave sitting on my porch and writing letters in the morning. Other times I’m dreaming up a new outfit and digging through my pattern stash to see what I’ll sew this weekend. Or maybe, I’ll lose a day to reading a good book.
Even so, there are times that I go months without picking up a specific interest, just because.
This ability to flow between creative interests is what allows me to come back to each one, fresh and invigorated. A weekend spent sewing clears room in my mind for me to spend a late night or morning writing for myself.
But it’s equally important to my process to understand the value of stillness. Those moments spent laying in the sun or gazing out the window are where my mind gets to play. I’m giving my imagination free reign. Most importantly, I’m doing so without guilt or judgement.
This is where you begin to foster reconnecting. By flowing with your process, you flow with your creativity. Instead of being its own entity, it becomes part of you again. You’re not waiting for your creativity to return. You’re allowing it to happen.
Take Time Away
One of the best lessons I learned from my parents as a kid was to take time away. When a project gets frustrating, or turns into me staring aimlessly at a blank page and a blinking cursor, I walk away. Maybe I go to the gym. Maybe I make a snack or mix a drink. But most importantly, I listen. By observing where my own mind keeps going I can decode what it is that’s blocking me – most of the time.
It’s important to note that sometimes you need a real break. A shut down, get dressed and get out kind of break. In these instances, do not check in and listen. Just do. Find something that distracts you and makes you happy and go with it. Don’t feel bad, don’t allow any ‘I should be doing xyz’ type thoughts. Just walk away. Enjoy it. Revel in it.
And then come back.
Utilize your time away as a restart button without allowing your project or craft to hang over your head. If you do, when you sit back in your seat, you’ll find that everything you were looking for is well within your reach again.
Related Post: The Truth About Being Creatively Blocked: It’s All In Your Mindset
Embrace Your Patterns
The moment I learned that a morning spent sleeping in and daydreaming sometimes allowed me to be the most productive that day, everything changed. Being productive isn’t about the amount of hours you put in. It’s not quantity. Productivity is quality time spent with your craft, whether as a hobby or career, or both.
It’s also about balance.
Learn the difference between when you need a break, and when you need to put your butt back in that seat and get work done. If you lean too far in one direction for too long, you impair your own craft. Just as there are days where allowing myself to daydream helps me get into my flow, there are also days where it prevents me.
Taking time away and reconnecting with creativity is not synonymous with being lazy about it. But if you aren’t careful, it can lead you down that path.
Above all else, as you navigate your way back to feeling and being creative, remember this: Sometimes getting started is the hardest part.
SAMANTHA PATERNOSTER
Writing is much bigger than a career. It’s more interesting than a hobby. It’s the spark to an eternal curiosity that has led me to learn unexpected skills, treasure knowledge passed down through generations, and create a space for voices that need to speak.
I earned my B.A. in Creative Writing from Brandeis University, with a focus on long and short fiction. I have nearly a decade of experience as a copywriter and editor. But I’ve also worked as an Email Analyst and QA Analyst at Yale University, helping to launch their redesigned Giving page circa 2014.
Most recently, I’ve started my own business – Creatively You. Built for my clients, it is founded on one simple act: listening. By listening to my clients’ dreams and needs, I am able to help them develop their brands through cohesive web design and content that tells their stories.
I don’t believe in linear paths. I do believe in the magic that embracing the unknown can bring.
