Hit the creative wall? Here's how to get over it.
A ship30for30 alumni gave me some advice: get over the 10-day slump and you will be fine. I got past day 10, 11, 12. I thought I was home straight. Then I hit today. Day 13. Unlucky for some, eh?!
I just wasn’t feeling it. My eyes had blank page fatigue. I even tried changing medium. I plugged in my guitar and thought I’d write a song. Barely a note let alone a song…
I decided I’d give up the ghost for the day and take a walk. For some inspiration I put on “Steal Like and Artist” audiobook by Austin Kleon.
Kleon’s advice: Don’t copy. At least don’t copy the words, the style. Rather copy the thinking behind the style. As he says, if we “Copy, Copy, Copy, you’ll find yourself at end of the copy.”
I took his advice. And it worked. I picked up my guitar again and randomly started playing Radiohead’s “Fake Plastic Trees”. One chord led to another, and I had a song. Of sorts. Suffice to say it’s not what I’m sharing today. But it got me over the hump. I could then fire up my laptop and get this written down.
Here are 3 more ideas for when we have hit our creative wall:
1. Switch from a digital to an analogue medium. For example, from your laptop to pen and paper.
2. Change your clothes, room, or city. A change is as good as a rest they say. Something as simple as a fresh shirt can totally change your mindset. Or when it’s just not flowing get on a train and head to a new town or city for the day. Take your laptop with you. Or even better unplug, then do your creative work on the train on the way home.
3. Put on an old black and white movie (or blockbuster in technicolour if you prefer). Hopefully it will switch your brain off for a few minutes and give it time to ruminate in the background. As well as subliminally implant ideas for your creative work.
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