Overcoming the Creative Block

Creative Blocks? They happen.
A few years ago, I was dealing with a major creative block. It was awful. Thankfully, the contributing factors were easy to pinpoint: moving house, new home renovations, family illness and then a surprise pregnancy. The changes just kept coming and in over 100 days I didn’t pick up a paint brush ONCE.
It took a few months of working to find my center again and it was frustrating. So, in response to my major creative block I have decided to pass on what I learned about overcoming it:

1. Pinpoint the Attributing Factors:
This part is very important because often times you can figure out how to quickly eliminate or neutralize these issues once you identify them. Attributing Factors can also lead to stress which is covered later in this article. 
Write them down and then explore ways to overcome them.

2. Organize Your Workspace:
I don’t know about everyone else, but when I can’t find things or have to spend time navigating clutter, I simply shut down - - or worse yet, explode…Clutter ignites some, but not most, so in light of that, spend some time making your studio a place where your mind is at ease and it feels good, even great to be there.
Anything less will kill both your creativity and your motivation.

3. Find a Way to De-Stress:
Stress kills everything. It’s much like a microbe that is immune to medicine, it just keeps spreading. Finding a way to remove the stresses that most affect your creative work is paramount to your producing the work that will over come your block.
Anything small that can help you de-stress is a great idea, so read on:

4. Exercise and Good Sleep:
It’s so much easier to sit on the couch and watch yet another art documentary, but the reality is that exercise, combined with good sleep will go a very long way to helping you get over your block (and stopping them from  happening.)
While the link between creativity and exercise in not actually known, what is known is that getting your body moving helps the brain to work better! Combine this with a geode and consistent night’s sleep and you have half of the battle won. While you’re at it - add eating better and balanced food and you’d be surprised how far all of this goes to your creative output. I did this years ago, I’ve never looked back - and it goes a very long way toward de-stressing your environment:

5. Finally, go back to the basics of Inspiration.
Make bad work when you can’t make good work. You need to stay in the zone as often as you can and the skill of inspiration (and it is a skill) can only happen when you work and work often.
​
In the end, a creative block - even a very serious one - can be overcome by doing much of the above and every one of these strategies are important. Stay in the zone as often as you can, your creativity will thank you.