When creativity flows it’s a wonderful feeling. When your mind feels full of inspiration and the ideas keep coming. You feel unstoppable, excited and inspired.
On the flip side of this, if you’re feeling drained, tired or overwhelmed, creativity can seem tough to come by. You end up overthinking, getting creative block and your mind doesn’t have the clarity or space for refreshing new ideas.
This is why self-care is so important in ensuring your creative juices keep flowing. The past year has been so challenging for us all, and I think it has shown us that we need to seek to be kinder to ourselves, always be kind to others and be kind to our environment.
The great outdoors is a fabulous place for clearing the mind and feeling inspired by nature, it’s difficult not to feel creative amongst the wonders of nature. A walk or a change in environment can really help.
Your environment can also play a big role in whether you feel creative. Does the space around you inspire you? Is where you work the right level of noisy or quiet for your preference? If you prefer minimal, is it decluttered enough for you? If you need to look around you for visual inspiration, what is on the walls?
Stepping away from phones and computers can also help. Sometimes, if you begin to doodle with a pen and paper, it spirals into something brilliant.
If you’ve had a busy day, taking time to unwind is essential. This way, you can sleep well and begin the next day with a clear mind. If you’re feeling stressed over your to-do-list, drowning in tasks and your brain is operating at 100mph, there’s no space for creative thinking as you’re just trying to get through the day!
For me personally there are a few things in particular that I do to keep creative:
I’ve put bird feeders up in the garden and absolutely love seeing the variety of birds that show up for a snack. I recently caught some blue tits checking out a nest box we put up so hope they decide to stay.
I listen to podcasts quite a lot. They’re a great way to zone out of other distractions. One that really stood out to me not long ago was the Oprah Winfrey and Ekhart Tolle podcast on A New Earth. It resonated with me so much that I ordered the books ‘The Power of Now’ and ‘A New Earth’. I’m now reading ‘Think Like a Monk’ by Jay Shetty.
I have also begun to meditate. The app ‘Calm’ is a really good place to start if you are new to it. A favourite of mine is Jeff Warren ‘How to Meditate’ as he is so relatable.
Personally, I am finding this a real time of reflection as well as learning. The above are helping me to understand myself more fully, understand others and open my mind to feeling creative.
What makes you feel creative? Where do you find inspiration? I’d love to hear.