Navigating Creative Block
Today we are talking about the subject of creative block. I know this is something many of us are going to resonate with. Because we all have struggled with this in one way or another. Whether it was staring at a blank piece of paper or an empty canvas because we weren't sure of where to start creating, or struggling to come up with ideas for a video or play or whatever it is that you do, I think we've all felt insecure and wondered where is my creative magic? Where did my creativity go?
No matter what you've been through, I want to let you know that creative block doesn't have to stop you. So, I really want to get into this. Let’s talk about what a creative block is, why it happens, and some of the ways that you can harness the power of these roadblocks to your advantage, so that you can embrace them and make them a part of your creative practice.
So grab your tea, get comfy, And let's get into it!
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Unconscious ways creative block manifests
I want to start off by describing what creative block might be looking like for you right now. You might be able to recognize yourself in one or a few of the following examples. So pay attention and see if this is something that you can relate to.
Scenario #1 - Do you find yourself thinking a lot about what people think about you and maybe even worrying about getting canceled or attacked if you share your true opinions? Maybe you have been thinking, “I want to write a memoir. I really want to do it but I know that I'm going to have to talk about some really taboo subjects. I don't know if I can handle it. So, I’m just gonna wait until I'm ready.”
Scenario #2 - Maybe you don't like working without a plan. You think to yourself, there's no way I can get anything started unless I have a clear and detailed plan of what I'm gonna do. Because this whole “using my intuition” and “feeling my way into the process” doesn't really resonate with me. I don't feel comfortable. It stresses me out! This feels really uncomfortable to you and it feels foreign. You don't like to work this way, so you get stuck in planning and dreaming up ideas but never really taking action.
Scenario #3 - What about judging yourself harshly? Have you found yourself starting to work, starting to create something and looking at what you made and wondering, “Wow, is this really the best that I can do? Who's going to take me seriously if I put this out there?” And, maybe even just closing your laptop, closing your notebook. Walking away and doing something more productive because you say to yourself, “This is a waste of time. This is dumb. Like, why am I even doing this?” And you just don't continue the work, you stop yourself.
Do any of these things sound familiar to you? If they do, I want you to know that you are not alone. This is such a common experience across the board with all kinds of different creatives.
What is creative block
Now, let's talk about creative block. What is it? I define creative block as a frustrating moment when ideas just don't come. It feels like all your creative juices have dried up and you can't get anything done no matter how hard you try.
There are so many reasons why creative block happens, whether it's perfectionism and feeling like things are not good enough and therefore we don’t ship them. Or it could be emotional or mental exhaustion from working really hard and not taking breaks. We're going to feel tired and unable to come up with any more ideas because we just need to rest.
It could also be due to external factors like your environment or having the right tools to do the job. And for many neurodivergent creatives like myself, sometimes it has everything to do with our brains and wanting more stimulation or needing more rest.
But here's the most important thing that I want you to remember:
Creative block is part of the process. It doesn't mean that you are no longer creative or that you lost your creativity. In fact, this is more of a signal to check in with yourself and your creative practice. To figure out whether you need to rest, play, or do any other change that is required to keep moving forward with your creative practice.
My personal experience as a professional creative
I'm going to let you in on a secret. Even for those of us, professional creatives who are constantly creating and doing projects and whatnot, we also struggle with creative block. Because at the end of the day, we are all human beings and we all have emotions and feelings and we get tired.
So just because we have been creating longer or have degrees doesn't mean that we don't struggle with these things. Once I figured this out, I think that really helped me to shift my mindset and realize that even if you're just starting out in your creative journey or if you have been at this for a while, you are not exempt from creative block.
This is one of those things that I personally didn't learn in art school. In my experience, no one ever talked to me about creative block or the fact that this was going to happen throughout my career and over the years long after finishing school. So it was really shocking to me that I paid so much money and I still didn't know these things about creativity and creating in general.
I also remember when I was in school that I was expected to come up with ideas for projects and this used to stress me out. I didn't know how to come up with ideas. It was so stressful to know that I was going to be graded for this and that the project had to get done (even if I was struggling to come up with ideas).
I also felt so much pressure to impress the professors and do something really cool and out there, just for the sake of getting their approval. Honestly, I didn’t really enjoy working on these early projects because I didn't feel confident in what I wanted to do or explore.
Those are some of the experiences that inspire my current work as a coach. I often think about a younger version of myself, a young Renata who didn't have the tools to work confidently and who struggled for years trying to figure out how to work with more ease. This is something that I wanted to share so that you know I'm talking from personal experience.
Now that we have identified what creative block is and why it happens, I want to talk about what to do when you hit that wall.
Five strategies to work through creative block
So, here are five strategies that have worked for me and the women of color creatives that I coach. And, I think that they are going to work for you too:
1. Name Your Feelings. Whenever you're starting to feel something, whatever that is, whether it's frustration, anger, sadness, naming your feelings is such an important step. Because it helps us to normalize whatever is coming up and ease the stress or the anxiety once we can name it.
Check out my free workbook, “Relaxing Your Way Into Creating”. This is a resource that I created for you that includes an emotions wheel (a tool to help you identify your emotions) that you can use to pin on your wall and use as reference whenever you're struggling to identify what you're feeling.
I know that I have used this tool so many times because whenever I’m overwhelmed by emotions, it's really hard to pinpoint exactly what it is that I'm experiencing. By with this tool I can easily identify my emotions. It’s free, so check it out.
2. Practice self-compassion through positive self-talk. I know that positive self talk is all the rave these days and so many of us actually don't talk to ourselves that way. And at first, it might feel weird to be kind and gentle to ourselves, but it's so important to be our own best friends and coaches with our creativity.
The world is already so filled with so much negativity, haters, and in general people who don’t support us. So, it really matters how you speak and support yourself through your creative journey.
Whenever you find yourself struggling through these creative block waters, be gentle with yourself. Remind yourself that it's okay to feel how you feel and that eventually things are going to pass. You can even ask yourself, “What do I need right now?
3. Lean into curiosity. Whenever you start to feel blocked or insecure, lean into curiosity. You can do this by asking questions like:
- “What if I try this?”
- “I wonder what would happen if…”
- “I'm really curious to discover how I'm going to solve this?”
I mean, just by listening to these questions, you can start to get a feel for the kind of energy that I'm putting out. It's very different from the fear based energy that we find ourselves in when we're blocked.
The energy of curiosity is much more inviting and it helps us to release the pressure of having to get everything right. It brings us back into our play and our exploration mode. Back in touch with our inner child.
So, ask yourself, “what am I curious about? What do I want to learn through this project”. Get back into that energy that got you started with your creative projects in the first place.
4. Practice self-care. Like I mentioned earlier, so many of us love creating, we like to be in our process, in our world. It's easy to forget to take care of our bodies and ourselves in general.
I know this has definitely been the case for me and for many other neurodivergent folks, who like to dive deep on a topic and submerge ourselves so deep that we lose track of time. We forget to eat. We forget to stretch. We forget to take breaks. Doing this too many times really builds up and this is how we end up burning out and crashing. We really want to avoid getting to that point.
So, if you have been trying to work and you can't focus, check in with yourself and ask yourself:
- Do I need to eat something?
- Do I need to take a nap?
- Do I need to walk my dog?
- Do I need to go for a walk and stretch my legs and get away from my workspace?
What is it that you need, that your body needs to feel replenished and fueled.
5. Create limits. This strategy might come as a surprise for many of you who might be just getting into creativity (maybe not). But believe it or not, creating limits forces our brain to come up with solutions and focus. Whatever we can do to minimize the amount of decisions that we have to make, the better.
For example: setting a deadline for yourself, limiting the amount of materials that you're working with, or limiting the techniques that you're trying in one project.
Personally, I like to do all the different things that I just talked about whenever I'm feeling blocked, because I find that doing a little bit of everything helps to reach different areas of my mind, body, and spirit. I think the more the better.
But sometimes you'll find that you only need one little thing that you haven't been doing and that helps you to get the ball rolling again. And some other times, you need to do all the things. What I think is most helpful is to have a set of strategies in place that you can refer back to so that you don't have to think about this when you're in that situation.
So I highly encourage you to create a toolkit that you can refer back to whenever you're feeling stuck. It can include inspiration and tools that resonate with you. And, most importantly, listen to yourself, listen to your needs so that you can give yourself whatever your body is craving.
Let’s Recap
Today, we talked about:
Common ways creative blocks shows up
What creative block is and why it happens
And, five strategies help you move past these roadblocks
If there's one thing that I want you to leave with after listening to this episode of the show is this:
Struggling with creative blocks doesn’t make you any less creative, this is in fact a part of the creative process.
Don’t fear your blocks. Embrace them and get curious about them. Use them as your signal posts reminding you to check in on yourself and your creative practice.
And, lastly remember that creativity works in cycles, in ebbs and flows. Trust your ideas will come back.
Need Personalized Support?
If you're feeling stuck with your creative projects or your creativity in general, I would love for us to connect. Schedule your free discovery session today, so we can chat about what's holding you back and create a potential plan to help you move forward with confidence.
Renata is a creativity coach empowering neurodivergent and multi-passionate women of color creatives to overcome creative blocks with therapeutic art making and strategic planning so they can create with ease and achieve their creative goals. She’s currently offering a free copy of her therapeutic art making workbook when you sign up for her email list. Sign up here to get your free copy.
