How I’m finally getting out of a year-long creativity rut and you can too.
A few days ago, when my life took a turn, I started rediscovering my creativity.
As many of you know, I moved to San Francisco almost two years ago. Before that, I was in Edinburgh, Scotland, where my creativity felt at an all-time high. I was solo traveling, talking to (friendly) strangers, and discovering a whole new side of myself. Along with self-discovery came an old friend, creativity.
Thinking about transforming my experiences and stories into works of art inspired a rush in me that I hoped would never end. I sketched, painted, wrote, and made videos. I came to see the world with a whole new set of eyes; ones that were hyper-tuned to pigments of colour and light everywhere I went.
And after I moved to San Francisco, it really felt like it would never end. California is SO beautiful and awe-inspiring, so I started creating videos inspired by my weekends here.
However, after about a year here, my well of creativity started to dry up. I wanted to switch jobs, relationships felt rockier, and I had a hard time staying present.
As a result, my art suffered. It became more difficult to produce anything. I still have a list of drafts that never got published because they seemed so directionless. I have a set of triptychs that I’ve been working on for a year and a half now that I’ve left on the back burner for months. I have an entire library of clips that I still haven’t put together into a video, including one from my China trip last May.
Once in a while, I’d pick something back up and spend a few hours on it. However, hours later, I’d take a look at it and decide I didn’t like the direction I was headed in so I’d put it away for a few more weeks.
The writing was the hardest thing for me to do again. Every time I would start writing something, I’d feel self-conscious about my capabilities; it felt like my words were always tripping over one another. I was, and still am, my harshest critic.
I also became horrendous at appreciating the good things. My partner, Andy, has to convince me that things are worth celebrating or that a Jane Day is necessary. Who am I?
Ultimately, I think it was my lack of appreciation for good moments that has made me so unable to feel creative. When you’re unable to stop and absorb the details of your environment, you’re unable to translate that into a creative idea nor spend the time to see it to fruition.
Suddenly, a few days ago, everything stopped. My job situation changed and now I have all of this free time; for the first time, I’m really enjoying it. I’m rediscovering how gorgeous San Francisco is (especially since I’m rarely out in the day) and how much inspiration is all around me. Where I used to feel guilt for not spending my free time working is now replaced with a sense of experimentation and joy.
As an example, I woke up this morning and actually opened my sketchbook to try a few things that I’ve been meaning to. In 2 days, I’ve drawn and illustrated more than I have in months.
And I’m WRITING. I’m actually writing! I’m not worried about the words I’m choosing or how my sentences are structured. It feels like I’m having a real conversation with whoever is reading this and I can’t express how euphoric this feeling is.
So, if you’re feeling like something is blocking your creativity, and mind you, creativity and the technical ability are not one and the same, take some time to identify what the blockers are. Here are a few blockers to think about:
- Not being present. When you’re somewhere, your mind is elsewhere (like work or the laundry you need to do when you get home).
- Guilt. You might feel like you’re supposed to be doing something else (like seeing friends, exercising, or working) rather than playing with an idea that may not necessarily turn into something.
- Not feeling good enough. It might feel like you don’t possess the ability or talent to execute on your idea, or there’s a fear that what you produce won’t be great.
Spend time thinking about your blocker(s) and how they’ve developed. Often, they’re tied to the same thing and affecting many parts of your life.
Once you’ve done that, here a few baby steps to get started again:
- Write down two things each day that made you happy and why. For example, write down an act of kindness from a coworker, a hummingbird that whizzed past your window, an amazing podcast you heard today that made you think about the world differently, or more. More importantly, think about why they made you happy, or even how they changed the course of your day. Immerse yourself in the good.
- Take time to notice one ordinary thing that you do or see every single day. You might pass the same tree or mailbox every day or have the same routine when you get into work each day. Take an extra minute to notice the action or item. Maybe you never noticed that the flowers on the tree are starting to bloom, or the mailbox actually has a chip on the lower right corner, or that you always engage in the same dialogue with your coworkers. Maybe even notice how often you check your phone when you’re talking to a friend or coworker. Each day, start becoming more present with the people in your life or in the environment that surrounds you.
- Acknowledge your sense of inadequacy and use it to inform your creative process. I’ve often found that the advice “there’s no such thing as good enough” or “even the best people think that they’re not good enough” doesn’t do much when you’re personally feeling not good enough. Rather, focus on the process. Instead of thinking about how something should turn out or trying to imitate anyone else’s idea or style, let your doubt or your insecurity guide your direction. Each scribble or “bad idea” will ultimately become vital to the end production, whether or not you know it yet. Therefore, start exactly where you are and don’t throw out your ideas too quickly. You don’t have anything to lose.
- Take care of yourself. Snooze all of your notifications (or better yet, just don’t bring your phone with you) and go do something for YOU. Don’t worry about money, work, exercising, dieting, etc., just put yourself first. I’m still working on this one.
- Just make time and do it. Put your pencil to paper, ideate, and don’t throw your ideas away. That’s all you need to do for now.
I’ve also been getting a ton of inspiration from Minnie Small’s “30 Ways To Fill a Sketchbook” series as well. 🙌
With that, I’ll leave you with the first video I’ve made in a year. Andy planned a weekend getaway to Monterey in this video, so get ready to see my penguin call (which I’ve been working pretty hard on, tyvm 🐧), a ton of beautiful sea life (OTTERS!), my utter disregard for others’ lives by driving on the open road, and my annihilation of Andy in skeeball.
If you’d like to see some of the creative things I’m working on, feel free to follow along on Instagram and Snapchat (@thejaneator) as well. Thank you so much for reading this. I would love to see what you come up with and please send your inspiration my way as well! ☺️
Cheers,
Jane
