Hey, ! 

I'm sitting at a cozy cafe, my mind wandering aimlessly, searching for inspiration for my upcoming design newsletter. The holiday season has left me feeling sluggish, and I am finding myself trapped in the clutches of a frustrating creative block.

Then I thought to myself - Why don't I make my "creative block" a subject of discussion and share some strategies I follow to defeat challenges like these?! 

There you go! An idea for this week's newsletter💡 - Smaaaarrttttt!

What are creative blocks? - Temporary feelings of stagnation or lack of inspiration experienced by creators, leading to difficulties in generating innovative ideas.

Regardless of one's profession, every human being experiences phases of demotivation in their everyday work life, whether it be due to external factors or internal struggles.

Here's how I conquer them!

🏞️ Changing my work environment

Changing work environments can totally shake things up and get those creative juices flowing again. It's like hitting the refresh button on your brain and giving it a much-needed break from the same old routine. Plus, being in a new space can inspire fresh ideas and perspectives that you may not have thought of before.

🎨 Taking inspiration from other activities

I try to engage myself in other creative activities like painting and sketching at least once every month. This helps flex my creative muscles and hone my problem-solving skills. Plus, it's like a mental escape that recharges my brain.

🧑‍🎨 Taking inspiration from other creators' work

Checking out other designers' work can be a total game-changer when you're stuck in a creative rut.  It's super inspiring to see how others have tackled similar problems and can give you that extra boost of motivation to keep going. I usually set some time out to skim through my favorite design newsletters that week to gain inspiration.

🧑‍💻 Discussing challenges with non-creative folks

Engaging in discussions about creative problems with non-creative individuals, such as engineers, can offer fresh perspectives by introducing a different mindset and analytical approach. Their unique perspective can challenge conventional ideas and lead to innovative problem-solving techniques. All my engineer friends come in handy here! 

🧠 Giving crazy ideas a try! 

When you let your wild ideas run free and they end up crashing and burning, it can actually be a blessing in disguise. It's like throwing pizza slices at the wall – some ideas stick, and others fall flat. But those failures can spark new and unexpected solutions that you never would have thought of otherwise. So I try not to refrain from embracing the dumb ideas and let them fuel my creative problem-solving.

⌛ Time blocking creative processes

Every Sunday morning, I allocate 30 minutes to brainstorm ideas for The Accordion. I make sure to set a timer and spend no longer than 30 minutes. Then, I select one idea from the list and spend another 30 minutes writing a vague script on that subject. This has been super helpful in increasing my productivity and work efficiency during the week.

😴 Letting my brain rest

When feeling stuck or uninspired, it's easy to get frustrated and keep pushing oneself to come up with ideas. But guess what? That can often make things worse. Your brain needs some time off to recharge and regain its creative mojo.

So, I tend to go for a walk, do some stretching, or take a bunch of power naps to help reset my creativity.