Crushing Writer’s Block: Tips to Restore Creativity
It’s more common than you may think. Writer’s block gets the best of us all every once in a while. Often times when we are trying to come up with new ideas we seem to overwork ourselves and especially tire out our brain. Writer’s block can sneak up at any time no matter what type of project you may be working on. You may not realize it, but stress can be the main cause of something like this. You might not even realize that you’re stressed, either. The big question here is how can we overcome our writer’s block? The answer may be simpler than you’d expect.
Have you hit a wall in your writing?
Take a break
Sometimes this is the best way to clear your head. Sitting there and staring at your computer screen or notepad isn’t going to be much help to you when all of your ideas have packed their bags and moved out of your headspace. Our team realizes that everyone works differently. Taking a break and walking away from your project might not do anything for you. It’s really best to preoccupy yourself by doing something else. Take a walk, ride your bike, go for a jog, just be active! (Mallory’s personal favorite is to dance around the office to N.E.R.D.)
Susan Reynolds writes –
“The more pressure you put on yourself, the higher your anxiety level rises and the more writing becomes a signal of danger, which transmits a message straight to your limbic system, triggering fight-or-flight reactions. When that happens, the limbic system stops forwarding messages to the cortex, which is where conscious thought, imagination, and creativity are generated. Instead, your amygdala releases stress hormones, like cortisol and adrenaline, and soon, your heart rate is skyrocketing, your ability to feel emotionally safe enough to write is eroded, and your ability to concentrate vanishes. Who wants that? Who wants to re-create that? Small wonder that you are feeling a resistance to writing.” [read more here]
Jam Out!
One of my favorite things to do for my workflow is to listen to music. Music is something that has always helped clear my mind of any cloudy or negative thoughts; An escape if you will. Typically, when I’m working, I just throw on one of my Daily Mixes on Spotify. In the meantime, check out this playlist I put together of various alternative, indie, and pop-punk artists that help feed my creativity. Give that a try: find a chill playlist and just relax your mind and body. Who knows, it might give you some inspiration!
Freewrite
This one may surprise you, but free-writing is another secret to overcoming writer’s block. Although it does involve writing, it doesn’t require a lot of brain power. The words you write or type down don’t have to make any sense, it’s just a simple exercise to help get your head straight and help you focus.
Change of Scenery
Another quick tip that might have an impact on you is to simply switch up your workspace. Having a change of scenery can be monumental for your creativity, especially when you eliminate outside distractions that are clogging up your focus. Even our team at Dreamhouse needs a change of scenery every now and again. We’re human. We crave variety! If you’re a local to the Cleveland area, one of our favorite places to be productive is Cleveland Tea Revival located at 1434 W 29th St.
For those of you who are working remotely, our team realizes that not everyone wants to put pants on to get out of the house and work on their projects. Does that sound like you? Well, if you’re “that guy” at Rising Star just using the Wi-Fi without buying a Cardamom Bomb then you should spice up your workspace and check out coffitivity.com and build the coffeehouse soundscape for yourself.
We at Dreamhouse realize that we’re not all programmed the same way. We’re all affected by things differently. One technique might work for us that won’t do anything for you. You need to do some exploring for yourself. Find a technique that helps YOU. Do something that will restore YOUR creativity.
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