How to Overcome Creative Blocks

How to overcome creative blocks: tips and practical activities

1. Forget about inspiration. Habit is better. A phrase we’ve borrowed from the writer Octavia Butler. She says, “Forget about inspiration: habit is better. Habit will keep you going, whether you’re inspired or not. Habit will help you reach the end of your novel and polish it. Inspiration won’t. Habit is persistence in action.” Inspiration does its job and we should make the most of it when it appears, but we shouldn’t rely too heavily on it or we will become enslaved by it. This advice from the writer, rather than being a solution to creative blocks, is a preventive method. Make the creative process a habit through practice: if you’re a writer, sit down to write every day. The same applies to any field you dedicate yourself to. For example, if you work in the creative department of an advertising agency, create a daily list of ideas or engage in brainstorming. Even if you’re not initially satisfied with the result or if you think it’s not perfect.

2. Improve your inner dialogue and increase your confidence. The Molotov cocktail for tackling a creative block consists of the following ingredients: perfectionism, self-demand, doubts, insecurity, and lack of confidence. It’s like dousing something already flammable with gasoline — making a bad situation even worse. As writer Sylvia Plath once said, “The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.” However, as human beings, it’s natural to experience doubts and insecurity. The good news is that these can be worked on. We propose two exercises to help you.

• Exercise 1: Write down each insecurity or harsh statement from your inner critic —don’t worry, we all have one— on a piece of paper, crumple it up and throw it away or keep it in a box. Here are some examples of inner critic statements: “I’m not good enough for this,” “Who would be interested in what I do,” “I’m an impostor.”
• Exercise 2: Make a list of aspects about yourself, skills you have and talents you like. This exercise helps boost your confidence, which in turn allows your creativity to flow more freely. We recommend a book called “Your Inner Critic Is a Big Jerk: And Other Truths About Being Creative” to help you with your inner critic and creativity.

3. Stay tuned to the world around you. Finding inspiration and being creative doesn’t always require grand voyages or life-changing events. Right within your day-to-day experiences, there’s a world brimming with inspiration. It’s not something distant or inaccessible — it’s all around you, waiting to be discovered. It could be a scene on a subway, an encounter with a stranger on the street, a chat with your neighbor or even observing a couple strolling by. These seemingly ordinary moments can serve as powerful catalysts — don’t underestimate their potential.

4. Play. Playing has the power to liberate your mind from a creative impasse. Neuroscience has demonstrated that when we play, we stimulate the right hemisphere of the brain, responsible for creativity, emotions, and our inner world. Furthermore, scientific research has shown that play allows us to tap into the subconscious and activate this aspect of the brain. Our suggestion is to approach play without the expectation of creating something “good” or “important” — simply embrace the spirit of play. After all, have you ever seen a child preoccupied while playing?

5. Go for a walk without a plan or destination. You’ve likely heard and even uttered the phrase, “Go out and get some fresh air.” Well, it’s actually not bad advice. Putting your body in motion kickstarts the circulation of ideas in your mind. Canadian conceptual artist Keri Smith wrote the book “The Wander Society,” in which she encourages exploring without any preconceived plans or specific goals, allowing yourself to be completely open to the unknown.