We had just jumped several feet off the edge of a waterfall into a plunge pool, the four of us in the group were happily chatting on a large rock further down the beck waiting for the instructor to jump in too and wondering what the next exciting leap was going to be. The water around us was calm and even though it was cold I sat myself down in it, fully immersed and loving it. Beyond the waterfall I could see what looked like a cave and excitedly pointed this out to the others in the group. Finally, after throwing his bag down first, the instructor splashed into the water and swam over to us. Eagerly he stood up, wiped the water from his face and declared he’s had a change of plan, he’s going to take us into the cave and this means swimming past the waterfall. ‘Brilliant’ I innocently think. I didn’t know that I was about to find out that of all the activities we did that morning, this was to be the trickiest part for me.
First the instructor dived in back in the water and swam straight past the waterfall with ease, as you would expect the pro to do. I watched as others followed until eventually it was my turn. It started off well, the water was calm and it was very peaceful, but then I hit the current created by the thrashing waterfall and suddenly things took a different turn. I had the instructor in front of me shouting out encouragement to keep going, the rest of the group behind me approaching quickly, and me…I wasn’t going anywhere. As hard as I pushed against it, no matter how hard I worked to move forward the currents kept me firmly in one stationary position. As much as I tried I couldn’t get past.
After a brief pause to catch my breath whilst clinging to the rocks at the side followed by the marvellous assistance of the instructor I made it under. My feet may have been on his chest, he may have been pushing me, the other group members may have pulled me once I was within arms reach, but I got to the other side and I was able to enjoy the dark, magical cave behind.
Rewind a week or so and it was the start of the new school year which also saw my return to work after a holiday. Following two weeks off work I was keen to get back and crack on with the brilliant projects that were waiting for me. I had prepped everything before I left, I knew what needed to be done and yet I sat in front of my screen on that first Monday back and there was nothing. An empty void of imagery, vision, and inspiration. No matter how hard I worked, I wasn’t getting anywhere. What was happening?
Several days later and it wasn’t getting any better, and so I began doing some research into creative blocks, I even asked people over on my Instagram stories for some advice. Every article I read just told me things I already knew, things I have known about myself and the way I work for a long time. They were handy reminders, but nothing powerfully changing. Then I read one on Behance which changed everything. This wasn’t as simple as taking a break from my screen, or going to do something different, or any of those things. It wasn’t even as simple as going for a walk that I’d worked out helped in my last blog post. No, this time I needed to figure out what type of creative block I had, and it turns out there was two. Firstly, I had created a work habit that doesn’t work for me. Sitting in my house all alone doesn’t work for me, sitting myself at a machine all day doesn’t work for me. When I returned from holiday this work habit that had been building up inch by inch suddenly felt like a weight, a waterfall holding me in one spot and instead of pausing to find a way through I carried on doing what I had always done. This opened the way for me to hit the second blockage…the emotional barrier.
Tired, frustrated and finding the subject matter of the design a little boring (apologies client!) inspiration was lacking. What I find fascinating is the Behance’s reference to swimming in a cold pool under their ‘Emotional Barrier’ heading, for the next day I found myself literally jumping into cold water, pushing myself through activities I didn’t know I could not only achieve but thoroughly enjoy.
Refreshed and invigorated, it was time to mix things up a bit. I spent the days that followed tackling my blocks, working out a plan of action for some and simply smashing them on the spot for others, and now I’m really excited about the next few weeks and I have been able to create the images I couldn’t envision at all…and found space to write this!
Here are the ways I busted my creative blocks:
- Worked in a different location. This was key to unlocking it all, it was never going to be the main solution, but just like my poor leaky roof which really needs a full retile, right now I just need to fix the leak and then refocus of a full sort out later. Working in a different location was my attempt at fixing the leak. The straightforward act of moving to work from a different part of my house jolted me out of the drudgery mind set and unlocked a trickle of inspiration, which in turn let it begin to flow enough for me to finish the piece that both myself and the client are happy with.
- Took regular breaks around people. I am an extrovert, I think out loud, I love working in teams, and being stimulated, but more importantly my get my energy from being around people. We don’t need to be saying or doing anything together, just being around others brings me energy. Hard to get that when you’re working a lone at home. To provide a quick fix, I made up reasons to take my breaks where I would come across other human beings, a trip to the local shops for example to buy something for tea, or going on a walk on the busier streets, even sitting on a bench with plenty of passers by. All these things help.
- Planned future locations. Here is my full roof retile, the big one to stop the leaks from happening. I have noticed three things about myself over the past few months; I don’t enjoy working in the house all the time, I like being around the appropriate level of people, and I love working outside. I can’t afford the full expense of hiring out a hot desk at the moment, and café’s are brilliant, except you can’t spend too long in them, and outdoors well there is the glare, the wet weather and so on. They all sound like barriers, except they aren’t! I don’t need to work away from home all the time, I don’t always need to be working outside and I don’t need to spend hours in a café, there’s a time and a place for all of them. I cracked open my laptop and began researching ways to work outside and I looked at my tasks ahead and identified ones which are suitable for café’s. As a freelancer my schedule is mine to organise and I’d been organising it like I still worked in an office, now is the time to change that. Now that I’ve planned different locations for different tasks, and sorted regular times and places to work outside I am absolutely buzzing, and feel as invigorated as I did after my canyoning.
- Reinstated future planning. Over the past few months I had accidentally forgotten to put regular days to one side where I don’t do any jobs other than assess how things are going and plan for the future steps. These are days where I am fed with inspiration, knowledge, and connections. The lack of these has starved me, and it is little wonder I’ve slipped into work habits that do not feed my creative juices. Starting this week they are returning and I know this will bare much fruit.
- Played. You need to provide time for your brain to finish making all the little connections it needs to make for inspiration to actually take place. In the same way it didn’t work when I kept pushing against the current from the waterfall, it doesn’t work when I keep pushing against a work environment that doesn’t work for me. It has been time to grab onto the walls, take a breath, do something different and then, and only then, can I get to the other side. Occasionally it might help to have someone pushing me from behind, so if you fancy that job please do get in touch! Joking aside, some days it might look like watching a TV show, or doing a little personal crafty project, others it will be spending time in my garden. Something so totally different and away from the task at hand that brings me joy and helps me to relax.
I hope my story helps you with your creative blocks, why not follow me on Instagram and let me know how you get over yours.
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