Are you feeling uninspired, underwhelmed or just plain bored with your creative ideas, projects or tasks?? You need to ask yourself:
Am I worn out / Burnt out?
Have I lost sight of the end goal?
Do I need to adjust my creative process?
Do I need to re-evaluate the project at hand?
Is my team having collaborative issues?
Start by removing yourself from the creative situation, and seek the root as to why you hate all of your ideas. Once you gain an understanding as to why you are hating our ideas, you can work on adjusting and re-defining why you are doing what you are doing or where you are headed. Whether you are designing a product, writing a pitch for a client or painting an abstract piece, there are a few things you can do to transform the situation and get you back into your creative tempo when you feel like you hate all your ideas.
Below is a list of measures curated from both well-known creatives and independent artists to get you out of your creative rut.
Reevaluate Your Ideas or Projects
Remember that creativity is not a process and no ideas come shiny clean and perfectly understood. No matter the creative venture you are on, you must recognize that creativity in all forms will be met with successes and failures. Re-evaluate the situation and try to both recognize and embrace the dull moments, as these moments have the potential to guide the direction of your project. Maybe you hate your original idea of photographing people touching hands, but you want to produce a photo that represents the theme of human connectivity. This moment should be seen as an opportunity to reevaluate the subject of your project while maintaining the theme. Instead of people holding hands, consider photographing something with more depth, such as people working together to rebuild a home after a natural disaster or a crowd cheering on a comedian with stage fright.
Take A Step Back
After removing yourself from the creative situation to delve into the root cause of your underwhelming state, give your mind and body a break by disengaging in the project. This can take hours, days, or even weeks. Step back to take a nap, listen to a podcast, read a book, take a day trip, go for a grueling run or a leisurely walk; whatever floats your boat and recharges your mind and body. Not only may these activities inspire creativity, but they should reignite your fire by giving you the time to see the joy in your project.
Tame Your Self-Loathing
Hating ideas can lead you down a dangerous path towards self-loathing and resentment of your creative project which can then lead to impatience and frustration. Very well mind provides a list of ways to stop self-loathing when you find yourself in a negative state:
- Tame your inner critic
- Inventory your strengths
- Learn to accept compliments
- Develop self-compassion
- Practice forgiveness
When you hate all of your ideas, you should remain calm and try following these steps as you ease back into your creative grind. In order to take care of your craft, you need to take care of your physical and mental state.
Reward Yourself
As you lean into your projects, reward yourself. You are working hard at something that is not easy, and it isn’t arrogant or presumptuous to recognize that. Blast your favorite radio station as you work, take an ice cream break or go for a night out dancing with your friends. Plan a reward ahead of time, as sometimes it’s just what you need to push through an idea-hating, and motivation-lacking rut. Knowing at the end of the day, a reward is waiting for you, you may change your perspective, seeing your glass half full rather than half empty.
Once you gain an understanding as to why you are hating our ideas, you can work on adjusting and re-defining why you are doing what you are doing or where you are headed.
It is a lovely thought to believe your creative venture will bring you only complete and utter joy, enlightenment, and bliss, but it is not very a realistic perspective. Creative work requires hard work, longs days and night and sometimes you also have to do mundane.
Sometimes, your creative project can have a steep learning curve which can cause low self-esteem, trigger resentment, and even provoke self-loathing. If and when this happens, you must remember that it’s just a phase and that you can overcome it.
Try a few of the tips above to help you recharge during a creative rut. Some of the suggested ideas are preventive suggestions that can also help you avoid getting into a rut in the first place. Whatever situation it may be, I wish you luck on your creative journey!
Photo Credits: Unsplash
