Make space for creativity

It’s hard to force creativity. We’ve all tried at one point or another. Rarely does your best work appear at the drop of the hat. Definitely not leading up to a deadline, although some would argue that point. Even me at times… if I’m trying explain why procrastination took over again!

You can however, make space for it!

So, how do you make space for creativity & inspiration to visit?
Here are a few things that I’ve found help…

• When you do get the urge to create, don’t ignore it. You need to be able to easily recognise the signs. If you squash the inklings of inspiration regularly you may cease to notice the signs at all.

• Set up a physical space that feels like a nice place to create. Surround yourself with colours, sounds, textures that you love. Within reason of course….we don’t want clutter right!

• If you aren’t able to set something up, find public spaces that are conducive for your creating. Whether that be a bustling cafe with great coffee or a library or even a co-working space.

• Have your tools of your trade ready and close to hand. If it takes too long to set up you might be tempted to just skip trying at all.

• Set aside a regular time in your day and/or your week to work on your creative projects. Like the quote above implies, it’s not going to just magically happen at the stroke of 9am every Friday. It will come though, maybe not easily at first but you’ll find your groove soon enough.

• If inspiration is not coming easily, go and pick up something else for a little while and then come back to it. I’ve had some cracking ideas while hanging the washing out or weeding the garden. Menial tasks that don’t require much thought can really allow your mind to just wander and often that is when you can access a creative space.

• Cheat! I use binaural beats to tune my brainwaves into a more creative state. This is probably a little out there for some of you but I swear it’s been very effective for me. Particularly in my day job in an open plan office. There are quite a few apps out there and there are also a stack videos on YouTube. I’ve tried a few but not on both phone platforms so I’m not going to make a recommendation as it won’t be impartial. Have a look for yourself, you will find one that appeals to you.

This is by no means an exhaustive list.
I have tried each and every one of these tips and they are all still part of my kit.

What have you tried to kick start your creativity?
I’d love to hear back from you, if any of these tips work out for you.

From my heart to yours,
Kirsten x