Facing creative block?
Same here. Ironically, I used to teach teens how to build their creative and critical thinking skills.
Now, I'm a freelance content marketer and copywriter starting a community of busy, creatively stuck creatives aiming to plow through the block and reconnect with the joy of creating.
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Creative Block Party #11: Mojo ollies his way out of fear.
Published 4 months ago • 5 min read
It's been months more than a minute, Reader! Thank you for being here! Let's talk momentum. You're probably better about this than I am, but if I miss even one session of whatever I'm supposed to be doing (physical therapy, posting on LinkedIn, this newsletter...), it's a slog to get back on track. It's like If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.
Miss a newsletter → take the summer off from the newsletter → autumn, too, because it was beautiful outside → holidays happened → Oh no, COVID!
And here we are — mid-January (and I still need to mail Christmas cards).
If I held a mirror to it, I would surely see my creative habit. I've come down with a classic case of creative inertia (a property of matter by which it continues in its existing state of rest or uniform motion in a straight line unless an external force changes that state).
Sure, I've dabbled. A little painting here, a little crochet there. I've never finished a crochet project. I keep looping rows and unraveling — an apt metaphor for this stage of my life.
The external force changing my state? An automatic payment of my newsletter fee. 😬😆 If I'm going to pay for it, I'd better use it. It might be just the shock I need to revive my creative efforts.
Anyhoo, let's jump back in. Better delayed than never, right?
By day, he's a Systems Analyst at UCSF. By night and weekend, he's an indie musician, audio mixer, producer, and photographer.
Where does he find the time and energy? Your guess is as good as mine. In July, Mojo filled me in on his creative life (I appreciate everyone's patience). Here's what keeps him creatively fresh:
Why/how are you busy?
This year was a graduation year for us, so it's been a lot between work and family. My music production business is actually my side business, and my full-time job is in IT, which, as you can imagine, is often busy, taxing, and stressful. Both involve a lot of technical challenges and involve creative problem-solving. Often, though, they complement each other in terms of not only right-brained vs. left-brained, but one area will get busy when the other one has a lull and vice versa. It always feels like a bit of a rollercoaster, so to get myself back in sync, I turn to other hobbies.
Lately, I've been busy woodworking and gardening — I just finished making some freestanding planter boxes out of reclaimed wood from my neighbor's old deck and am growing heirloom tomatoes in them. I'll be honest: I do not do idle well; I have to have something going on. I was recently laid up with a badly sprained ankle, and being stuck on the couch for even a couple of days felt worse than the actual injury.
What’s a favorite quick tip/activity for a creative burst?
The thing that works for me besides just switching gears and going for a walk is to give myself an assignment. Either a practice project or some kind of job that I can take and run with and do just for myself and not for a client.
The parameters are important — they need to be specific and have a deadline so it feels more exciting. Like coming up with a new twist on a classic song and figuring out how to arrange all the instruments and record them in a week. Or something even simpler, like a challenge to try a new recipe or even to just make a meal from ingredients on hand.
Would you please tell the folks about a time you were creatively stuck and how you pushed through to get your creativity pumping again?
I'm not sure I get creatively stuck, but I definitely paint myself into corners or get into patterns I have to break out of. I usually turn to YouTube to help with problem-solving or to learn new, more creative ways of doing things.
Sometimes, I'll challenge myself to limit production to a small palette like a painter's and see how I can achieve the same end with fewer or different tools than I'm used to.
Imposing limits can help spark some creativity. For example, I once had a new audio tool I wanted to learn better, and I challenged myself to complete a song production using only that tool. Honestly, I was kind of mad that it came out so well because I have hundreds of these tools, and they can be quite an investment!
What do you do for fun that helps keep you going (especially things outside the norm)? Why?
Now that my ankle is almost healed from a sprain, I'm back relearning how to skateboard, which, besides being really fun, is such a great self-trainer for personal growth and improvement. It's all about overcoming fears, gaining confidence, and trying over and over until you get something right.
That's just the most recent endeavor, though. I'm a perpetual hobbyist, so I always have something going on. In addition to making and producing music, I'm into cooking, photography, and gardening, and this year, I've gotten the sourdough bug that's going around and have been having fun perfecting my bread baking.
Everything is a lot right now: wildfires (I'm devastated for you, California friends), presidential transitions, global tension, corporate turmoil, lay-offs running amuck... My best creative quick tip this week is **drum roll** rest. Breathe, nap, hike, be amongst woodland creatures, and scream at the ocean — do what you need to do to recalibrate.
During the holidays, we hide a pickle ornament in the tree and the person who finds it gets to open the pickle gift. The pickle gift is always for the family to enjoy together, and this year it was Ransom Notes. If you like magnetic poetry, you'll like this. It gives you various formats of writing (love letter, eulogy, etc...), and you use the magnetic words you draw to create the message. FYI - To my 8-year-old's delight, there are words like "boob" and "ass" in there. Be forewarned.
My creative work:
My 8-year-old is teaching me to use Procreate. Then, we each created an imaginary monster.
I channeled my inner-eight-year-old for my drawing style and let my imagination run wild. 10/10 great 10-minute fun. Would recommend.
It's tough to be creative when you don't feel safe. That said, some of the greatest creativity comes out of tough times. It's not sustainable to exist in that state forever, though.
In times like these, we get by with a little help from our friends. Please consider donating to one of the following organizations to help our friends in California.
Hit reply and tell me how you're doing these days. Also, please share this email with a friend you think might be "one of us." You know, clamoring our way out of a creative funk. All the best,
P.S. Want to support creative research and this newsletter?
I've crafted blog posts, case studies, and email sequences for LEGO Education, GaggleAMP, Veeqo, Omniscient Digital, Hopin, OpenPhone, and Sprout Social.
How can I lighten the load for you and your team? Hit reply or contact me here.
Facing creative block?
Same here. Ironically, I used to teach teens how to build their creative and critical thinking skills.
Now, I'm a freelance content marketer and copywriter starting a community of busy, creatively stuck creatives aiming to plow through the block and reconnect with the joy of creating.
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