9 Surefire Ways To Break Open Your Creative Ice Jam

Just a few minutes ago, I had the answers to all the world’s problems. Now all I can think of is the Big Mac ingredients song.

So what happened? Where did all my wonderful ideas go? Will I ever get them back?

Fortunately I’ve dealt with this situation enough through the years that I’ve developed a few methods of recapturing and retaining those creative thoughts.

So without further ado, here are nine ways that will help you get back and keep that creative mojo:

Take a few deep breaths. I often find that when I am feeling “creative,” I’m actually a bit manic. My brain is jumping from one idea to the next like a frog on lily pads. Taking a deep breath and clearing your mind calms your crazed nerves and helps you regain your focus on the task at hand.
Keep a notepad and take it everywhere. I have ideas in the most inopportune moments, like when I’m supposed to be spending quality time with my wife. Trust me, that is not the time to be thinking about work. Take a second to jot the idea down along with any notes, and your brain will once again be able to focus on what is going on in the moment. If you don’t write the idea down, you either won’t be able to stop thinking about it or you’ll forget it and it will be gone forever.
Don’t take yourself so seriously. I typically get myself into creative jams when I set out to make the World’s Best Whatever. Who needs that kind of pressure? You’ll always make things that are better (and worse) than what you’re creating right now, so give yourself a break. Remember that not everything needs to be a work of art.
Talk to someone – anyone. Sometimes you need to flesh out the ideas that are in your head, and if you’re like me working alone, I usually end up talking to my cats. If you can get them to sit still and not fall asleep, pets are great listeners to bounce ideas off of because they’re completely non-judgmental (and they think you’re going to feed them).
Exercise. I know, exercise sucks. But think of how much exercising will make your work look like fun! Seriously though, there are plenty of medical studies that prove exercise is good for your thinking, but you will need to find someone smarter for an explanation. Besides, you can always watch the latest Oprah or something while on the elliptical machine.
Look at examples of what you’re trying to create. Now stop right there. Before you start accusing me of recommending copying other people’s work, trust me, I’m not. I’m suggesting you look for creative inspiration as a starting point for new ideas. How do you think innovations are made in this world? Out of thin air? No! Everything builds off of everything else. (Just make sure you don’t straight copy someone else’s shit.)
Go somewhere else to work. I have this amazing home office with everything I need, but sometimes (usually) I just can’t focus when I’m in there. Perhaps it’s the amazing view of the retaining wall that distracts me. Anyway, I have a few choice coffee shops that I frequent when I need to focus, and I’m convinced that all the noise of other people talking helps me zone in on the work in front of me.
Work in 50-minute bursts. I’ve been clinically diagnosed with ADHD (no, I don’t take anything for it), so I’ve been known to “get in the zone” and focus on something for 4 hours straight while forgetting to blink or use the restroom. I now use a timer so that every 50 minutes or so I get up, stretch a little, get some water or coffee, and then sit back down rejuvenated.
Stop working. When all else fails, sometimes you just have to stop working on a project if you’re without creativity. Put your computer, pencil, typewriter, abacus or whatever down, pray to the creativity gods for inspiration and go watch Maury Povich. (Is he still on TV?) Walking away from a project for awhile usually yields new inspiration.

Anyway, if these things don’t work for you, you’re probably seriously hopeless and should consider giving up. At least until you feel like you have the answer to a world problem. Once you’re back on the creative horse you can tackle the others.

Photo by Dano