Staying creative can be hard when we have ‘adult’ responsibilities. Laundry, caring for our family, cooking dinner or just simple day to day stresses can take a toll on our creative minds. But what happens when being creative IS your work?
This has been a year for us all – with stay at home orders for most and being unable to see friends and family, or do things that *spark* happiness, it’s been hard to find outlets to create and produce content.
Here are some tips that have helped me over the last few months with staying creative (and keeping my sanity!):
Be Kind To Yourself: Self Care is REALLY important. Even taking 10 minutes each morning to slowly and purposefully sip your coffee or meditate can bring your thoughts back to a creative place. Don’t ever feel guilty for taking time for yourself! Your mental health will thank you.
Schedule in Time to ‘Be Creative’: Are you a list maker? Same. I thrive on crossing things off my list and completing tasks and while it may not seem ‘fun’ (or even counterproductive) to schedule creativity, if it needs to get done, this is a way to make sure it happens.
Schedule your creative time when you are at your most focused…are you a morning person? Do it then. Do you love when the house is quiet for the night and you have time for yourself? Great, that’s your time to get those creative juices flowing!
Keep the mentality that ‘This isn’t forever’: We can all get really stressed out with worrying about the future. Which can lead to a creative block and can become a spiral of fear, anxiety and procrastination. But this isn’t forever! So while it’s important to be planning for ‘what’s to come’, staying present in the moment is a great reminder to count your blessings.
Step away for a few days: Sometimes all you need is a good recharge. You can’t force creativity. Well, perhaps you can, but it definitely wouldn’t be as powerful. A break from being creative can be just what you might need.
Stay close to people who make you feel G O O D: Like self care, having a group of friends is important to keeping those endorphins pumping. We all have those people in our lives that when you get off the phone with them or leave happy hour, you feel like skipping…right? Talk to them, engage with them, ask for advice, give advice, use them as a sounding board, laugh with them. Take this time to grow the relationship – we promise this will help with clearing those unhealthy, stressful thoughts and will get you in a mindset to jumpstart your creativity!
What do you do regularly to maintain a creative mind? Xx
Love, your Parker Fam
