The creative process can be incomprehensible. To create great designs you need to feel inspired and be in a certain zone. As you’ve probably experienced, it’s impossible to feel this way all the time. Creative blocks can seem insurmountable, and matters become worse when your job revolves around your creative instincts. In such times, it’s helpful to step back and follow some tried and tested rules to help you get over the block. Note that every designer is different, and some rules will work better for you than others. With that in mind, here are 5 tips that will help you overcome a creative block.
Overcome A Creative Block – Detox
Designers these days spend all of their time drawing on electronic screens with a stylus. While convenient, something gets lost in the creative process. Feeling the scratch of pencil, pen, or brush on paper or canvas stimulates creative sections of the mind, and it’s surprising how often creative juices flow. If you’re ever stuck on a project, step away from the screen and put pencil or your instrument of choice to paper. Get drawing or painting. Our digital worlds are full of distractions, and they can contribute to creative blocks. Stepping away from everything and getting back to basics, the thing that you love doing in the first place will help you view objects differently.
Sketching and painting require you to view objects differently since there are no digital tools to help you resize or modify your creation. It forces your brain to think about what you’re doing. The result is some much-needed downtime while stimulating the creative centers of your mind.
Stop Forcing it
Creativity can’t be forced, as you probably know by now. While it’s impossible to say where creative inspiration comes from, it definitely doesn’t come from staring at a blank piece of paper hoping something emanates. To be creative, you need to take a step back and reevaluate everything. Look at your work with fresh eyes.
Perhaps you chose the wrong template, to begin with? When designing a new website, accessing a wide range of templates is essential since it makes your job that much easier. Instead of looking at this as a task that rips apart what you’ve done, think of it as a reevaluation. You can only make things better by looking at everything you did with fresh eyes. If creativity still doesn’t strike, walk away and return to your project later. It’s not as if your project will disappear. Take some time to step away, seek some inspiration, and return when the time feels right.
Overcome A Creative Block – Find New Sources of Inspiration
Diversity is a designer’s best friend. The more vast your inspiration field is, the better your designs will be. Make it a point to explore as many different artistic styles as possible. A good exercise to undertake is to replicate the work of an artist you admire. It doesn’t have to be a famous artist, it can even be a recreation of a website whose design you admire. Recreating the design gives you a chance to view the solution while running into problems. It shortcuts the solution discovery process and gives your brain insights into how problems were solved. You might even end up discovering a better solution to those problems.
Designers who undertake a lot of work can benefit from automating much of their process too. A lot of time can be lost recreating similar elements for clients, repeatedly. Instead, using a feature like Elementor’s Full Website Kits can eliminate the time you spend on repetitive work and force you to focus on creative work that makes a difference. Manage your time well and explore different artistic styles. Your work will mature as you grow, and you’ll discover new boundaries to push.
Break it Down
Often, a creative block is an indication that the task facing you is too large for your brain to comprehend. You might simply not know where to begin. In such situations, it’s best to break the task down into smaller chunks and tackle them one by one. Reducing the size of the problem forces your brain to look at smaller situations and figure out smaller solutions. This process is far more manageable, and it reduces the load on your brain. The result is small bursts of creativity that can get you some creative traction to tackle bigger issues, such as larger trends dominating your niche.
Do Something Monotonous
Often, our brains become exhausted, and we need a complete break from anything creative. Think of it as relaxing completely after a visit to the gym. Everyone needs a break once in a while, and your brain is no different. Doing something that requires little brainpower, such as washing the dishes, brushing your teeth, or doing the laundry will keep your brain occupied and allow it to refresh itself. When the time is right, you’ll feel the urge to get back to designing, and the ideas will flow.
Overcome A Creative Block – Many Ways, One Goal
Every designer’s goal is to create something spectacular. Creativity can be a tough thing to handle but with these tips, you’ll have a better handle on how it comes and goes. Over time, you’ll discover what works for you best and will end up managing designer blocks well.