There are days when your brain seems to have completely shut down, and the possibility of having a decent idea feels like an impossible mission. Simply stringing together a couple of coherent sentences feels like a prodigious feat. But writing isn’t the only thing that falls victim to these creative blocks.
Perhaps you’re standing before your blank canvas or graphic design screen, and no stroke feels right. The colors that once flowed like a river now seem inadequate and predictable. Or maybe you’re in your lab or workshop, trying to solve a technical problem, spending hours with blueprints, prototypes, or calculations, and each solution seems worse than the last, like a dead end.
Whatever your profession, you’ve probably experienced writer’s block at some point – or maybe more than once. It happens to everyone. We’re not robots. We can’t bring brilliant ideas to life in seconds.
In fact, after struggling with his own creative block while writing an article about it, San Francisco-based designer and musician Alex Cornell decided to ask for help. He emailed friends and artists for advice. Then he asked 90 creative people how they dealt with this obstacle. Here are some of their strategies.
How to overcome a creative block quickly?
First and foremost, it’s important to understand that creative blocks are not usually due to a lack of knowledge, but rather to your mind being trapped in rigid patterns that prevent it from making new connections and generating something original. This means that you generally don’t need to “know more,” but rather give your brain the space and the right conditions to think differently.
1. Realize that blocks are normal
It’s easy to think that creative block only happens to you, but you’re not alone. Even the most innovative people and the brightest minds have experienced it. Thomas Edison, for example, buried thousands of prototypes before inventing the light bulb, not because he lacked creativity, but because the creative process is iterative by nature.
Therefore, don’t worry more than necessary. This phase is as normal as any other; we’re not instant idea factories. Remember that creativity isn’t a destination we have to reach, but rather a journey, a state of mind, a fluid process with its ups and downs. So, it’s perfectly normal to have some days when your inspiration is at its peak and others when it seems to go out.
2. Look for anything that inspires you
The good news is that it’s also possible to prevent creative blocks. For example, you can let yourself be inspired by what’s around you. It could be a movie, an interesting detail, a painting… Absolutely anything can inspire an idea; you just have to make sure you have something to write it down with, otherwise you might forget it and not be able to access it when you need it most.
A study conducted at Drexel University found that moments of creative insight – those instants when solutions seem to appear out of nowhere – are actually associated with preparatory mental states that combine diffuse attention and exposure to diverse information. This means that exposing yourself to different stimuli can activate neural networks that promote creativity.
3. Read a book (and not just a technical one)
Art director Dan Kenneally and photographer Todd Hido overcome their creative blocks by turning to their extensive libraries. Interesting books can be a source of inspiration. You can reread the underlined passages or simply open them at random and immerse yourself in the reading.
Each book contains the seeds of a thousand stories. Every sentence can unleash a torrent of ideas. Why not try combining an Aesop’s fable with a line from Noam Chomsky? Reading deepens cognitive processes linked to creativity and generates unusual connections between concepts. Choose a book that surprises you, makes you question things, or takes you to worlds different from those you’re used to.
4. Clear your mind
Sometimes creative blocks occur because our thinking races. We can think of our mind as a highway with different lanes. One represents thoughts about family, work, friends, and so on. If you’re too preoccupied or something is taking up too much space, creativity won’t be able to flow. So, make sure you have space to relax, disconnect, and clear your mind.
A study conducted at the University of California found that creative thinking improves significantly during periods of cognitive rest or “incubation,” such as when you walk, stroll, or disconnect from the problem itself. These breaks allow the brain to process information in the background, unconsciously, which increases the likelihood of arriving at creative insights.
5. Try completely different things
Often, overcoming a creative block is synonymous with overcoming a functional fixedness. In other words, when you overthink something, you become fixated on it, thus hindering originality. Stepping outside your comfort zone will help you unlock your creativity. If you’re stuck on a piece of code or an article, listen to music. And if you’re stuck on a musical score, go for a walk or draw.
Albert Einstein, for example, used to take long walks when he was stuck on complex problems, and Leonardo da Vinci would observe nature or focus on different inventions when he felt blocked. The idea is to do something different. Even simple actions like changing your context (writing in a different place, for example) can trigger neural connections that your mind doesn’t make when it’s stuck in a particular context. In this way, your subconscious will continue working, but your conscious mind will be freed from its constraints.
There’s no magic bullet for overcoming creative block; you’ll likely have to try different approaches to see what works best for you. Just remember that creativity is a dynamic process, so it also thrives on rest, diverse stimuli, and disconnecting.
References:
Baird, B. et. Al. (2012) Inspired by Distraction: Mind Wandering Facilitates Creative Incubation. Psychological Science; 23(10): 10.1177.
Kounios, J. & Beeman, M. (2009) The Aha! Moment: The Cognitive Neuroscience of Insight. Current Directions in Psychological Science; 18(4): 10.1111.
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