Studies show that having a creative hobby can boost brain activity, help people cope with stress, and promote overall wellness and positivity.

Whether you are a writer, a musician, or a scientist, creativity is something we're all born with. We can all improve our ability to create by using it. Like our muscles, the more we use it the stronger it gets.  Unfortunately, creative inspiration is a difficult creature and can occasionally decide to go AWOL just when it's needed.

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How to deal with creative or mental blocks.

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Approach the problem from a different angle.

Instead of saying "I Don't Know" or "I Can't", try asking "What If...?"

Sometimes our own fixed patterns can be a major barrier to inspiration and creativity. Given the problem at hand, if you think close-ended statements such as “I can’t…,” “I don’t know…,” or “I’m stuck…,” you’re more likely going to create a negative self-fulfilling prophecy and remain stuck.

Try statements and questions such as:

"I will find the inspiration I need to solve this."

“There’s always a way…”

“What better solutions are possible here…?”

“What if…?”

When you ask yourself these questions, don’t consciously try to come up with answers. Instead, take a nap. Or take a break from your usual routine. Change your usual route to work, try something new for your lunch, change everything about your day. The new perspective will allow inspirations and solutions to emerge naturally and spontaneously.

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Take time for some exercise.

Exercise helps you get out of your set way of thinking and stimulates new thought patterns. Concentrating on an activity like yoga, or running, lets your subconscious  work on the problem you want to solve.

Spend some time in natural surroundings stimulates your senses. If that's not practical at the time, close your eyes and visualise a calming natural scene. Picture the colours of the plants, hear the sounds of birds singing, smell the fresh air. Maybe try listening to classical music while visualising the scene.

 

Study the lives of people you admire.

Read the biographies of creative people you find inspiring. Try watching a documentary of their life story or an interview with them.

 

Get something down on paper.

Allow yourself to create rubbish. Sometimes you have to write 4 pages of nonsense jus to find 1 good sentence halfway down page 2. Allow your muse to flow through you and just write. Once you have something written down on the page, sieve through it later to find the good bits.

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“Nothing will work unless you do.” — Maya Angelou

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Get into the habit of writing every day.

Practice your craft by setting a schedule and forcing yourself to stick to it.

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You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.” — Jack London

 

Finish a project you've been working on. No matter how good or bad the work turns out to be. Stop planning, and researching, and preparing to write and just do it. Finishing a work will prove to your subconscious that you have what it takes to write something.

No writer ever became great by half-finishing their work.

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Be compassionate to yourself

Don't judge yourself too harshly. Everyone struggles to create great art. Even great artists are their own worst critics. It is perfectly natural to feel disappointed that your latest creation isn't as brilliant as you'd hoped it would be, or that your writing isn't getting any better. Never let a particular work disappoint you so much that you stop writing.

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“You know, the whole thing about perfectionism. The perfectionism is very dangerous. Because of course if your fidelity to perfectionism is too high, you never do anything. Because doing anything results in…it’s actually kind of tragic because you sacrifice how gorgeous and perfect it is in your head for what it really is. And there were a couple of years where I really struggled with that.” ― David Foster Wallace