Creatively Blocked? How To Get Re-inspired [VIDEO]

Creatively Blocked? How To Get Re-inspired [VIDEO]

When I finished writing my first draft of a book on creativity, I felt like I’d poured out  every last creativity tip I had.

 

Just like with the ending of any creative project, when I’d completed the manuscript and sent it out to various book agents to review, I grieved.

 

What if that’s all I have?

 

After releasing over 20 years of accumulated teachings and learnings onto paper, I was suddenly looking at a white page again; the cursor blinking at me from a blank screen.

 

On top of that, I was told by an agent not to post any content from the book on my blog.   

 

I felt blocked.

 

Often, when endings come, we need to be comfortable sitting with the unknown. We can’t force the new to come into being, no matter how much we want it to.

 

There’s a transition period we have an opportunity to embrace. It’s here where we can just let ourselves rest in emptiness. Then, when our energy picks up again, we find ourselves ready to tackle a new project.

 

In truth, every day when we wake up, we metaphorically meet the blank page; the curser on our screen blinking, blinking, blinking at us—curious to see what wants to come out.

 

And so the question to ask when we aren’t sure what to do next is, What’s present for me right now?

 

As I sat to write today’s post, I asked myself this question. I let myself feel vulnerable and be really honest with myself. The truth? What was present and interested me the most was: I didn’t have any idea what to write about.

 

Start there, Creativity told me. Write about that.

 

The idea was to be curious and intrigued by what was calling me to go deeper into myself.

 

So if you’re feeling blocked, stuck, or shut down, ask yourself,

 

  • What’s present for me right now?
  • What holds interest, even if it doesn’t seem to fit or make sense?
  • Where’s my highest calling asking me to go to the next level in myself?

 

Elizabeth Gilbert spoke about how, after finishing a book, she wasn’t sure what to do next. So she decided to learn how to to garden. And in the process of researching and studying gardening, she found herself fascinated. So much so, it led her to write her next book, a novel called The Signature Of All Things where the lead character is a botanist.

 

What might hold interest for you today may be something small: Perhaps it’s a walk outside for fresh air, or sneaking away at lunch time to get a manicure, calling up an old friend to catch up, or getting in some writing practice in your journal, just to get energy moving.

 

Well, heck maybe that’s just what’s calling ME to today. This is how I let go and keep meeting what interests me.

 

That’s the amazing thing about Creativity. When we keep meeting what calls to us—no matter how simple—our insides bloom.

 

Wishing you a week full of exciting possibilities!