Creativity is a fascinating and unpredictable phenomenon. Some days, we find ourselves overflowing with ideas and energy; other days, our minds feel dull and uninspired.
Perhaps some people can be creative day in and day out, but I’m not one of them. I experience some days when I’m very creative and productive and others when I’m not.
It’s important to remember that creativity is not a level, consistent practice. It has its own rhythm, with peaks and troughs, highs and lows.
Creativity is Not A Level, Consistent Practice
When my wife and I go hiking in the Black Hills of South Dakota near our new home, almost none of the trails are level. They go up, then down, then up again.
Creativity is a lot like that. Some weeks, ideas and writing will flow easily, but others are not like that. I’m lucky to finish one mediocre blog post in those weeks.
Creativity is rhythmic. There are going to be peaks and troughs, highs and lows.
Daily Creative, by Todd Henry
I might create three new blog post projects during my morning routine one day. But other mornings result in no new projects at all. My mind feels dull, and no creative thoughts flow.
That’s the everyday experience of most creatives. Even those creators who output creative work regularly will tell you they have less creative days when outputting material is a slog.
Don’t Beat Yourself Up Over Creative Inconsistency
There’s abundant advice available about how to be more creative and productive.
We might start to think that if we had just the right combination of productivity hacks or life circumstances, we’d always be creative. We wouldn’t.
Furthermore, we also see our personal “heroes of creativity” (mine is David Sparks, aka MacSparky) who output a constant flow of creative work. To us, it appears to be effortless creativity. It’s not. Even the heroes have times when they struggle to be creative.
Don’t beat yourself up for something entirely normal.
Inconsistency and struggle are a normal part of the creative process. Accept the valleys, knowing that the peaks are coming.
How to Deal with Creative Inconsistency
• You must take a long view of your work to deal effectively with creative inconsistency.
You expect there to be times when you’ll struggle to output creative work and when the process flows easily.
• The key to creative success is to keep going. Commit yourself to showing up and doing the work daily, even when you don’t feel like it. The days when you don’t feel inspired will eventually give way to those when you do, but only if you stick with it. See my blog post, The Key to Creative Success.
• Many creatives find that some form of time blocking can help them focus on the work they must do. List three tasks you want to accomplish that day and designate when you work on each.
• However, sometimes you plan to do work and discover when you attempt to do it that it won’t happen. Your mind is not in the right mental state to do that kind of work, or there is another blocking circumstance.
If you’re not working under a strict deadline, it’s best to back off and do other work that best fits your mental state.
You might not be able to write, but you can do some editing or administrative work. Or, maybe you’re in a mindset to explore or research another project.
David Kadavy, writing in Mind Management, Not Time Management has identified seven mental states of creative work: “Prioritize, Explore, Research, Generate, Polish, Administrate, and Recharge.” If you can’t do one kind of work, try doing another that fits your mental state better.
• The key is to keep doing something. Creativity will eventually come if you show up and keep working.
Conclusion
I encourage you to embrace the rhythm of creativity and accept the valleys as a natural part of the process.
Don’t beat yourself up for being inconsistent, but instead, focus on staying committed and persevering through the challenging times.
Consider implementing time blocking to help you stay focused and prioritize your tasks, but also be open to adjusting your plans if your mental state doesn’t align with a particular task.
Remember, the key is to keep doing something and trust that creativity will eventually emerge. So keep showing up and keep working towards your creative goals.