Emotional Connections To Beat Creative Blocks
Creativity blocks always happen at the worst time. I’m sure you experienced the notion of having to deliver on a deadline and suddenly all you do is stare at the computer screen, not knowing what to write next.
I can relate to this a lot. To make matters worse, in those moments we start to do all kinds of unrelated things like:
- Checking our email inbox, just to see whether that new client has replied.
- Making things worse by thinking about our inability to come up with a decent piece, which of course doesn’t help.
- We start feeling inadequate which makes us cranky.
- We beat ourselves up mentally.
- We start reading our RSS feeds only to feel even more inadequate since the whole world seems to have updated their blogs and e can’t think of an idea for the sake of it.
- We pull the plug on the computer and join a boxing class to let out the frustration.
- …
The conversation between the source (you) and the brain
Interestingly enough, we all seem to do the same things when we are stuck. It is normal to hear our mind rambling on about this and that and in those times it is even worse. The inner critic goes something like this:
….”Why can’t you think of an idea for a blog post, damn it’s only a little post isn’t it?
I don’t know. If I did I would write something useful, ah well, I might just check my email….tsk…nothing there and here I as hoping that xyz had written back by now. Oh well, let me quickly check my RSS feeds.
Wow, look at all these great posts. Surely I shouldn’t be feeling stuck. There are plenty of ideas here for me…. ah splat”…*she gets up and makes herself a cup of tea….”what is wrong with me today?”….. *she sees an interesting post that leads to another one…. and another one…. and yet another one.
Meanwhile in the brain “you really have lost the plot today haven’t you?” “Oh shucks, what shall I write about? Maybe I could…. nah, that wouldn’t work. I feel drained, exhausted, maybe I’m burned out.”
…..
Can you relate to this type of communication within your brain? If you do, let it be known that you are certainly not alone. In some ways we all engage into negative self talk once in a while.
Raise your awareness
As long as you are aware when this happens you can do something about it. Acknowledge that the negative voice wants to communicate with you and take note of what it wants to say. Keep persisting though because the moment you give power to the negative voice, it wins. The only way around this dilemma is to get active.
Write!
Whatever it is, just get writing. But here is a little secret that has helped me many times before.
Use an emotional connection
Maybe there is a reason you find it hard to write. Our mind works in mysterious ways and often we are reminded by our subconscious that there are indeed issues that need to be dealt with.
Find a connection and use this to tap into your creative self. If that means you have to blog about organizing your office because it is a mess, do it.
The emotional tie that connects us to our block is often what’s needed to break through the walls of self limitations.
Always be truthful to yourself though no matter how hard this is. I use a simple method that has helped me ever since I got started. I always follow my heart.
Monika
About the Author: I'm a passionate freelance writer and problogger. To further build my business I'm also in the process of building my own niche empire which pays me residual income.
Brett Legree | Aug 2, 2008 | Reply
Monika,
Great post! I have an emotional connection to pen and paper. There’s something about the feel of the paper, the feel of the pen writing on it, the smell of the paper and the ink (yes, I can still smell the ink!)
So I step away from the computer, and write with pen and paper for a bit. Usually just point form. But it works.
-Brett
Jenny | Aug 2, 2008 | Reply
I really like this post! I have been feeling this way for a while. I’ve been trying to post a blog but have had no inspiration to do it when I am sitting in front of the computer. I haven’t posted in a really long time, I think I completely lost July! I believe I have now come to a conclusion why, sort of. I’m still working on figuring it out. I need to just sit down and write like you said, but of course I’ve been catching up on reading blogs and checking e-mail, it is now time for bed!
Maybe tomorrow!
Evelyn Lim | Attraction Mind Map | Aug 2, 2008 | Reply
I find that whenever I am stuck for ideas, I will shut down my PC, sit quietly and look internally. It is only when I connect to myself, can I begin to write. I also write with better clarity after the few minutes of silence.
Rita | Aug 3, 2008 | Reply
Monika,
Another well-written, inspirational blog. I was going to write an “original” comment, but I see that Brett beat me to it. (Yeah, Brett!)
I write my blogs on paper – with a pencil – start to finish. I find that the connection of the words coming from my own hands to my brain, has always been a better way to write almost anything (except e-mail responses) than using a keyboard, which is connected more to a machine than my brain.
Then, a few minutes of typing – and I’m done. This allows me to write anywhere, at any time, without distractions…and if I need to look something up. I use these books called “dictionary, “thesauraus” “Kate Turabian’s” grammar book(s)or “Bartlett’s Quotations.” I will ONLY turn the computer on while writing, if I need to locate a rare piece of esoterica – which I rarely do.
Thanks once again for the great post!
Rita
Monika | Aug 3, 2008 | Reply
@ Brett: LOL, love the smell and feel of paper. It’s funny you mentioned bullets, since that is exactly how I write on paper too.
I usually doodle and do little brainstorm sessions which are a lot of fun. You are right though. Working with paper has a calming effect.
Monika | Aug 3, 2008 | Reply
@ Jenny: Perhaps you were burned out or you wrote about things that didn’t light your fire. In the end, you do the right thing by reflecting. The answers will come to you I’m sure.
Best wishes and don’t be too hard on yourself.
Monika | Aug 3, 2008 | Reply
@ Evelyn Lim: You are so right. Connecting with us is key I think. Like you I also look for a quiet spot. Usually it is my sunny and warm veranda, overlooking the back garden. There is a myriad of birds and I just love watching them and gaze into nothing.
Monika | Aug 3, 2008 | Reply
@ Rita: I admire you for being able to do this. I’m not sure whether I would enjoy writing long blog posts as much by hand. Plus, this would probably take me like 4 hours since I’m a two fingered keyboard ninja.
LOL
I do however LOVE my two Moleskine and am forever scribbling into them. I guess this isn’t writing in the traditional sense.
Brett Legree | Aug 3, 2008 | Reply
@Monika,
Cool! We’re like peas in a pod in some ways.
I do the doodling and brainstorming completely on paper, especially mindmaps. I tried some software to do this, but it was too restrictive. It is easier for me to do it on paper, and then scan it if I need to have it in electronic form.
Plus, there’s some great software out there that recognizes handwritten scans (EverNote and OneNote both do a pretty good job).
-Brett
Brett Legree | Aug 3, 2008 | Reply
I didn’t beat you by much, Rita! Wow, I’m with Monika on this one, that is great that you hand write everything.
Very good!
-Brett
Tom Volkar / Delightful Work | Aug 3, 2008 | Reply
Thinking about this I see that you are correct. Often I’ll initially find my inspiration because I’m passionate about something and want to see it changed.
It feels good to be fired up and the writing just flows when I am.
Leanne Magraith | Aug 4, 2008 | Reply
I have a small note book I carry around with me. Sometimes when I am travelling by bus to and from work a blog post idea will pop into my head. I have even had some really good ideas pop into my head in the middle of a work meeting(discrete scribbling into my note book and it looks like I am just taking a few notes for myself of the meeting).
I then make a few dot points on this idea, and in doing this try to find a particular aspect I feel an emotional connection to or something that resonates with me. When I can’t think of anything to write I go to my notebook for inspiration, and I can usually find a least the beginnings of a post idea ready to be fleshed out.
Monika | Aug 4, 2008 | Reply
@ Brett: Peas in a pod? I like that very much, plus I like peas too, yummy stuff.
Electronic mind mapping tools are fun to play with initially, but after a while they become too time consuming. When I have an idea, I haven’t got time to login to the software, grab the tools to create my mind map and remember what I was thinking about at the same time.
Give me pen and paper any day (preferably a Moleskine, hehehe….:-) )
Monika | Aug 4, 2008 | Reply
@ Tom Volkar: Hello Tom, nice to have you stop by. I heard a lot of good things about you and now I’m off to visit your site in return.
Yep, I’m a strong advocate in having passion for whatever we do. Passion makes the world go round and when we have it, we are in the zone.
Brett Legree | Aug 5, 2008 | Reply
@Monika,
Glad you like! That’s also why I stopped using an electronic PDA, and haven’t used much in the way of digital to-do lists etc.
I mean, there’s some good software out there, don’t get me wrong – but it is just to cumbersome for me, personally. It works for some folks, but for me, pen and paper is best.
(In a Moleskine, definitely!)
-Brett
Melissa Donovan | Aug 5, 2008 | Reply
Oh yes, I’ve been there before, many times! There are just too many ways to procrastinate online when inspiration isn’t clicking. I’m definitely going to try fostering an emotional connection next time I bump into this problem. Thanks for the tip!
Monika | Aug 5, 2008 | Reply
@ Brett: It always makes me laugh when people go on about their PDA’s. The time it takes to set the machine up, type in your addresses and appointments is horrendous. Unless of course something drastically has changed in the last 10 years.
Pen and paper are so much easier and fuss free to boot.
Brett Legree | Aug 5, 2008 | Reply
@Monika,
The turning point for me came a couple of years ago. I had been trying a Palm Zire and it seemed to work well for me. Then I had to reinstall the software as I got a new work computer.
And… the software was not available for download from Palm! Right on the web site, it said, “software not available for download – you must use the CD that came with your Zire”.
Which I had lost. I rotated my body about 15 degrees in my chair, and dropped the PDA in the trash can…
Pen & paper for me from that point on.
Lindsay | Aug 5, 2008 | Reply
A nice thoughtful post.
I actually just wrote a post that covered some of the ways I keep from getting the dreaded blogger’s block, heh. For me, it’s a combination of picking a big enough niche that I won’t get tired of covering it, and continually reading and learning new things, even (especially) outside my niche. I’m always surprised at how many ideas for blog posts I get from totally unrelated material. One of the posts on my writing blog was inspired by a podcast of a day trading pro, heh.
Monika | Aug 5, 2008 | Reply
@ Melissa: You are welcome. Feeling the passion has certainly helped me do that myself. Talking about procrastination. LOL. You know, the worst thing is when no idea flows and we go off in search for online fodder only to find ourselves still reading some guys blog post 3 hours later.
Oops
Monika | Aug 5, 2008 | Reply
@ Lindsay: It’s funny you wrote that. Hehehe…I find inspiration by watching a movie, or a documentary. Sometimes, when things get real bad I even study the TV magazine for headline hints… it’s true. Funny enough it often works too.
Maybe the next headline should read “inspired by a doco about the mating of Borneo’s lost apes.”
Kelly | Aug 6, 2008 | Reply
“The emotional tie that connects us to our block is often what’s needed to break through the walls of self limitations”…I definitely agree with your statement. Breaking the block is talking about getting out from our box. And for me, my box is my comfort zone. Thanks for the inspiring writting.
Monika | Aug 6, 2008 | Reply
@ Kelly: You are welcome. I write from the heart, my core and I guess it connects with people because they see that I’m just a person like you guys.
You are correct though. You need to break out of the comfort zone to experience growth. Sorry if I sound like a magazine column aunt, but it’s exactly what I did myself.
Kelly | Aug 7, 2008 | Reply
@Monika: No, you don’t sound like a magazine column aunt
… It is very nice when we can learn each other because I believe that everyone has something good in their life. Therefore, we need to listen others opinion and take the good lesson from them. Nice to share with you about value of life.
Ben | Aug 10, 2008 | Reply
I don’t know, I think Hemingway would like your last “unrelated thing”
And my best solution to writer’s block are my Moleskines!
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