Season 8, Episode 6: Sparking Your Creativity

For a podcast about creativity, we’re a little surprised that we’ve not really covered this topic before! In this episode, we dig into the topic of sparking your creativity and what that might look like. We also talk about the myths that kill creativity and how we look for the sparks the ignite the fires of our creative process.

As with most of our conversations, this one definitely wanders up and down and around and about and we’re sure there was plenty more we could have covered. But, ultimately, we hope it sparks a little creativity in you when you give it a listen!

What we talked about

Feeling like this topic is a return to our roots – creatvity was what originally inspired Creative Reboot in the first place!

Energy levels, the back to school feeling of every September (even when you’re long past school age and don’t have children!), how that’s different for some reason this year.

Things affecting our own creativity at the moment (including, but not limited to, perimenopause, returning from travel & trying to get back into the swing of things, the general state of the world).

The seeming lack of creative spark and oomph in the conversations we’ve been having with various people lately, a sort of collective creative slump. The overwhelming state of the world at large and how this impacts our ability, desire & capacity to create.

How important creativity is, especially when the world is on fire and everything is stressful. Even the “silly little things” are important.

That it’s ok to feel uninspired or stuck, but continuing with your creative practice, even if it’s just small things, is really essential to overall wellbeing.

Tips for getting past a creative slump

Well, our experiences and thoughts, anyway! We talked about forcing creativity vs waiting for inspiration, and the different ways that can pan out for different people. Definitely pros and cons to both approaches.

Examples from us – from turning to other creative outlets when one isn’t flowing, to breaking things down into very small tasks to ease back in when your creativity has been absent for a while.

Creative practice vs practising creativity – talking through the difference between making your creativity a regular routine or commitment, and simply exploring creative activities when you fancy them. While our own approaches differ a bit, we’re agreed that different things work for different people at different times, depending on a whole host of factors. #

Creative mythbusting

There are some myths that squash creativity and make it hard even to take a first step, and we wanted to instead squash those myths very firmly.

Needing to have talent first, waiting for inspiration to strike, perfectionism, the expectation or desire to be good at something the first time you try it, and the pressure of being original are all very much in this sphere, and can all be paralysing when you’re out of the habit of being creative.

Allow yourself to make “bad art” – no art is really bad, but make a mess, make marks, do anything in the realm of creativity no matter what the outcome – what matters is the process. Practice makes perfect – and if not perfect, practice is definitely the way you get better at something and develop a skill.

Don’t forget to celebrate the joy of imperfection, and enjoy the experiments along the way.

Finding and using inspiration

Some people are nervous of collecting inspiration in case they accidentally plagiarise, but that shouldn’t be a reason not to fill your world with things that make you feel inspired, spark ideas & make you want to be creative in any way.

We have (of course!) different methods of collecting creative ideas and inspiration, and catching ideas when they occur, ranging through digital and physical archives, sketchbooks, bookmarks and notes. The beauty of a collection is you can do it in the way that works best for you!

Once you have a personal archive, however small, you can dip into it when you’re feeling in need of a creative boost or a dose of inspiration, and it really helps get past a slump when you’re not just wandering round the internet looking for something, anything, to make you feel something. Your archive is a collection of things that have already made you feel something and it’s a great resource to build and keep.

Consuming vs creating

There’s quite a lot of unseen pressure to create not consume, and this is generally a useful thing – so much of modern life is aimed at getting us to mindlessly consume. But sometimes you need to refill your creative well, and choose things to consume which will do that.

Specifics will vary – from books to music, movies to art galleries, and about a billion other different possibilities – but the key is allowing yourself to sink into something which does inspire and spark your creativity, and then switch back to creative process & output once you’ve refilled a bit.

Sometimes the gathering of materials & resources can be a creative spark in itself!

Other ways to boost creativity

Other things we talked about include keeping your creative materials close & accessible, or having a mini toolkit available for small windows of time or any spontaneous bursts of inspiration that might strike.

Spaces, places and routines can all help in different ways too – maybe having a particular notebook to hand, or a tool you carry with you, or somewhere specific you go to be creative, so the act of being there gets your brain into the right mode.

And finally

Give yourself permission – we say that a lot, but it’s true, and often harder than it sounds. Permission to create, to make time for your creativity, and to ignore what others think about your choice of creative outlet is very much granted!

Creativity doesn’t have to be forced, but it should be noticed, nurtured and prioritised when it does show up – and if you can do things to encourage it even when it’s a bit reluctant, that also helps.

Whatever works for you is good – no matter how small or unconventional it may seem.

Links you’ll love

Carla’s “65 ways to kickstart your creativity” download in her shop

Sarah’s “The Art of Freewriting” blog post

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