In The Next 30 Days

I’ve had a hell of a week. I went to Arkansas for a funeral. I loved on my extended family, chewed a lot of bubble gum (it’s what my Mimi wanted), laughed, cried, and came home to my sweet kiddos and a broken heater. I’ve got a bit of a cold, and I’m missing my yoga. I’m a bit desperate to get caught up with the Downtown Abbey I’ve missed. (No spoilers, please.) Creativity is kind of elusive for me, right now. I’m not afraid to say it out loud.

Sometimes, when I get stuck, sometimes if find myself staring randomly at a search engine, feeding it search terms that are overly specific and not terribly helpful. Do you do this too? I type something like, “How do I spark my creativity when I get stuck in a slump?” And I get back a million results that aren’t really what I need. And that’s about when I remember super sites like Greatist.

I found Greatist’s article “36 Surprising Ways to Boost Creativity for Free.” Awesome, right?

There are some really great suggestions here. And they’re great not because they answer my question, but more because some of them are specific and instantly applicable: meditate, write by hand, have a drink, literally sit outside the box, or laugh. And some of the hacks are long-term solutions: don’t expect perfection, travel abroad, or spend some time alone.

I’m going to try to apply some of these solutions into my daily life to see what can come of it. After all, anything that moves me one step closer to Great is certainly worth it.

Tell me, what are your hacks that help you be more creative? I REALLY want to know.