I had a good chat with my colleague about being stuck and feeling uninspired all the time. And the lack of exposure sometimes causes us to deteriorate in terms of creative ideas and skills. I can’t blame her for feeling that way, because these things happen. Especially when you have needs & wants to fulfill while living up to certain requirements.
Based on my experiences, I decided to give her suggestions on how to balance life as a graphic designer with her inner and outer world. It’s the least I can do as a friend because I can relate to her dilemma. Her problem was not being able to design good artworks the same way as before, and have been feeling uninspired. However, she is leaning towards on seeking soul-food for her inner.
Suggestions for my colleague (Which you can apply to yourself too if you are facing creative blockages too):
Outer-world
So, my colleague has a lot of friends, and according to her, she enjoys spending time with her friends after work for a drink or a chat. To some people, friends are like families, and that’s great! And for people like me, I enjoy my love’s company, because he is my family.
Your life in the outer world is important to, never neglect it. Some recommendations you can do:
Movies
Great for inspirations
Music
Your soul is a natural dancer
Laughter
When you laugh, your soul laughs. Your Self and your thoughts will light up
Friends & Family
It is good to meet up with them,
because believe it or not, the lives of your friends & family are your inspiration too. They can inspire you, motivate you, and sometimes you might get a message or two that could be the answer to any situation you are in
Outings
Always good! and the best to observe things around you. The more things you see, the more inspirations you'd get, and maybe do some simple point & shoot photograph too!
Inner-world
As mentioned, my colleague feels uninspired lately. I explained to her that since she has her outer-world life covered, she needs to balance her inner-world which can affect her creative blockage. I gave her an example that each profession has its own required tools. For example, a doctor with his stethoscope and medical reference books, a tailor with a tailoring mannequin, sewing machine and a sewing kit, a computer-gamer with his keyboard, head phones and mouse. So, coming back to the point of being a graphic designer in an art field, I asked her what her tools are; she said, a mouse, a Wacom tablet and a sketchbook.
I told her that her priority is a sketchbook and a marker (preferably Sharpie, that’s just my favourite! Haha!) And I told her that take time to draw and doodle as much as she wants, as freely as she can be. When it comes to intuitive drawings, there are no rules, no rights or wrongs, no limitations with no one to stand beside you to point out your mistakes.
Here are some recommendations:
Sketch book and marker
Read books or blogs
Creative books or blogs has a way of inspiring you, whether it is for a light read or reference, it sure does take away some stress off your shoulder
Permission
I recently learned that we hardly give ourselves permission to rest, relax, laugh, cry, or just sit around and do nothing just because we have a long day. So, I told her, give yourself permission to do so; if your body tells you that you need to sleep, do it
Alone time
Being alone does not mean loneliness. Many have misunderstood this idea. Alone time means giving yourself sometime to be away from noise, and sometime to reflect your actions
At the end of our conversation, my colleague lighted up when I told her these guidelines, and I think she is finally ready to create again because when I walked pass her desk; I saw her scribbling and doodling away in her cute little notebook. Thumbs up!
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