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Fighting Burnout Find Inspiration
and Remain Creative
http://www.telefilm-south.com/Georgia/Oz/Oz6-3/leftbrainer.shtml
By Mary Ann DeMuth.
Article copied and pasted for
the sole purpose of sharing it with the readers -all rights belong to the
authors.
The creative process is messy.
Ideas tend to surface randomly, then retreat just as unpredictably. The only
certainty is that we cannot conjure up creativity on demand. Meanwhile, we're
in businesses that are based on order, control and often, efficiency. As clients
wait and deadlines loom closer, we often question our creative performance
and try harder to force it. Like a rocket engine that shuts down from fuel
exhaustion, many creatives burn out or falter and fall.
How can we restart the engine
and climb back to the idea space? How can we maintain our creative fuel and
avoid burning out? The key is finding inspiration and drawing on it for creative
nourishment. In a recent presentation to the Freelance Forum, Bob Wages of
Wages Design said, "Inspiration is inhaling - it's what you bring into your
life - it affects how you work and the people you work with." What inspires
some people, may not affect others, but here is a sampling of inspirational
suggestions to help jump-start creativity.
Feed Your Head When your brain
hungers for creative ideas that are just out of reach, try giving it something
else to digest. An effective technique for many creative people is to get
away from the problem at hand and give the ideas the time and space necessary
to germinate. "If ever I feel blocked or stumped, I take the day off," says
Elizabeth O'Dowd, Vice President and Chief Creative Officer at BrightHouse.
"Most creative people forget
the most important step in the creative process - incubation. I read, see
a movie, go to the zoo, visit my four-year-old at daycare - I let my subconscious
do all the work." The type of creative getaway and its length will vary with
the individual. Other effective suggestions include:
1. Meditate. For Arrington Hendley,
Photographer, a ten-minute meditation break seems to work. "I hide somewhere,
in a calm place where I can put everything out of my mind."
2. Enjoy a Hobby. Writer Kathy
Couch, of Couch Communications, Inc., clears her mind and receives inspiration
from gardening. "Weeding is a great metaphor for trying to order my brain,"
she says. Hendley prefers painting watercolors. "I'm awful at it, but I'm
getting better," he says. "Age and patience has taught me how to work with
the medium, and I get a lot of pleasure out of it now."
3. Listen to Music. Wages and
O'Dowd become inspired by music. For Wages, jazz, classical, Broadway musicals,
standards and oldies get him going. O'Dowd turns to "any music by Elvis Costello,
because he is truly creative."
4. Attend a Performance. Jennifer
Singh, Illustrator and Graphic Designer, drifts during concerts or theatre
performances. "In the dark, I can let my mind go," she says. "I find myself
wandering off, daydreaming, and then I'll think about a painting."
5. Play. "All creative people
are kids at heart," says Producer/Director Steve Carmichael, of Steve Carmichael
Productions. "You've got to play - do stuff that's definitely not work to
get off the linear approach to creative work. I keep yo-yos in my office and
I play solitaire on my computer."
6. Take a Trip. For Designer
Hal Smith, Vice President and Creative Director of Critt Graham + Associates,
travel provides a new perspective. "I look at the ways other cultures and
people communicate, and it helps me view things differently." If an out of
town trip is not possible at the moment, try a vacation in your mind. "When
I ride my motorcycle, I can get a week's vacation in five minutes," notes
Carmichael.
7. Go to a Gallery or Art Show.
"It's something I don't do nearly enough," says Singh, "but, I get really
inspired by other artists' work."
8. Work in a Different Medium.
Singh also turns to media other than her usual watercolor and pastels when
things become a bit too predictable. "If you force yourself to work in different
media, you can get yourself out of that predictability," she says. "I try
sculpting or collage, anything to come up with something different."
9. Have Fun with Techno-Toys.
Many people view computers and the technology they have spawned as the ultimate
toys. For Carmichael, the constantly changing technology is invigorating.
"It's very exciting," he says. "So much is new in film and video production,
and the toy box gets bigger every year. I keep up with the technology and
mentally file techniques away until I find an appropriate use for them." Get
Physical Often, challenging the body physically will stimulate the brain and,
at minimum, it will relieve stress, which Carmichael feels is, "rotten for
creativity."
10. Exercise. Author Julia Cameron,
in her book, The Artist's Way, advocates a brisk 20-minute walk to boost creativity.
For Smith and Singh, running helps to clear the cobwebs and restore balance.
"Designers tend to work too much," notes Smith. "My wife and I run together
and that helps me put balance back in my life." Couch prefers clearing her
mind with Tai Chi or a walk in the woods. Get Spiritual Cameron believes the
creative path is ultimately a spiritual one that involves a higher source
of creative energy, no matter what we choose to call it.
11. Seek the Ultimate Creator.
Wages says, "Whatever brings spirituality to you is important, it shows up
in everything you do." Go Back to the Basics Regardless of your creative discipline,
sometimes it is helpful to take a step back and reflect on what you learned
in school or the types of things that inspired you to enter the creative field
in the first place.
12. Theory Books. "I keep a lot
of design theory books around," says Smith, "and I go back and read about
the basics of problem-solving. When I'm stymied, sometimes this reference
material kick-starts my thought process. I also look in the dictionary or
thesaurus for word concepts."
13. Master Works. Hendley returns
to his first love, classical paintings. "The photographs I make are
almost storybook," he says, "and I get a lot of inspiration from looking at
paintings."
14. Personal Projects. Hendley also recognizes the importance of pursuing
projects on his own. "I spend two or three hours a week thinking about things
I'd like to photograph, or other art projects, and I jot down my ideas," he
says. Get a Little Help From a Friend Often the creative process is a lonely
one, either because we work as freelancers from our homes, or because we are
insulated within our work environment. Solitude can be good for concentration,
but sometimes input from others helps to forment creativity.
15. Brainstorming. "I like to bounce ideas off of a creative friend, or
my husband, or work with a designer," says Couch. "I can usually get something
started with another person. We begin throwing out silly things, then gradually
narrow the ideas down." Smith agrees, saying clients and co-workers are great
sources of inspiration. "We are trying to get more of a collaborative effort
going among our designers," he says. "We've got an incredible brain trust
here, and we need to leverage that creative talent."
For Wages, inviting other designers into the process dramatically improved
his design. "I used to be the 'Imperial Designer', everything that went out
was my design," he says. "Then, the pressure made me start to share the work.
I stopped being a 'me' company, now everything is 'we', an ensemble, and the
work is better." 16. The Talent Rush. Thinking about the talents of the crew
he will put together inspires Carmichael. "I get really motivated thinking
about the people who will work with me on a project," he says. "I think about
their individual talents and how these will boil over into a creative stew."
Look Around Many times, we can find inspiration under the heading of "count
your blessings." While a creative business may not be the easiest, it has
many benefits, including freedom and variety. Under the pressure of deadlines
and demanding clients, we can lose sight of some of the most enjoyable and
inspiring aspects of our business.
17. Enjoy the Surroundings. Work environment can play a big role in creativity.
Wages works in a big open room where he can, "look at trains all day." Singh
loves working at home in her quiet neighborhood, where she can sit on the
screened porch and contemplate wildlife. O'Dowd says, "There is no better
environment than BrightHouse. We actually work in a house, a long way from
the black leather and steel penthouse of the 80's. You must be relaxed to
be creative, and I don't understand how people can be creative in those ugly
tall buildings."
18. Appreciate The Family. "I believe that family is nourishment for the
creative process," observes Carmichael. "It's the ultimate break, and there
is no substitute for what we get from our loved ones. It's so different from
what we do in work, but we've got to have that balance."
19. Trust Your Instincts. Often, we second-guess ourselves and our ideas,
and that hampers creativity. Remembering our strengths and taking pride in
our work can be inspirational. "Part of being creative is putting yourself
out there," says Singh. "If you are self-conscious of your ideas, it's more
difficult to let them flow. Ultimately, you have to trust yourself." Carmichael
agrees, extending the self-trust into the types of work he tries to get. "I
won't offer myself to a client unless I'm enthusiastic about the project,"
he says. "If I have to struggle, it will show in the work, just as my enthusiasm
will show."
20. Be Open - Allow For Serendipity. Creative ideas can come from weird
places, and we have to be open to receive them. Sometimes that's hard to remember
when an outline or storyboard is done, the design has been approved, or the
set is up for the photo shoot. But, if we remain open to inspiration, we may
be able to improve our work by embracing a new idea. "You have to allow for
serendipity," advises Carmichael. "It will happen even on the most tightly
controlled production, and you have a choice, you can go with it or fight
it. I find my productions are better if I invite it in.
" Hendley agrees, "Often, I'm not unhappy with where a shot is, but then
I'll have a realization that takes the idea further. I usually leave my set-ups
as long as possible so I can jump in and do another version if I feel I should.
I tend to change things more often, but it makes a big difference to me."
When the creative ideas emerge, most people try to be prepared by having
a pad of paper and a pen handy to write them down. Glove compartments and
bedside tables are among the preferred locations for note pads. One of the
biggest things we must remember is that creative blocks happen to nearly everyone,
and a lot of creatives do burn out. "It was important for me to accept that
this is normal," says Couch. "To avoid it, I try to have a balanced life,
a steady stream of stimulus coming in. I try to feed my brain and my creative
engine by not working all hours of the night under tremendous pressure." Couch
says she's also developed a process to start her engine.
As an initial exercise, she sits down with a new project for about an hour.
"I try to have no expectations. I just start writing, mostly stream of consciousness
stuff. Then, I put it away and do something else. When I come back to it the
next day, I have a starting point. If the flash is going to happen, it happens
somewhere else and it's more likely to happen if I've started the process."
The fact that we tend to get our "Ahas" when we're doing something else, sleeping,
driving, showering, etc., suggests that they are in our brains all along,
fueled by the various things that inspire us. "We process an unbelievable
amount of inspiration every day," observes Smith. "It's all in there. Every
designer or writer I know talks about something that 'just clicks.' I think
it's about discovery. The ideas are there, we just have to find them."
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