Creative block can be difficult, and everyone has different methods for getting past it. Meditation, drawing or simply taking a break from computer screen time are all effective strategies that may help get ideas flowing again.
Real-Life Inspiration: In Killing Eve, Villanelle attempts to murder a Russian defector with a perfume bottle containing Novichok. This plot line likely draws inspiration from the real-life attempted assassination of Sergei Skripal in Salisbury, England in 2018.
1. Take a Break
Taken regularly, breaks are an essential component of healthy living; unfortunately, many don’t practice them effectively. Failing to take breaks not only damages productivity and output quality; it can also hamper creativity, lead to burnout, and promote counterproductive behaviors such as social media scrolling.
At any point during a work break, it’s advisable to engage various parts of the brain through creative activities or hobbies like gardening and cooking that engage various parts of the mind. While creating art projects may provide unique benefits, even simple hobbies like gardening or cooking can have similar advantages as painting can have on stretching mind muscles and strengthening visual and right brain activity while providing prefrontal cortex rest and improving memory retention.
However, if time for these breaks is scarce, there are other ways you can get their benefits. Interleaving, or switching tasks (known as interleaving) has been shown to provide similar effects as formal breaks – switching tasks from writing an essay to selecting photos for a presentation can help break you out of your current mindset and allow more creative solutions to emerge.
Breaking out of your routine is great for mental health, but having a clear goal for each break is also necessary for return with renewed energy and focus. Therefore, finding an accountability buddy to share a break with can be helpful; together you can set check-in times or a specific date which signifies the end of your break to avoid unknowingly taking more than expected breaks such as three hours.
2. Meditate
Meditation has been practiced for thousands of years and can be found across almost every world religion and scientific studies have demonstrated its benefits to the brain.
Meditation comes in many different forms, but the core elements usually involve sitting comfortably and paying attention to the sensation of breathing. If your thoughts wander off track, bring them back slowly until eventually your state of calm and stillness settles in.
Meditation offers numerous advantages, including reduced stress levels, enhanced health and focus as well as emotional regulation. Meditation also enables individuals to identify any biases, assumptions or mental blocks which restrict creativity. But perhaps its greatest advantage lies in building self-awareness.
Meditation can range from the simple act of sitting quietly with eyes closed in a quiet place without distractions, to using mantras to reduce thoughts that run through your head and distract. Whatever method works for you, consistency and setting small goals are the keys to building the habit of meditation.
Some individuals prefer listening to soothing music when they meditate; others find it more effective to remain silent and listen for nature or their own body’s own sounds, such as breathing in and exhaling stress or hearing their heartbeat.
Meditation serves many different purposes for different people: peace and focus increases; connecting to God or connecting emotionally or spiritually is among them; emotional healing or spiritual development are among many others. But meditation’s ultimate aim is always the same: unlock your full creative potential.
3. Start a Collection
Sometimes all it takes to reignite creativity is collecting. Once you decide what type of collection to pursue – such as old stamps and coins, books, maps, artwork or hats – is to decide what your focus will be. Collect old stamps or coins; old books; maps; artwork or hats may work, as can collecting seashells stones or acorns from nature! Art fairs gallery openings or exhibitions offer another great opportunity for finding pieces for your collection and discovering artists with inspiring works!