4 Powerhouse Time Tips to Max Out Your Creative Productivity

I was thinking this morning about creative time - my kids are at school, hubby running errands, puppy napping… freedom!! Pull out the pastels!! The needlepoint!! My blog!! Anything!!

Aaaaaaand... I turned on Netflix.

Avoidance wears many, MANY different faces. TV. Housework. Social media. Writing to-do lists. Even helping others.

But what is it exactly that we are avoiding?

Our Weird Relationship With Creative Time

Let’s be honest here - projects-to-be are terrifying. What if our creativity falls flat? What if we don’t have enough skill? What if no one likes what we create?

Think of procrastination as a time-based defense mechanism for the overwhelmed artist. When the “what if’s” take over, avoidance begins.

But perversely, in the midst of our avoidance, we naively expect to EXPLODE with creativity the moment we “find” spare time. With that kind of pressure, it’s no wonder our minds go into creative lockdown when it looks like we might just get that time!

So, how do we kick counter-creative mindsets to the curb?

How to Use Time to Your Advantage

Time is a tool, just like our paintbrush, chisel, needle, or pen. It is NOT our friend, and it sure ain’t our enemy. Like any tool, when we use it incorrectly, we get crap results. Tell me if these sound familiar:

• Using time as an excuse

• Treating time as your master

• Wasting time

The first step toward moving from procrastinator to productive genius is to stop letting time dictate your life, and start using it for the tool that it is. Here are 4 tried-and-true techniques to do just that:

4 Time Tips to be Abundantly Creative

1) Schedule your creative time.

What?! Isn’t creativity supposed to be spontaneous and “in the moment”?? Sure, it can be. But if you want to really hit your full creative stride, you’ll need to build a solid structure for that spontaneity to springboard from.

Schedules and routines are ideal for making time work for us… creative time included. Block it out on your phone or calendar, and let others know that you’ll be “out of pocket” during these times. How spontaneous you choose to be within your “you time” is also entirely up to you!

Remember what we talked about last week? Momentum is more than half the battle when it comes to keeping the inspiration flowing, so schedule it!

2) Know your time style.

When it comes to projects, what’s your time style?

• Are you the type that thrives on a time crunch?

• Do you prefer to pace yourself?

• Or are you the artist who needs to pretend time doesn’t exist in order to get your creative on?

You might transition from one to the other depending on the project and your state of mind, but here’s how to roll with ANY style…

For DOWN-TO-THE-WIRE CREATIVES, keep your clock in plain view. Assign yourself deadlines. Set challenging goals with ambitious timelines. And, whenever possible, promise to show someone your work by a certain date/time to add accountability and urgency to your creative flow!

For the PACE-SETTERS, set regularly spaced alarms, with goals to complete by each. When your alarm goes off, take a moment to check in on where you’re at, and what you plan to complete by the next alarm. Over time, you’ll develop a solid sense of what you can accomplish in any given time window. Then have some fun with it! Challenge yourself to gradually achieve more and better quality work in the same amount of time!

For the FREEDOM-SEEKERS, your mission is to eliminate as many distractions as possible before your creative time. Eat, use the restroom, walk your dog, turn the ringer off on your phone, close your laptop… you want your creative time to be 100% creative time, so you can stay in the zone!

3) Use your circadian rhythm.

Everyones’ bodies have a natural flow of energy peaks and valleys throughout the day (think: mid-morning hustle and post-lunch siesta!) When are YOUR (uncaffeinated) energy highs and lows?

If you’re rocking at 10am, I’ll tell you right now - that is NOT the time to do dishes! Give that brilliance instead to your creative self. It will pay you back in dividends of artistic productivity!

Already have prior claims on that time window? No problem. Keep an eye out for your second wind… or even third. Post-dinner, early morning, or - my personal fave - after 10pm!

4) Prepare to be brilliant!

Save 10 minutes at the end of each creative time to set yourself up for the next one. You’re in the flow NOW, so NOW is the time to capture sketches, ideas, and other brainstorms - while they’re hot off the presses!

Those last 10 minutes are also the perfect time to prep tomorrow’s materials, clean your work space, and order supplies for next week’s projects. You’ll thank yourself tomorrow, when the only thing you need to do is, well, CREATE!

………….

Today, I turned off the TV and took my own advice, which is why you’re reading this blog.

What avoidance technique did YOU ditch today, and what creative craft did you choose to take its place?

Put your answer in the comments section below. Then let’s go be brave together!

Dawn B.

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