8 Ways to Get Inspired and Stay Inspired

Welcome to the Inspiration corner of my blog!

This is where I’ll veer off the arts and crafts trail, and dive deeper into creativity itself.

Despite what popular media leads us to believe, there is SO much more that goes into creating than just… well… creating.

• There’s how to get inspired, and how to face down creative blocks.

• There’s how you feel about yourself and your creative work.

• There’s how to share what you create, and how to handle feedback - good and bad, solicited and not.

• There’s the business side, there’s the hobby side, and there’s the passion side.

• There’s learning about what makes you tick, and how that ties in with what you create.

Most of what you’ll read in my Inspiration blogs comes from personal experience. Some of it, like today’s, also includes the wisdom of fellow creatives. ALL of it is geared toward setting you and me up to thrive, jive, and feel alive in our creative endeavors!

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Around about the time I was dreaming up Dawn B Creative, I had a very interesting discussion with my uncle, who is a composer, retired music teacher, and professional pianist.

I was just coming off of 10 years of mothballing my creative pursuits. He offered up some inspirational gems that were enormously helpful in jumpstarting my stalled creativity, and can do the same for you!

1. Show up. EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.

   One of the best annihilators of creative block is MOMENTUM. Momentum needs consistency, and consistency means that you are more dedicated than the postman, and more regular than Aunt Bertie on fiber.

2. Schedule your creative time.

   Waiting for inspiration to strike is like waiting for a thunderstorm before grocery shopping. Your inner artist will starve between (b)rainstorms. Be prepared - your creative tank might initially feel empty when the clock hits create-o’-clock. But stick with it, and the muses will learn not to be late.

3. Make a decision, and MOVE ON.

   We artists are expert wafflers. Should we create this or that? Stop now, or keep tweaking? Show someone, or shelve it? After putting so much of ourselves into what we create, we are often hyper-afraid to make mistakes… and out pop the stall tactics! Waffling is the enemy of consistency, and consistency - as we know - keeps the creativity flowing. Make an executive decision, and just move on.

4. Persevere.

   As my uncle put it, sometimes with your art you’re scraping rock, other times digging dirt, but don’t give up before you’ve struck gold. “Striking gold” can mean simply finishing and, other times, creating a masterpiece. Either way, persevere. It builds character, stamina AND, handily enough, a portfolio!

5. On the days you feel uninspired, practice technique.

   So, the creative flow didn’t show up today. Excellent! Remember that 90% of mastering (or even trying) any art or craft is understanding the mechanics of how to do it, and then training, training, training your brain and body to team up on technique. Be glad for these days. When inspiration comes back ‘round, you’ll be ready for it!

6. Be authentic.

   It’s hard to stay inspired when you’re riding someone else’s creative coattails. Kits, patterns, and replication are awesome tools for training and motivation. But there comes a point where you need to insert your own voice into the process. I promise, your inspiration will skyrocket when you put yourself - your interests, experiences, ideas, feelings, and energy - into your work.

7. Confidence will take you far; humility farther.

   Prepare to mess up. We artists have a reputation for being uber-self-critical - and we are! It’s one of the things that drives us toward exceptional. But trudging out the rack and noose when mistakes happen is self-indulgent and melodramatic. Perfection is for machines; art - true art - is the product of wonderfully, magnificently imperfect humans. Have patience with yourself and your process, and the creativity will keep on flowing.

8. Trust yourself.

   Everyone else knows what you should create. Everyone else knows how you should make it. Everyone else knows what you should do with it when it’s done. Everyone else isn’t YOU. Be your own advocate. Value the feedback, but remember that inspiration is internal, and is attracted to leadership… yours.

How do YOU stay inspired? Share your ideas with us fellow artists in the comments section below!

This post is dedicated to Uncle John who, at just the right moment, called me out for who and what I really am - an artist - and then educated me on how to be true to that calling. Thank you!

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