Whether a writer, a marketer, or a website designer, chances are you have trouble finding your next source of inspiration. Don’t worry if you can’t simply go to work producing a masterpiece; many (if not all) people, including myself, hold lack of inspiration as one of the biggest peeves and challenges in going to work every day.
If you’re having trouble with writer’s block, or anything similar, I’ve got a few things to try to create the spark necessary to light the fire of creativity.
I spy with my little eye…
Look around you. Everything is created out of some necessity or urge. Everything has a purpose. Televisions were created to provide entertainment in every household. Pianos were created to make pretty noises. Trash cans are collectors or holders of all things unwanted. Computers make it easier to produce, store, and transmit information.
Now think about your purpose. Find an urge which has not yet been fulfilled.
Talk to yourself
When I say talk to yourself, I don’t mean tell yourself what to do. Don’t say, “You should get back to work.” That won’t help. Rather, have a conversation. Ask questions. Every blog post I’ve ever written, and every word in every blog post, has come from a question.
Ask yourself, “What do I know? What can I share?” And when you’ve started writing, “What words will convey the meaning I want?”
Talent borrows
Read something that somebody else has produced. Read your favorite poem, or chapter, or quote. Find something that strikes a chord. Now emulate that. Think about how you feel reading it. Analyze it. Think about the genius, the emotion, that has created this work.
But Genius steals
Steal something. No, I don’t mean plagiarize. Take somebody else’s idea and turn it into your own. Improve upon it. Or argue with it. Critique it. Tear it to shreds. It doesn’t matter what you end up doing with it. Chances are, if you look at something somebody else (or even a younger you) produced, you’ll spot a major flaw, and you can easily advance it toward perfection.
Experiment
Bloggers and columnists share one trouble: the niche. In order to be successful, you must be narrow. Then, when you get readers, they will further push you into whatever space they need filled. You start as a jack-of-all-trades, producing your own fictional stories and motivational speeches, providing relationship advice, and making over rooms on your spare time. When you realize this is going nowhere, you choose to label yourself a psychology blogger. And then your readers turn to you for your relationship advice and only your relationship advice.
So to find inspiration, try something different. Write a pop song about how happy you are, rather than another politically-heated folk song. Discuss the pros of gay marriage if you’re against it. Focus on a Roman god instead of a Greek one. Just do something different. If you’re stuck on one topic, free yourself on another.
The most important thing to remember when trying to find inspiration is that it is intangible. There are no absolutes. There is nothing concrete to grab or chase. It comes and goes, and it always helps to be prepared for a time when you won’t be inspired. Unfortunately, it’s a fact of life, and will never change.
No related posts.
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
Tags: inspiration
Such a well researched, well written article, well packaged, well wrapped up… hummm, it is hard to find an angle to add & contribute; I need inspiration ;-)))
Let me share how I got over my fears of “falling short” of expectations…
I shut down the internet! if you think about it, everything you can think of has been done, re-done and over-done by someone already; there is a limit beyond which research is detrimental to your health: you end up second guessing yourself and looking for approval. I set this limit in time: I allow so much time to research a subject, period – sometimes as little as 30 minutes; sometimes as much as several years – but fix a time limit; then shut down the internet and start writing.
Start writing right now: YOUR ideas and your opinions, take a position, iron out the wrinkles and publish.
There you go – you likely have written an inspired piece.
How to set a time limit for your research, may be a good idea for a future article…
I’m an artist so I always need new inspiration. What works for me is a single simple exercise: do something new every day even if it’s something small like eating a new ice cream flavor or read a book by an author you don’t know. One new experience a day will keep you inspired for ever!
Yes, it is definitely wise to set yourself a time limit in research. I must say there have been many days where I just couldn’t write because I felt like I was adding nothing new to the topic that hadn’t been discussed ad nauseum. This is why I refuse to write Twitter posts.
Yemoonyah, I’ll have to try to do something new every day from now on. I had never thought something so simple would lead to something so grand, but it makes sense.
I suppose the trick is just to get outside of your typical surroundings once in a while. You’ll never become inspired if you live a life of Office Space.
to get my inspiration, I go outside with pad & pen.
like Fred states, turn off the computer………the thoughts start flying.
well thought out article, I related to the blog topic being narrowed to a niche and readers steering you to a direction, I find that’s happening to me.
thanks!!!