With everything that's going on right now, there may seem like more pressure on creatives to be creative, to keep producing. It's like the world has slowed down but the digital world has only expanded. Social distancing has shown a lot of us how addicted we are to keeping busy. We want to be your reminder that it's still okay to REST & RESET.
How are you using this time now? Have you been kicked into overdrive? Or are you using this time to rest, reset or reflect? Let's change the narrative surrounding slowing down. We shouldn't view resting as wasting time, or as a task. Rest is ACTIVE and necessary. Maybe you aren't being lazy, maybe you aren't unmotivated, maybe you just need to relax.
BENEFITS OF REST
Scientists studying brain scans recently discovered that moments of creativity take place when the mind is at rest rather than working on something. Creative rest can be a creative act in itself.
Here are five forms of creative rest we believe are important for creatives
WALKING
Sometimes the best way to give our minds a rest is to give our bodies a workout. We know outside feels illegal these days, but taking a walk alone isn't. Counterintuitively, as our minds relax, they often come up with their most creative ideas. Walking breaks them loose. It’s a technique that’s been proven not just anecdotally (everyone from Henry David Thoreau to Steve Jobs swore by it), but scientifically. One study found that walking outside produced twice as many creative ideas as sitting in a room. Even subjects who walked on a treadmill while staring at a blank wall were able to produce, on average, 60 percent more ideas that were both novel and appropriate. (That’s the scientific definition of creativity, by the way: novelty + appropriateness.) If you find your ideas getting stale, or if you’re reaching that hyperventilation-inducing point of creative block, give your mind a rest: get your feet moving.
MEDITATION
Nothing shuts down creativity like stress. Meditation is the simplest thing in the world. You basically put yourself in time-out. You quietly sit alone for 10 minutes. Focus on your breathing. When thoughts come to your mind, good or bad, acknowledge them and let them pass. Don’t beat yourself up because of your frantic mind, but don’t indulge it either. After long enough, your mind will clear, your breathing will slow, and weight you weren’t even aware of will lift off your shoulders.
SIDE PROJECTS/HOBBIES
Finding a hobby ⎯ even a creative hobby ⎯ outside of your main craft can give your mind the rest it needs. Everything doesn't have to equal a bag! Do something you genuinely love to do. No strings, no pressure.
We love Hiut Denim Co’s definition of side projects:
They don’t have to provide you with a living. You can still eat if they fail.
They don’t have a deadline. And as there is no time pressure, you don’t revert to your usual formula. You try new things. You experiment. You take risks.
This is a Labour of Love. You provide the ‘Labour’. And you provide the ‘Love’. So when you spend time on it, it is because you really want to. That keeps you coming back and pushing it on.
SLEEP
There is this ideal image of the red-eyed, manically creative insomniac pounding out divinely inspired screenplays at one, two, three o’clock in the morning. #TeamNoSleep #RiseAndGrind #HustleHard is NOT a healthy reality. Sleeping is, in some way, a dress rehearsal for creating. Our minds are not only resting, they are processing information, making connections. Honestly, nobody is sure what all is happening, but we do know it’s important.
So the next time you feel a creative block, try one of these to jumpstart your creativity. Include resting as a part of your creative process. We need you! #SippTalk