When you’re attempting to get into a creative mindset, there are many things that stop you. For instance…
How often do you say “I’m not feeling it today”?
Or “I’m not inspired”?
Or “I’m just not in the mood”?
If you’re anything like I was – then pretty often. But this
is a cop out.
I’ll bet you’ve had those days when you’ve woken up
happy and inspired, the sun’s shining, your workspace
is in order, and you’re working on something you’re
really excited about. You might have even worked out
what you were going to do. Everything is perfect, you feel like you’ve got the perfect creative mindset.
But when you sit down…
Nothing. Zip. Zilch. Nada. Blank.
“I’m just not in the mood…….That must be it.”
But you know what – while I’ve told myself that “I’m
not in the mood” more times than I care to remember
– it’s rubbish.
Apart from anything else, what effect do you think
constantly telling yourself that will have on you? Will it
help or hinder your attempts to have a creative mindset?
If you’re not in the mood now then when? Are you going
to spend the rest of your life a slave to this alleged mood?
Or are you going to work out what to do about it?
Yes – you can choose to be have a creative mindset or not. And there are many things that will
determine whether you are, nearly all of which you have the power to change.
- Where you are when you work
- How you sit or stand.
- Where you look.
- What you think about/focus on.
- What you say to yourself.
- What pictures you have in your mind.
- How you feel.
- How you breathe.
- What you believe about yourself.
- The reason you are doing it.
All of these things (and many more) will have a direct
impact on whether you feel creative or uncreative, and
on how much you produce and how good it is.
The trick is to learn what to look for and how to keep
doing the things that make you creative and avoid doing
the things that make you uncreative.
When you can do that, then you’ll stop saying:
“I’m not in the mood”.
Instead you’ll say:
“I’m not in the mood…yet.
Give me a minute.”