Photo Courtesy Rebekah J. Designs
With busy workdays, family responsibilities, and other daily life commitments, it can feel difficult at times to find inspiration and get into a creative headspace. Even full-time creatives struggle with this and getting into the creative zone often requires a process and intention.
Brilliant Marketing co-founder Emily sat down with Rebekah, founder and maker behind Rebekah J. Designs, to discuss the different ways she finds motivation and inspiration to get into her creative element.
Tip # 1: Plan an adventure
As a wife and mom who is often needed (or requested) in some way by her family, Rebekah found limited moments to really be alone with her thoughts and creativity. She decided to plan an adventure for herself: a solo creative retreat at a quiet cabin in the woods. Along with her on the retreat, Rebekah brought a crate of books and most of her tools she uses when crafting jewelry pieces. During this time, she allowed herself to draw, read, go out in nature, and make whatever came to mind.
The payoff from her adventure? Having momentum to build the foundation for a whole new collection. So, with friends, family, or alone by yourself, planning an adventure of some kind with the goal of getting creative can bring a whole new level of inspiration and motivation.
Tip # 2: Be intentional with what you are asking from yourself
When choosing a location for her retreat, Rebekah planned it so that it was far enough away that she’d have time to get into the mindset of creating during the drive there. When she arrived, she set up her studio with intention and told herself that if she wasn’t feeling creative in the moment, that it wouldn’t be stressful. There is no pressure to create within a certain time frame.
Many times, good results come after giving yourself permission to not do it all and take things slow and to just be. In addition to using intention to keep an open mind, you can use it to gain inspiration. Rebekah mentioned the importance of intentionally being in the moment, thinking about the space you’re in both mentally and physically. What do you see in front of you, can you touch it? How does the air smell around you? What has been going on in your life and how are you feeling in this moment? By taking notice of your surroundings, feelings, and what you hope to achieve, you might just find what you need to start creating.
Tip #3: Add a moment of mindfulness to your day
Bringing mindfulness into your life goes hand in hand with being intentional. At Brilliant Marketing, we enjoy beginning our meetings or day with mindfulness. We do this by intentionally taking a minute (or a few) to follow a guided meditation, stretch, or do some breathwork. Mindfulness has been shown to increase creativity, collaboration, and focus. It is taking a step back before moving forward, creating a space for nothingness, and being in the moment with yourself.
For Rebekah, adding in mindfulness often comes in other forms. For her, waking up early to grab coffee from a favorite coffee shop and having dedicated quiet time to listen to the sounds of the world waking up lets her start the day in a positive headspace. Additionally, she finds tidying up her workstation at the beginning of the day to be meditative and helps get her mind ready for the day ahead.
Tip #4: Get it out of your head and onto paper (or in Rebekah’s favorite way: post-it notes)
Do you ever have an inventory buildup of mental notes and ideas that are starting to overload you and feel a bit messy? Let them out and put them on display in front of you! When Rebekah hired Brilliant Marketing to take her brand’s storytelling to the next level, we listened to all her ideas, vision, and goals for her business and wrote them down on post-it notes in front of her. Physically seeing her words and being able to move them around brought a whole new meaning and connection to them. And now this post-it note method is one of her favorites—and Emily agrees it’s at the top of her list!
Another way Rebekah gets out her ideas is by grabbing a big sheet of paper, setting it down on a table, and writing, doodling, or drawing whatever comes to mind. Give yourself a large space to put down ideas. This allows for easier flow from building off one idea to the next.
Tip #5: Reach out to your community
Feeling stuck creatively, whether that be with a design, collection, branding, or storytelling can feel frustrating; especially when you are so close to finding the last piece of the puzzle completing the whole big picture. When you are in this position, sometimes the best thing you can do is reach out to someone you know within your community. For Rebekah, that person isn’t always someone close to her. Many times, it is someone outside the realm of her creative space, such as a customer, new connection, or other creatives from her organization that will offer new perspectives and inspiration.
Don’t be afraid to reach out to your network! Meeting and talking with other people, creating friendships, and seeing different perspectives can be extremely motivating when you’re in a creative slump.
Whether you consider yourself creative or not, these tips can be helpful to anyone! There is no one way to get your creative flow going, but many. Depending on where you are at in life, different methods will be more successful than others. It is okay (and encouraged!) to change up your creative process and try new things.
Learn more about Rebekah, her work, and shop her jewelry:
Instagram: @rebekahjdesigns
Website: rebekahjdesigns.com
Need someone to listen and help organize all your built-up brand goals and ideas? Contact us today.
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