How to break out of the creative rut

It’s a myth that only highly intelligent people are creative. 

Research shows that once you pass an IQ of about 120, intelligence and creativity are not related. What keeps people from tapping into creativity are bad habits picked up throughout the years. Here’s a look at 7 of the most common creative blocks and how to break them down. 

Fearing ambiguity

People want things to make sense.

They tend to break down issues into black and white boxes for clarity.

This can lead to disaster.

But there are some things we’ll never understand. If you can embrace the chaos and lack of clarity,

you can have an advantage over others, you can become a better innovator, you can create some amazing ideas. 

Separating work and play

Letting your mind be at play may be the most effective way to think creatively. Unfortunately, people hear the expression “work hard and play hard” and make them different tasks.

Remember, when you’re a creative thinker, play and work are the same thing. 

Creating and editing simultaneously

Thinking creatively and logically at the same time won’t get you the best results.

When you create, you’re thinking ahead and considering all possibilities. When you evaluate, you judge and pick apart ideas, throwing out those that won’t work.

Remember: think creatively first, edit later.

Otherwise, you’ll stifle innovative ideas before they have the chance to grow. 

Worrying about mistakes

If you try too hard to avoid failure, you’ll also avoid success.

Don’t be afraid of mistakes because you learn from them.

Think about these things:

What’s the worst that can happen if I’m wrong? How can I benefit if I’m right? 

Often times, the potential positives outweigh the negatives. 

The more chances you take (and mistakes you make), the more you’ll succeed. 

Not believing in yourself

Without confidence, you won’t be able to be creative or solve problems. 

To gain confidence, understand how creativity works.

Failure helps you learn. Great ideas can initially seem crazy. Nothing is impossible.

Every person has the ability to become creative.

Just tear down the mental barriers you’ve formed and tap into your inherent abilities. 

Letting others discourage you

You won’t be able to avoid every naysayer in the world. They’ll tell you:

Be sensible. Conform. Don’t rock the boat.

This advice will stifle your creativity.

The solution: ignore them. They’ll have less to say when you succeed and display your creative prowess. 

Being overwhelmed with information

Believe it or not, it’s possible to think about a problem so much that you lose the ability to act. You end up filling your brain with too much information.

Be aware of when you should stop collecting information and when you should start acting. Just like it’s possible to overeat, it’s also possible to overthink.

If you recognize that any of these habits have slowed you down in the past, you can work toward overcoming them in order to embrace and explore your creative side.