How to Spring Back at Your Creative Best after Experiencing Setbacks


Every phase of our life is like a circle. We keep moving to a different tangent in response to our up-rise and downfall radius. A self-evaluation measurement must be plotted and analysed to transform the performance graph. Now, when I look at my own graph, it has been full of peaks and valleys. I believe that this is how life is meant to be. Wouldn’t that be more exciting and challenging ‒ to reach our destiny by running up and down the race?

People say, ‘Work is worship’; I say, ‘Work awakens the real passion in you.’ The time arises when we are pushed down, messed up, and pushed aside. There are some hard hitting moments that define our downfall.

Problems Creatives / Designers Face In Their Career:

  • Failed projects
  • Not getting paid for your work
  • Lack of motivation
  • Less focus
  • Overthinking about past failures
  • Peer pressure
  • Keeping up with the standards
  • Failure in the marketing strategy
  • Work-life imbalance
  • Not meeting client’s expectations
  • Falling short of time
  • Lack of family suppport

 

Here are some of the solutions that will help to resolve your career crisis:

1.  Reflect On Past Achievements

Always remember to thank yourself for your past achievements and where you reached. Pat yoursefl on the back for all the accomplishments and perhaps reward yourself with a lavish treat, exotic holidays, adventure activities or anything from your wish list basket. The past achievements are always rejuvenating.

They always motivate and help you spring back with a new momentum. Remember how you strived to reach your goals and how it helped to discover the new person in you. Trust me, the past memories will show a new mirror of yourself.

  • Recollect your past projects that you’re most proud of.
  • Client’s testimonials – There’s no better feeling, reading through all the good reviews from your clients.
  • Remember how you started off everything with zeal
  • List down the best experiences of your journey.
  • Make a story of your journey, either as a collage or a video and watch it over again.
  • Talk to your co-worker or associates, with whom you share a great bonding. Discuss past experiences of creative collaboration.
  • Take a sample of one of your previous designs and come up with different rooms of innovation. You will realise that there are bundle of ideas still flowing in your creative zone

Never let the problems hover over your thoughts. That is just another hurdle to cross, on your path towards the milestone.

 

2.    Disconnect To Re-connect With Your Inner Self

  • Break away from all the routine to rediscover yourself – Start your day on a fresh note, with Power Yoga, Meditation, Exercise, etc… So, whatever entices your body and soul, should be taken up.
  • Go on a short vacation.
  • Put aside all your tech companions and sit back and relax – This helps in clearing all the unwanted thoughts and the resulting stress, and helps declutter your mind.
  • Take up new hobbies; like, learning to code, photography, travelling, or explore activities like surfing, cycling, and so on, for a change.
  • Go for events connecting with your interests and passion. Meet people with similar wavelength, and share your long term goals and past accomplishments with them.
  • Discover people within your groups or associations, who need help to build their portfolio or create a prototype or learn new tweaks or something similar.

 

3.    You Are Stronger Than You Think

It is easy to fall and drown with the situation based on our judgements. We feel helpless and powerless while walking over such moments. But, ultimately we have the power to control our emotions and opinions, and shape our thoughts.

Don’t let setbacks dampen your spirit. There are hordes of ingenious people who have sailed through the same boat. These days, you will find creative professionals openly talking about their mighty journey on their blogs, videos and podcasts. Learn the failure-success equation from their stories. After all, each day cannot be a rose walk to fancy. One has to walk through the pricky thorns to make the journey more exciting. It is a game of determination and persistency that can either make you or break you.

Don’t run away from the cloudy days, because those days make you stronger and resilient. Face it all like a warrior. You will see how powerful you are. We detest all those bad days and experiences. But have we tried to view them as an opportunity? I have read somewhere that problems are like a new opportunity, knocking at the door, sometimes pounding.

It all began with the Stone Age and now we have evolved to the techno age of flying cars, human robots, driverless cars and so on. Isn’t that enough to prove how tough and powerful we humans are?

 

4.    Let Your Creative Juices Flow Again

It’s time to move on. But how to be more creative again?; you mask ask. Procrastinators keep procrastinating. So don’t be one of them. Start afresh. Step by step, begin the work and make a schedule for yourself. Set a proper deadline for completion. Take frequent breaks to avoid exertion. Set your mind free of all the fears and worries.

Stop worrying and stay focused. Firstly, switch off all the unwanted social media applications to avoid distractions. Finalize your workstation area and organize them with minimal resources required for your work. Maintain a strict time only for official communication. If your entire seating and location is comfortable, half of your work is done. My mantra to stay focused is to simply read an inspirational quote or watch motivational videos before I start off.

If you believe in your work, your values, and your craft, you should never give up on them. No matter what the circumstance. Showcase your talent to the world. Since everything has been simplified by social media, create a fan page on Facebook that displays your creations. Similarly, build accounts on Twitter, Instagram and other relevant social media platforms. Enjoy all the reward and recognition received from them.

Be prepared to also take up criticisms from your competitors. As you work, strive to outperform by exceeding the expectations of your clients. And finally, talk to your family and friends about your work, to garner support.

 

Concluding Thoughts

As a creative professional, we must strive to enhance the creativity by maintaining the uniqueness and quality of our work. A day can be good or bad, depending on how we perceive it and respond with momentum. I hope by now, you would have some ideas on how to be more creative again and be motivated enough to spring back at your level best. Share your experiences in the comments below.

 


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