Six Simple Ways to Improve Your Creative Motivation

Posted in The Weekly on May 20, 2024 by Cliff Goldmacher

The key to a successful creative practice has very little to do with natural creative ability. Developing your creativity requires an ironclad and consistent work ethic to develop and maintain what I like to think of as your creative muscles. I’ve put together a list of things to keep you motivated as you work your way towards greater - and more consistent - creativity.

1. Set up a dedicated place to create

• Having a place where you can work helps formalize your creative process and makes it easier to do.
• This can be a spot in your office or even a corner of one of your rooms at home.

2. Have a particular time of day to create

• Schedules are good for accountability.
• Stick to your schedule.

3. Don’t wait until you have huge chunks of time

• It’s better to work on your creativity a little every day than it is to wait until you have four uninterrupted hours.
• Consistency, not duration, is the key.

4. Work with a collaborator

• It’s often easier to share the load when it comes to creativity.
• Collaborators keep you accountable.
• In a good collaboration, the work feels half as hard.

5. Go on input for a while

• If you’re stuck for creative ideas, feed your inspiration by listening to music, going for a walk, browsing in a bookstore and looking at titles, etc.
• It comes down to being present in your life and paying attention.

6. Tell yourself you only have to try for five minutes

• On the days when you least want to be creative, it’s usually because there’s something inside you that needs to be explored and that can feel daunting.
• If, after five minutes, you’re not getting anywhere, give yourself permission to stop but, usually, you’re off to the races once you actually start the process.

Conclusion
Creativity is a wonderful gift but don’t expect it to come in a flash of inspiration. Instead, put together an environment conducive to creativity and carve out time in your daily schedule to actively pursue inspiration and grow your creativity. When it comes down to it, there’s nothing mysterious about creativity. We all have it and those of us who choose to develop it will reap the creative rewards.

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Bio
Cliff Goldmacher is a GRAMMY-recognized, #1 hit songwriter, music producer and author with recording studios in Nashville, TN and Middle River, MD. Through his studios, Cliff provides songwriters outside of Nashville with virtual, live access to Nashville’s best session musicians and studio vocalists for their songwriting demos. Find out more. You can also download Cliff’s FREE tip sheet “A Dozen Quick Fixes To Instantly Improve Your Songs.”

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