15+ Things That Inspire Creativity When You Need It Most

creative image youtube social media
the use of imagination or original ideas to create something; inventiveness (definition).

Creativity is like a battery. You start the day with a certain amount of it, and by the end of it, you might need to recharge it so you can get the most out of it again.

Creativity, just like a battery, isn’t infinite. Or at least it doesn’t last forever without giving it constant fuel so you can keep reusing it and benefiting from it personally or professionally.

Like anything good in life you need repetition and ways to keep up that repetition so you can continue to have it without too much struggle or effort.

Here’s a list of things that inspire creativity so you can do exactly that.

 

1. Mixing ideas together

millies cookies shop uk

Whenever I go to the shop millies cookies which isn’t often these days, I get a strawberry milkshake with marshmallows.

It’s the perfect mix and tastes heavenly.

Approaching your creativity is similar to this in a lot of ways. Sometimes to get creative or inspire creativity you need to be unconventional.

That can mean:

  • Mixing ideas together.
  • Blending ideas that initially don’t make any sense.
  • Putting two things together that are opposites.

Or something related to that.

An example is a website I created called Anime Motivation. The idea mix is right there in plain sight.

I blended anime with motivation and turned it into something relevant that promotes content that can be motivational but in an anime context.

I had to get creative back in 2015 to come up with that idea by writing down TONS of ideas that made no sense until one of them stood out.

Approach creativity like this and you’re bound to inspire creative ideas.

 

2. Traveling somewhere new

 

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A post shared by Theo J Ellis (@theojellis)

The reason why this is important for inspiring creativity is simple. If you don’t travel, you don’t get to see and experience new things.

If you don’t see and experience new things, your mind is seeing the same old bullshit day in and day out. Meaning no new opportunities to inspire creativity.

Travelling is one of the easiest ways to take in new information, see new things, and give you creative ideas as a result.

It doesn’t have to be a holiday in another country. It can be somewhere in your own country you haven’t travelled to yet, like a seaside town, the countryside, or something else.

 

3. Spending a lot of time thinking without distractions

man sitting in the top of the mountain

With the amount of:

  • Nonsense.
  • Distractions.
  • BS news.
  • 100s of advertisements.

And other things trying to get in the way, it’s no surprise people are struggling with creativity.

Social media doesn’t help either if you’re using it to scroll, scroll, and scroll some more without any productivity involved.

Find a way to protect your peace of mind by dedicating at least SOME time to yourself so you can think without outside interference.

When you get to sit and think without outside noise you’ll be amazed at the ideas you can come up with, and the creativity you can take from them.

And if it’s not the right time yet, that leads to my next point.

 

4. Sleeping it off

white cat sleeps under white comforter

Spending time with yourself thinking of ideas is one thing, but you won’t always get the creativity you’re looking for by doing it.

When this happens, take a step back and maybe just sleep it off. Sometimes creativity can hit the next day, or the day after, etc. But it WILL hit if you’re actively thinking about these things.

You tend to get the things you’re thinking a lot about as it is, and you pay the most attention to these thoughts as well.

Your mind needs time to connect the dots.

 

5. Trying out new habits and breaking the mould

 

For health reasons, I’ve tried out a lot of diets or new ways of eating over the years. Sometimes I did it just for fun so I could see the effect and whether it was worth pursuing,

By doing these things I gain new information, knowledge, and even new ways of thinking about life, problems, and even the creative aspects of life I wanna focus on.

Breaking the mould and trying new habits will do that. It’s because you’re taking in new information by default instead of mindlessly doing the same things in the same ways.

Change is needed for creativity.

 

6. Learning things outside your expertise

woman walking upstairs ideas text

What I mean is:

  • If you’re a writer.
  • A singer.
  • You work in construction.
  • You’re in the business of entertainment.
  • You’re a gym instructor.

Or whatever it is you’re usually doing, if you find a way to step outside of that and learn about new things, creativity is bound to come around and knock on your door.

It’s just the way it is.

New information matters. Change matters. An example is the overwhelming amount of knowledge I’ve gained about nutrition in just the last 3 years.

In fact, what I learned indirectly pushed me to start updating this website again on a regular basis. And that lead to creative ideas, naturally.

 

7. Deliberately reading about things out of your comfort zone

person picking white and red book on bookshelf

The comfort zone is the enemy when it comes to creativity. You can’t expect to get creative ideas, inspire creativity, or do creative things if you’re sitting comfortably in your comfort zone.

It goes against what creativity is all about, which is newness, innovation, invention, and new ways of doing things.

If you’re the type to read only about let’s say certain political beliefs, try going to the other side that you disagree with and educate yourself on it.

If you believe in one way of doing something, explore the opposite or other ways you’re uncomfortable with trying (like a diet for example).

Of course, just make sure you do it within reason and not at the expense of your health.

 

8. Studying people who think and behave differently

 

  • Celebrities.
  • Businesses.
  • Entrepreneurs.
  • Artists,
  • Writers,
  • Painters,
  • Caligraphers.
  • Musicians.
  • Producers.
  • Politicians.

Or even parents, activists, teachers, or whoever you see fit. Their role matters less than the fact they think and behave differently compared to most people.

Study them, learn from them, observe them, and take whatever you can get. You might learn something and that might spark something.

 

9. Talking to other people from different backgrounds

ethnicity

You don’t have to talk to people from other backgrounds, but not doing so can affect you in more ways than just inspiring creativity.

By not doing so you can be:

  • Ignorant.
  • Patronizing.
  • Foolish.
  • Inept.

And dumb to a lot of things that can only benefit you by expanding your knowledge and horizons.

It’s weird how it works but the fact is talking to people from different backgrounds can give you insights you never could have imagined. And that can lead to new conclusions about life, business, or otherwise.

People’s experiences are different because of their backgrounds and that’s why it helps (if approached genuinely of course).

 

10. Taking a trip to the beach

 

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A post shared by Theo J Ellis (@theojellis)

Sometimes I like going to the beach and having time to myself. It’s no effort since it’s local but even still, it’s good for ideas, peace of mind, food for thought, and creativity.

It doesn’t even have to be an everyday thing if it’s too much effort to make that a reality. But treating it as a trip can help you in ways you may not have realized.

 

11. Self-expression

art graffiti

Videos, podcasts, writing, blogs, books if you wanna take it that far… There are a lot of ways to express yourself. The funny thing is self expression leads to MORE self-expression.

The reason is simple. Getting your thoughts off your chest can lead to even more thoughts, ideas, and the creativity you’ve been looking for.

I write every single day and that fuels more ideas since I’m always on the ball.

 

12. Seeking out questions people need answers to

question mark

Look at websites like Quora or Reddit. 1000s of questions are asked on these platforms, especially Quora since that’s what it’s designed for.

There are always people asking about some way to improve their lives, help them in some way, or solve some sort of problem, or satisfy some sort of curiosity.

Everyone at every level is capable of answering at least one of these questions but the main point is to just SEEK out and look at the questions being asked.

Not to answer them.

The point here is to provoke creativity and thought, and you need new information to do that. No matter how small or petty hat information seems.

 

13. Looking through your old ideas or content

magnifying glass on white table

I look through my old content often, sometimes every day. But when you have content in the 1000s it can be problematic to look through old ideas too often.

Either way taking a look through your old:

  • Drawings.
  • Ideas.
  • Articles.
  • Blogs.
  • Videos.
  • News pieces.
  • Contributions.
  • Interviews.
  • Paintings.
  • Music.

Or whatever else will give you new ideas and inspire creativity. You’re looking at old stuff with a new set of eyes, after all, so you’ll notice things you couldn’t have seen before.

 

14. Watching anime

YouTube video

It doesn’t have to be anime, but the reason I mention anime is because it’s different and creative by design.

First of all, it’s a foreign product (Japan). The music, the art, the characters, the storytelling, the humor, and the action is completely different to typical western media.

Remember what I said: new information matters when trying to spark creativity.

You can substitute anime though for anything else like:

  • Different types of movies and films.
  • Unconventional TV shows.
  • Webtoons (Korean manga).
  • Japanese manga.
  • Independent movies or animations made online.

 

15. Listening to different kinds of music

Music is always and has always been a good way to inspire creativity. I mean it’s full of it (not always). I wouldn’t suggest listening only to Hip Hop though.

Listen to all kinds of music, even if it’s just instrumental music. But it’s best to have some vocals of sorts.

By doing so you’ll come up with new ways, angles, ideas, approaches, and ways of thinking as far as creativity.

Sometimes listening to instrumentals in particular while thinking of ideas can be a good way to relax and help connect the dots better as well.

 

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