Small Steps To More Creativity - Learning from Psychology
Today, I was reading about small steps to help you get unstuck in your mental or physical health. This small intervention cycle hinges on the idea that making a tiny, manageable change can begin to rewrite our habits. I immediately realized the same is true for our creativity. If you’re feeling stuck in your creative practice, this small change approach can help you get unstuck.
The small intervention process comes from Dr. Jessica Schleider’s book Little Treatments, Big Effects, but I first heard about it through Dr. Ali Mattu’s newsletter. Dr. Mattu used the process to kickstart a healthier lifestyle. It has also been recommended as a single-session opportunity for improving mental well-being. But the heart of the process, what’s called “The Miracle Question”, just as easily adapts to a creative practice.
The Miracle Question
Get out a pen and paper and do your best to answer this question, the miracle question at the heart of this process:
“Suppose that while you are sleeping, a miracle occurs. The top struggle you are facing in your creative practice disappears. When you wake up, how will you know a miracle has occurred? What will be different?”
These should be answers that centre on you and your experience. For example, the “miracle” should not be that you’ve won the lottery, and you know because it’s announced on TV. If financial concerns are a struggle in your creative practice, think instead about how their absence would change your creative practice. Would you create more? Bigger work? Use different materials?
Taking Small Actions
Next, try to identify three things you can do to help you get closer to this “post-miracle” version of your creative practice.
Here are some examples to help inspire you:
If you want to create more:
Spend a week tracking how you use your time each day, then identify opportunities to incorporate more creative time
Use one of your coffee breaks each day at work to make a small art study
If you want to take more risks in art making:
Gamify some aspect of your art-making by rolling a die to choose your colour palette (you might like my article on Gamifying Your Art Goals)
Draw only in markers for a figure study each week
If you want to try new materials:
Look for a place locally that offers classes where you can try a variety of tools before committing to buying new ones
Arrange a material sharing day with some friends and take time to teach each other some techniques, too
These are just a few small ideas you can use to help you get closer to whatever the post-miracle version of your creative practice looks like. Pick one or two to implement and give them a whole-hearted effort.
I think you’ll discover that little actions can domino into big changes.
Happy creating!
