Keeping your creativity alive has always been a challenge, but in the era of work from home, where the lines between work life and home life have blurred and where burnout and social disconnection are rising, creativity is at risk. We’ve asked some of the most creative folks we know for advice on how to keep one’s creativity alive.
Jerry-yänn Beniakrou
I keep my creativity alive by constantly drawing inspiration from the world around me, especially from my roots in the Ivory Coast, where the vibrant culture and rhythms of life deeply influence my work. Growing up, music was always a central part of my experience, from the traditional beats of West Africa to global sounds I’ve explored over the years. The music I listen to from different corners of the world acts as a well of inspiration, sparking new ideas and emotional tones that I channel into my work as a photographer, videographer, and graphic designer. Read more>>
Takashi Harada
I found it’s just simple, actually, just didn’t quit and believe in yourself anytime, whatever happens to you, just believe and just do it. Always create something even when it is difficult to do it physically. We can always do it in our mind. I know it is sometimes very difficult in some occasion. I would try to create my own space physically and mentally when I found it is difficult.
Just because creating artworks is the only way I can do to live, and creating art is the most fundamental act to do as a human being, I believe, I cannot stop. Once you decide to jump off from it, you’ll never be able to come back. Read more>>
Nathan Philips
Keeping creativity alive is definitely one of many, if not the most, struggles artist face daily and in my opinion one of the hardest things to sometimes maintain especially in my line of work. Staying creative for me, helps to do different things, being creative doesn’t have to be locked into one specific trait or art form. Trying different hobbies and different art forms can bring forth creativity you never knew you had. You have to broaden your horizons if you want to break the creativity block. Read more>>
Carly Mclaury
Hi I am Carly! As the founder of Immerse, I keep my creativity alive by staying deeply connected to nature, especially the ocean. Every swimwear collection we create is inspired by the colors, textures, and tranquility of the natural world. I love to freedive and spend hours in the water—it’s where I truly get to relax, disconnect, and let creativity spark. The way light dances beneath the surface, the feel of the water on my skin, and the rhythm of the waves all feed into the designs. Being in the ocean helps me clear my mind and opens up space for new ideas to flow. Read more>>
Samuel Tatum
My creativity is a gift from God. When you are gifted by God the gift comes without limitations. As long you are exercising the gift, the gift will continue to grow. The more you operate in your creativity the more your creativity will come alive and stay alive. Everyday I’m working on something in order to keep my creative juices flowing, also watching other creative influencers for inspiration. Read more>>
Jenifer Hiebert
I keep my creativity alive by taking in person and online classes when I can as well as keeping an eye on social media for new trends. Even though I work in a solo salon suite where I’m on my own boss, all of us in the building get along great with each other and can bounce ideas off one another. Read more>>
Megan Peng
To me, creativity starts with curiosity. Keeping things alive means keeping them moving. So I keep my creativity alive by staying curious about everything. Growing up in Asia, where cultural norms can be conservative and traditional, I often held back from asking questions, sometimes feeling naive or embarrassed for having too many. As a result, I feel like I repressed some of that childlike curiosity. Now recognizing how vital it is to keep my creativity alive, I actively try to push past that mindset—and, well, there’s always Google. Read more>>
Mercedes Pickett
From a young age, I desired to be ‘a creative’, though I was methodical in almost every approach. I took my systematic and analytical approach to life and applied it to what I had access to and what made sense. I began by sketching layouts of rooms before my mother rearranged them; I would sketch prom dresses for my sisters and me, as I could pass them along to the seamstress. I even began recreating 3d models of historic buildings or recreating one of my favorite artworks: A Stormy Night. Read more>>
Ali Terese
I write to work out emotional questions in my life, and there seem to be no end to them! For example, FREE PERIOD, my middle grade comedy out now from Scholastic, is about a couple of chaos monsters who fight to get maxipads in their school bathrooms. I experienced so much physical pain and shame around my period as a child that I didn’t know how I would talk about it in a positive way as a parent. So I did what writers do and spent sixty thousand words figuring it out. What I kept coming back to was friendship and laughter. Read more>>
Mijin Kwon
Firstly, I keep my creativity alive by staying engaged with the art world by exploring other artists’ work, attending exhibitions, or visiting museums. These experiences offer inspiration and fresh perspectives. I also spend time alone, reflecting and focusing on what I want to create. Sometimes, I sit in front of a blank canvas without distractions, which helps me connect more deeply with the work. Read more>>
Dainius Krasauskas
Creativity, to me, is deeply intertwined with how you explore life. Interestingly, the strongest psychological indicator of creativity is a person’s openness to new experiences. So, to keep it alive, I approach life like a sponge. I just love absorbing everything around me. It’s in small, everyday moments that inspiration sparks. And the more I expose myself to the unfamiliar, the more creativity thrives. Read more>>
Darriona Griffin
As an artist, ironically, being creative and staying creative can be one of the most difficult tasks that I have discovered. I try to keep my creativity alive by staying inspired within my field and looking at the work of other artist, staying on top of trends, scrolling on Pinterest, etc. Looking at the world around me and trying to make art out of things that I see in everyday life also is extremely helpful in challenging myself creatively as well as keeping my love for nails and nail art alive Read more>>
Blck Bird String Ensemble
The Blck Bird String ensembles recognizes the significance of creativity and the necessity of maintaining that vital spark. As professional musicians, we often face burnout due to overwork, repetitive tasks, or a lack of direction. Therefore, we engage in open discussions regarding the suitability of gigs and private events in relation to our purpose and existing commitments. Fortunately, our quartet structure allows us the flexibility to form duos or trios, which aids in mitigating creative fatigue and provides opportunities for individual members to take necessary breaks. Read more>>
Savannah Sevegney
Keeping creativity alive in a fast moving industry can sometimes be difficult. I find that keeping your creativity alive is first by surrounding yourself in what you want your atmosphere or creativity to look like. This being the people you choose to hangout with, activities you choose to do outside of work, and even who and what you follow on social media. Read more>>
Kay Durairaj
I keep my creativity alive by immersing myself in various outlets that nourish both my professional and personal passions. My practice is a constant source of inspiration—each patient presents a unique opportunity to approach aesthetics with a fresh perspective. Crafting individualized treatment plans allows me to blend artistry and science, continually pushing the boundaries of my creativity. Whether I’m sculpting facial features with injectables or refining surgical techniques, the dynamic interplay between precision and creativity keeps me energized and focused. Read more>>
Sara Hardin
I keep my creativity alive by actively cultivating creative habits. A few times a week, I journal and sketch to track my feelings, which inevitably feeds my artistic practice. This practice of observing my own emotional state and my surroundings keeps me actively painting to workout the question of how our surroundings and memories are connected to our emotional state. I also regularly step outside my comfort zone to learn new techniques and explore different media. Although I am traditionally an oil painter, I am currently taking ceramics classes to push myself and develop new skills that, while their impact on my painting practice may not be clear yet, I believe will be beneficial. Read more>>
Willy Calderon
My creativity. As kids, our creativity is brought about by our imagination. Children don’t really care what’s going on around them. They don’t care how they look to others. Imagination takes a certain amount of innocence. As we grow older, we are either taught to or pressured by our environment to blend in more, fit in, act accordingly, in essence, “grow up.” Of course, you must “grow up” as your responsibilities grow, but I notice that many people lose that part of them, their creativity and imagination. Creativity and imagination are part of my life and my every day. Read more>>
Crimson Overtone
There is never a lack of inspiration if you keep yourself open to it. That inspiration may come from people we admire, from nature, from mental or spiritual processes, or even just from sitting down and playing until something piques our interests. The band also tries to make time to listen to music outside of our genre to help inspire variety in our work as well. We all have such a wide range of musical influences and experiences, which helps us push each other to try new things and experiment with new ideas – keeping the creativity alive! Read more>>
Earica “ep” Parrish
What sustains my creativity is being able to surrender to the quiet, the mundane, and the stillness of life. I wasn’t always this way, though. And of course, I have moments where my life and schedule can get hectic. But as I get older, I grow to cherish the times when I can sit by the water or lay on the couch and drift into a soft, intentional emptiness. It’s in these pauses that I reset—not just my mind, but my spirit—replenishing the energy I need to create and dream. Read more>>
Diana Moreira
I am a creative person in general but I must surround myself with people/things that inspire me as much as possible in order to keep creativity alive. I believe we attract what we are. Creativity comes with it. Read more>>
Zeo
My creativity stays alive through me utilising it within every aspect of my day to day life. For me it is a muscle and just like any other muscle you need to work it out for it to grow and build. When I wake up I think, not just within my creative discipline but discipline in general, the creative drive that I have rules my life and all my decisions must revolve around it. That way it will always stay alive, even when I have a block or loss of vision. Keeping a constant flow of creative thought going is, for me, just like carrying around a small weight and doing thousands of small reps during day to day life. How this manifests in my life is I constantly write down ideas into my notes, and sketch out concepts into a notebook I have. Read more>>
Gwenn Seemel
It’s a matter of remembering that art is a necessity for life–just like air, water, food, shelter, and health care. What I mean is that art is the love of other humans made tangible across space and time. When a person can’t get a hug from a friend, art is there to make them feel seen and understood. It opens them up to new worlds, helping them to get outside of their own narrow experience, allowing them to become better and more loving. Read more>>
Johnathon Figueroa
Keeping my creativity alive while going to school for music education in tandem with music therapy can be challenging at times. I’m currently working on a lot of repertoire in many different styles of music so finding time to practice these different styles while also making sure I’m taking care of my voice is not easy. I have to be intentional with my practice time, which can make singing feel monotonous sometimes, but I just try to remember to have fun with whatever I’m working on and the fun will come with the reward of having another song I can add to my human jukebox where some people store a brain. Read more>>
Chaconna Downs
I’ve always been inquisitive and discovering how things work is the ultimate in creativity for me. Sometimes that means taking something apart and figuring out how to put it back together. Other times it means using conventional materials in an unconventional way or even creating a whole new world of characters to play with. I’ve never shied away from trying new things or getting messy and I think creativity needs both! When I’m stuck and in a season where I haven’t been creating or releasing, my whole body feels it. I usually start with creative writing prompts, coloring, redecorating, and things to change up the energy of my environment. I’ll play a playlist or find something new to listen to like Korean R&B. I’m also blessed to have amazingly creative friends to draw inspiration from. Read more>>
Mae Seven
As MAE SEVEN, we craft songs that reflect our personal journeys. From the ups and downs of relationships to the adventures of travel, our music captures the essence of everyday life. We believe creativity thrives on exploration and challenges, so we constantly seek out new experiences, meet diverse people, and push ourselves beyond our comfort zones. Read more>>
Aly Spear
“Oh, but I’m just not creative” is a phrase I have heard echoed thousands of times, yet I have never agreed with the sentiment. For creativity is not something outside of us, or a rare gift that only a few hold. Rather, it is intertwined with our very essence, into the fabric of our being, and I genuinely believe connecting with it is our birthright. Read more>>
Jody Nash
For me, creativity is a state of being. I’m not sure that I ever leave that state. As a creative, my mind is constantly appraising the world around me in search of interesting materials, ideas, approaches to things. I think creativity is a result of curiosity and the drive to change things for the better, or at least try to make something new. I am a pastel artist and a basket maker right now, but I’ve had many iterations as an artist. I foster my creativity by making my art a priority. That’s not easy when there’s so many other things going on. Read more>>
Laine Mccurry
I believe creativity is a muscle to be exercised, and keeping our creativity strong influences every aspect of our lives. Creativity allows us to excel in our professional ambitions as well as bringing fulfillment to our daily lives, encouraging us to use flexible, outside-the-box thinking and problem solving. I prioritize creativity in my own life by constantly learning diverse skills. Every few years, I’ll start a new hobby with the hope of becoming proficient in something I’ve always wanted to do! Over the past few years, I’ve explored swing dancing, voice lessons, photography, creative writing, and drumming. Learning new activities is so beneficial for our cognitive health, and it infuses our lives with playfulness and joy. Read more>>
Mariana Rivera-mariscal
I keep my creativity alive by thinking and writing down in my journal and planning what is gonna come next for my content creation , i always like to plan on what I’ll be filming and posting. I plan out a week in advance, Read more>>
Connley Sewalls
My creativity is an integral part of me that needs to be nurtured like any other skill. I believe it is rooted in routine and expression. Since childhood, I have always found ways to express myself. From kindergarten to 5th grade, I attended a catholic school with a strict uniform policy. I despised the uniform: navy, white, ankle-covering socks, belts, and NO COLOR! I was dying to wear my vivid, sparkly (and slightly ridiculous) outfits. My solution was to break the dress code in loopholes. I wore two different colored shoes, duct tape bows I made, and painted my nails with wild designs. Read more>>
Annabela Nikolov
Since I was a little girl, I always believed I’ve had a big imagination, which plays into my creativity. In a world that can be dull and dark at times, I’d like to think that my creativity and optimism keeps me alive and keeps me going and I’d like to hope that it can do that for others if you let it! Read more>>
Judy Reeves
The first step for me to keep my creativity alive is to acknowledge and remember that I’m innately a creative being; creativity is part of me just like my blue eyes are part of me. I consider it a gift given by a generous and loving creator. Every morning as I light a candle at my writing desk and take out my journal (maybe read a poem or inspirational passage first), I look out my window at all that world outside—palm trees and lemon trees—trees that bear fruit right there; I can see it. Birds on the wire above and crows calling to each other as they cross the sky. Wow! Who would think of creating all that? I write and wonder. Read more>>
Giorgio Gebhard
Playing drums for more then 20 years bring me to embrace a lot of challenges, playing concert all over Europe and USA, study different style and music genres everytime. Loosing creativity can happen sometimes because you may become slave of routine but the secret it’s to be always curious, about everything, keep your ears open to what happen around you, there is always something to learn, something to study, something to apply to your playing, that’s the thing. Read more>>
Yahli Malchin
Creativity is misunderstood. It feels like from a young age, we are labeled as being either creative or not. And generally, we let this label stick with us throughout our life. When I was a kid, I wasn’t a great artist, and over time I let this evolve into thinking I am simply not a creative person. My sister was the creative, I thought, I guess I must be the analytical one. Read more>>
Japhet Velazquez
To keep my creativity alive I like to consume as much art as possible. From albums, movies and photography books I like to find inspiration in other artists and their process of creating and that motivates me to continue to find that creative breakthrough a lot of my inspirations have found. Read more>>
Mel Calabrese
Trying new things!! I keep my creativity alive by trying new things consistently! As a Small Business owner/ Etsy Shop owner where my products are all handmade and I have a niche, it can be tricky. I have a few select products that I make all-day, every-day and get orders for constantly – but if I don’t try making something new or draw out a new design, the orders and sewing can get mundane. Read more>>
Caitlin Sellman
My creativity is fueled by not forcing myself to stay within the constraints of my original ideas. I am flexible when it comes to the evolution of an idea and I am constantly asking questions. A big part of my creative process is about being open to new ideas whether it deals with pushing the limits of photography as a medium or broadening my understanding of intangible topics. For example, my ongoing project titled: The Universal, began with my questioning of my identity through self-portraiture and still life, but has since turned into the exploration of a universal experience of how our identities are reflected in our stories and our outward appearances. I always aim to lead with an open mind and allow my projects to evolve when they feel too stagnant. Read more>>
Adriana Cappucci
Despite the difficult times I had to overcome all along my life, music and creativity have always been my anchor. I think that the best way to keep creativity alive is to challenge yourself trying new things and experimenting a lot, besides taking inspiration from the world around you and your feelings. Read more>>
Qian Zhong
My creativity thrives when I maintain focus and create a balance between discipline and inspiration. I make time for daily painting sessions, which helps me stay in tune with my artistic process. At the same time, I expose myself to new environments, ideas, and experiences to keep my mind fresh. Whether it’s exploring different art styles, visiting galleries, or drawing inspiration from nature, I make sure to fuel my creativity with diverse sources, but the key is staying focused and dedicated to the craft. Read more>>
D’andré
As a pop artist, keeping my creativity alive is a top priority for me, and I approach it with a deep sense of purpose. I take my craft very seriously, constantly evolving and reinventing myself with each release—whether it’s a single, an EP, or an album. Every project tells a new story, allowing me to explore different sounds, emotions, and experiences. I draw inspiration from the world around me, as well as my own journey toward becoming an international star. This constant push to grow and discover new layers of creativity helps me stay fresh and connected to my artistry. I’m always challenging myself to think outside the box and elevate my music in ways that resonate with a global audience. Read more>>
Red Sagalow
I wish there was a formula for this. For every person to be able to always tap into their creativity. I have found I need to keep making the things that interest me. I’m always listening to podcasts, reading articles, learning and observing. Something always sparks some thread I want to start following to then make a work of art. Often, what my ideas start out as, they do not end that way. As I create and explore I get a little tickle in my brain to “try it this way.” It can be a long process, but it is what has worked for me. Read more>>
Marco Tulio Velasquez
Living in the present moment, disconnecting and reconnecting, watching movies or reading a book. Watching life go by, the best ideas come from life itself or from moments of leisure, when you are too worried it is difficult to connect with creativity. Read more>>
Stephen Antonini
I very much take pride in the environment that I’ve created for myself. All of my surroundings — my friends, family, girlfriend, coworkers, roommates, followers — play a key role in continuously encouraging me to be do what I’m doing and to do more of it. It’s a really warm feeling to have followers commenting on your post about how hard they’re laughing, but when my close personal friends comment the same thing, it genuinely feels like winning a little tiny trophy. Every single time. Read more>>
