Perspectives on Staying Creative

We’re beyond fortunate to have built a community of some of the most creative artists, professionals, and entrepreneurs in the world and one of the most important questions we ask them is around keeping one’s creativity alive. Below, we’ve highlighted some of those responses.

Shannon Babinsack

For me personally, in the world of floral design, it comes down to never doing the same thing twice. I strive to make each bouquet, installation, centerpiece, and design plan a little different. That may mean changing up the foliage selections, flowers, composition style, and even subtle changes to color palettes, to keep my designs looking fresh and unique to the client. I also love experimenting with unusual textures or items that might not be seen very often in floristry. Read more>>

Daniela Muñoz

Being creative is hard on its own, and there comes a time when you feel like youre going to run out. I have worked on my creativity for many years and I have realized that the best way to keep mine alive is no take risks, to o new things I’ve never done before, even if I fail. Sometimes it’s easy to fall in monotony, the thing that makes you feel comfortable, but then comes the question… what if instead of doing abcd to get e I do abkd and get the same result (e). These small challengeshelp my brain try to figure out a different process to get the same, yet better. Read more>>

Cassie Zaychuk

I think that my creativity is directly correlated to play and self care. It is really important for me to add more to my life everyday and really nourish myself and find what brings me alive in each moment. I think that continual learning also assists me with this as it enhances this internal sense of success and creates patterns that allow me to be all in, be expressive and always give my full attention fully to where ever I am. I think creativity sets the stage for how we achieve greatness. Read more>>

Felipe Moya Alvarado

When it comes to keeping creativity alive in music production, there are specific approaches you can take to stay inspired and continue innovating. Here are some strategies tailored to music production: 1. Experiment with New Sounds and Genres: Routine can sometimes make music production feel predictable.
2. Limit Your Tools: Paradoxically, limitations can spark creativity.
3. Collaborate: Working with other musicians, producers, or vocalists can provide fresh perspectives and new ideas. Read more>>

Olivia Carroll

I have strong passion for all aspects of photography. When I’m not shooting portrait sessions, I love shooting landscape photography for fun. The beauty of nature inspires me and recharges my “soul batteries.” My love for capturing landscapes, sunsets, and details of nature is what sparked my passion for photography early in life so I’ve made sure to always keep a little of that in my life for a good balance. Photographing my own children also allows me to try out new creative techniques, sets, poses, and styles out before trying them on a client. I’m always trying to keep myself educated and up to date with photography so I study and practice new tricks, gear, and inspo ideas all the time. I have always believed in working hard and always trying to learn and grow more. Read more>>

Jeremy Thompson

I’m fully aware that is cliché to say that the world around me keeps me inspired, but things are deemed cliché for a reason. New York City being the place that I’ve lived all my life has made it easy for me to find layers among every experience I’ve had here. Too many things happen daily for me not to ruminate and find the deeper meaning of why I experienced it the way I did. A recent example would be my recent visit to the dentist. It was my first time at this dental clinic, and I was surrounded by men and women of all ages who looked like me waiting their turn to be seen. The shared struggle of not meeting the criteria for affordable dental care was being communicated between all of us with just our eyes. The eyes of Miss Meijas, a lady to my left, were the strongest. Immediately, I opened my Notes app and began writing. I hope to one day express those feelings in the film format. Read more>>

Karin Rošker

I genuinely believe creativity is all around us—we just have to stay open to it. For me, it often comes from the simplest moments in daily life. I find inspiration looking out the window, taking nature walks, traveling, flipping through books and magazines, scrolling online, or even noticing the design of packaging at the supermarket. Sometimes, it’s just about letting my mind wander. Read more>>

Rosie Cusack

I like to go back to the thing that got me into Voice Acting in the first place: Stories. She-Ra and the Princesses of Power and The Legend of Korra were my original inspiration to become a Voice Actor, so I have a special place in my heart for animated shows. Additionally, I have always enjoyed reading and I’m drawn to Sci-Fi/Fantasy books in particular. Growing up, I always found the genre to be pretty white, cis, male dominated, so as an adult I seek out Sci-Fi/Fantasy stories that have Queer or BIPOC characters or authors. Recent favorites include Evocation by S.T. Gibson, Even Though I Knew the End by C.L. Polk, and The Wayfarers Series by Becky Chambers. Read more>>

Jinda Zhong

To me, keeping creativity alive is not just a simple state of mind; it’s a dynamic process where every step revolves around ‘realization.’ Back in college, when I was studying Graphic Design, I often had all sorts of imaginative ideas floating in my mind. At first, I thought that having creative ideas alone was enough, but through continuous practice and reflection, I realized that the real foundation for sustaining creativity lies in turning those ideas into reality. Only by realizing ideas and making them concrete can I accumulate experience, and this experience then becomes the foundation that fuels new inspiration, driving me forward. Read more>>

Catherine Salisbury

One of the hardest things I think most creatives have to manage is keeping a sense of creativity, curiosity, and excitement for what they love to do. Over the last few years, I’ve reconnected with my sense of creativity through effective boundaries, a new sense of self, and a lot of forgiveness. Read more>>

Rachel Bajor

I believe Martha Stewart said it best, “learn something new every day” and although that might seem easier said than done I truly believe that if you learn something new then you are constantly keeping that flame alive. Learning something new doesn’t mean you need to be an expert in it, although society would tell you otherwise, it just means leading without bias and full of curiousity. Creativity ties so heavily into how curious we are and I hope to always stay curious, always learn. Read more>>

Tyler-ann Bruce

I’ve kept my creativity alive by surrounding myself with like-minded individuals, whether they’re creatives or not. Meeting new people has become less stressful for me over time—I’ve grown to genuinely enjoy hearing stories and experiences that I might never have encountered or could relate to. It’s such a privilege to be in awe of the people I meet; everyone has something unique to offer, and that’s endlessly inspiring to me. Read more>>

Majesty-rose Jordan

Keeping my creativity alive is definitely a challenge, and I’d be lying if I said it’s always easy. There are times when the ideas just don’t flow, and it can feel like you’re stuck in a rut. But I’ve learned that having a strong community makes all the difference. Surrounding myself with people who inspire me, who understand the grind, and who push me to keep going—that’s what keeps me grounded and motivated. Whether it’s bouncing ideas off friends, collaborating on projects, or just having real conversations, that connection helps spark something in me every time. Read more>>

Tye Huntley

I believe my creativity is a gift that I am thankful for and appreciative of every opportunity to share with the world. After many years of a stressful and time consuming Retail Management career, I left that job to continue my pursuit of music/TV/Film & helping to educate others on their journey to pursue the same creative passion that I have. By working with other creatives I am able to keep my creativity alive and thriving. Read more>>

Tony J Rivas

Creativity, while integral to the artistic process, can be elusive. Fortunately, I have always maintained a natural drive to seek something more. Art, no matter the medium, is an ongoing conversation. What many fail to realize is that maintaining one’s place in this conversation is essential for any artist. That means engaging with other works, whether past or present. For me, this manifests in actively reading books, listening to music, and watching films. I use the word “actively” because it is important to engage from a critical standpoint rather than being steamrolled under passive acceptance and allowing it to act on us ideologically without our input. Asking critical questions not only allows me to find inspiration in the dissonance, it grants some insight as to why I find certain things inspiring, which in turn bolsters my creativity. Read more>>

Jamie King

Soap making is a great creative outlet for me. I started my small business about 10 months ago and created everything myself from the brand name, logo design, labels, packaging, and a website. My first customers were coworkers from the hospital where I work. A few months in, I starting looking for craft shows to sign up for. Thanks to my mother-in-law, at the end of September I began renting a booth in an antique/craft called the Town Peddler mall where I can sell my products.  Read more>>

Adrienne You

To me, creativity often starts with embracing life’s joyful moments and turning them into something visual with scent. Like the time I received a Le Creuset pot as a gift—I loved using it to make soup so much that it sparked an idea: why not share that cozy, comforting feeling with others? That’s how my soup candle was born, designed in a container reminiscent of that beloved pot, created especially for fellow soup lovers. Read more>>

Hyunsub Kim

There are a lot of ways how I keep my creativity alive, but I would like to mention that “exploring” makes myself alive for creativity. It is pretty vague, I understand, But that includes traveling, trying new things out, meeting people, going to art galleries, and so forth. After getting laid off and hundreds of rejection emails, I had to move on to look for other ways to clear my mind and head off for a new start. Traveling to New York City inspired a lot by meeting people who are working in film industry (which was very spontaneous and not planned, that I met a person from an oyster bar), going to art museum like the MET, and walking down the street in completely different city where it looks different.. This vacation – what lots of people say and I say research – inspired me to start more things that I was having only in my mind. Read more>>

Beatrice Onions

Whether it’s brainstorming memorable subject lines, sending a Dolly Alderton-esque text blast, or stitching together things I overhear on the subway into a feature movie in my mind (where else?), I am seriously committed to making “creative” as constant and casual as possible. Here’s the thing: If I put even the slightest bit of pressure on myself to “be an artist,” I suddenly have an immaculate apartment, alphabetized spam inbox, and filed taxes for 2032- but no creative inspiration in sight. However, if I simply aim to be the kind of person who captures, writes, or edits something (even something small), but it has to be every day, I usually do it, and it achieves the same goal. (Yes, I did read ‘Atomic Habits’!) Read more>>

Erica Zhan

My creativity thrives on observation, reading, and writing—practices that help me connect deeply with the world and articulate my evolving thoughts. Long before I became an artist, writing was my way of engaging with questions and curiosities sparked by everyday life. Rather than seeking definitive answers, I am drawn to open-ended complexities—problems that invite exploration rather than resolution. Read more>>

Dallas Anselmo

I keep my creativity alive by always dreaming! I never want to live a life where I do not have dreams that I want to accomplish. A life without dreams is no life at all. At the same time, I would say that’s what fuels me in life. Without setting goals for myself, I think that I would never really grow as a person, and that’s not something I’ll ever be okay with. I will always want to learn more, grow more and better myself. Read more>>

Liselotte Östblom

I believe that humans are creative in their nature and has immense capability to create new things, so it’s not for a selected few who call themselves “creatives”… Imagination is essential to creating, and my generation’s malady is disengaging the mind to social media consumption and overstimulating entertainment which removes the imaginary task of your brain to “dream” beyond the box. We might have lost creativity from childhood, when we all believed we could do and be anything. To keep creativity alive we need to expose ourselves to creative things, and luckily I have that exposure built into my habits and system.  Read more>>

Catherine Rupan Mapp

I think resting is key to creativity. You need leisure time to read, go to museums and shows to look at other artist’s works, and go out in nature and spend time with people where you can talk through ideas and problem-solve. Joining Bogus Gallery studios and creating a community there has been one of the best ways to meet artists on similar trajectories who can give me the most applicable feedback. Even when I am not actively making work, I’m always thinking about the little details and mentally troubleshooting. On days when I’m not feeling particularly inspired, it’s still important to go to the studio for this reason. Sometimes I may not paint that day, but I’ll bring a book and spend time looking at my work until the next step in the process becomes clear or someone drops in to say hello and brings new perspectives with them on what I’m working on. Read more>>

Mark Gibson

Creativity is a beautiful thing. When we are in the warm embrace of a creative moment, there are few things which can compare. I have learned over the years that creativity is not like lightning, hoping to strike randomly and unpredictably. Creativity is a muscle; an ability we all have which we can strengthen. How do we strengthen our own creative thinking and expression? Here are a few that have helped me. Read more>>

Jiayu Hu

To keep my creativity alive, I make an effort to connect with people from diverse backgrounds and immerse myself in new experiences. While I enjoy working independently and can spend long hours in my room, I find that isolation or endlessly browsing content online can lead to a lack of inspiration. For me, stepping outside and engaging with the world is essential to replenishing my creative energy. I enjoy meeting people from different walks of life, whether it’s volunteering at a film festival, taking a Japanese class, or traveling to foreign countries and visiting museums to learn about history. I’m passionate about stories, and understanding the narratives behind historical events or artworks often sparks new ideas.  Read more>>

Vera Vlasova

As the CEO of V-Factor Social, creativity is the heartbeat of everything I do—it’s what keeps me inspired and drives our agency’s success. I stay creative by constantly immersing myself in diverse experiences and perspectives. For example, just a couple of weeks ago, I attended a business retreat in Hawaii, where I connected with startup founders and explored partnership opportunities that sparked exciting ideas for future collaborations. More recently, we signed on a new client—a death doula—and I had the opportunity to attend the Endwell Project conference in Los Angeles, which brought together over 800 people to reframe how we approach end-of-life care. Experiences like these expose me to new industries, innovative ideas, and inspiring individuals, which fuel my creativity and allow me to bring fresh, impactful strategies to our clients. Not a day goes by when I don’t learn something new! Read more>>

Kai Emani

I love surrounding myself with new sounds, people and experiences. The journey that is life is what influences me and keeps me going because at some point in life, we all go through it. We lead very different lives, but somehow we’re able to come together and relate and empathize with each other, There’s so much power and beauty in that. Being able to navigate different friendships and relationships and appreciate when things transition is beautiful. Immersing myself in different sounds has also musically helped to keep me on my toes. My ear perks up at what I like — I prefer not to pigeon-hole myself and direct my sound as just one type.  Read more>>

Nikita Seal

“Our customers are our North Star,” Seal revealed. “Their feedback and suggestions ignite innovative ideas. Personally, my passion for culinary exploration, travels, and cultural immersion fuels my creativity. My children’s curiosity and enthusiasm also inspire me to experiment with novel flavors.” This harmonious blend of community input, family inspiration, and global exploration has catapulted ZZ’s Ice Cream Puffs to the forefront of the dessert scene. Read more>>

Marta Ali

My creative journey began with a fascination for futuristic worlds and gravity-defying buildings which I saw in sci-fi movies which sparked a sense of wonder in my young mind. That curiosity along with the creative education I was able to receive early-on led me to study architecture and urban planning, where I discovered further that creativity is about weaving ideas through research, analysis, and imagination to solve real-world problems. Read more>>

LuckyDesigns

I don’t know really about that I tried my best to make my own style of work in the business and I do take some inspirations from real designers who had worked with big companies in the scene. For me to keep it alive is too tried to get some twist to it of some people’s work that I could find at Google, Pinterest or Behance and make it into my own piece of your creativity of work. Read more>>

Nico Harward

As an interior and brand designer that lives to have a unique vision in the hospitality industry, it’s important for me to not get caught up in what others are doing because that is a distraction. I challenge myself; with no external reference and no inspiration of any kind from others, what am I capable of doing and how authentic am I in the organic process? That is how I keep my creativity alive, well, and trailblazing. With nothing more than a blank canvas and simply my thoughts, what kind of idea do I put from pen to paper? Questions I often ask myself when I am doing design work, be it digital design or interior design for a new project. Ingenuity is becoming hard to come by and copy-cat work is duplicating rampantly along with imposter syndrome in the creative field. Read more>>

Colton Paquette

Since I was young my family and more specifically my grandmother encouraged Creativity plus the freedom of expression that comes with it. These and many more messages were instilled within me from varying art mentors through my early years. Although they were of different background and practice. The one message they could all get behind is you must never stop experimenting. trying new things both in Life and Art allows for Inspiration and creativity to come naturally. Art comes from our truest selfs and curiosity is the best way to keep it alive. Read more>>

Syndy Sweeney

My parents were young and didn’t have a lot of money. Out of necessity, they gave me and my little sister an environment that encouraged our creativity. We weren’t really censored. We listened to my parents’ music and when they actually allowed us to watch TV, it was usually their programs. We went to the library often and learned how to read before kindergarten. We were given the time to play and imagine: markers and paper were turned into clown outfits, bathrobes became lab coats, my bed a sinking ship. We even tried to make dandelion wine once because I had read about it in a book; it was a spectacular failure! Read more>>

Bella Chen

To me, creativity is a physical manifestation of my emotional state. Keeping a curious heart helps me stay connected to it. I collect things I love—photos, images, words, nature finds like rocks and shells—which evoke strong emotions when I see or touch them. I also read, journal, and spend time with creative people, which deepens that emotional connection. Read more>>

Anton Ten

Creativity is just a part of me—it’s like walking. I can’t stop coming up with ideas. Sometimes it’s really fun, but other times, there are so many ideas that I don’t know what to do with them all. When that happens, I take a step back and think about my dreams and goals. I ask myself if these new ideas are helping me move closer to those goals. If they’re not, I just write them down in my notebook and move on. This way, I keep my creativity flowing but don’t let it overwhelm me. Read more>>

Michael Hellem

Creativity, for me, is like a living organism—it needs nurturing, care, and the right environment to thrive. Over the years, I’ve learned that keeping my creativity alive isn’t about waiting for inspiration to strike; it’s about creating habits and environments that encourage creativity to flourish. Read more>>