6 Tips to Protect (& Revitalise) Creative Thinking

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As creative professionals, Architects & Designers are the driving force in generating ideas for clients’ projects.

A core element of your practice is to deliver creative, fresh and inspiring perspectives for any given space. So, how can you protect and nurture this creative energy or vision?

In managing any creative practice, we experience completing interests for our energies. For example, most people will use their left brain to complete logical tasks such the banking, managing tasks, assessing tenders and paying wages. However, these tasks rarely inspire creativity (right brain) and, in fact, almost stifle creative energy.

So, to help you nurture your creative side, here are 6 tips to support creativity in your practice.

  1. Set Aside Creative Time and Logical Time

Research tells us most people have natural rhythms in their day when their energy levels and clarity will peak or trough, called biorhythms.

Keep a diary for a week to identify your natural cycles so you can then plan your activities according to your own personal energy highs and lows.

It might work for you to do your most creative thinking when your energy levels are high. Or, that you’re able to push through some of the less enjoyable logical tasks when you’re feeling a little more ‘charged’.

Each of us is different but finding your own personal rhythm will mean things get done more easily.

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2. Do You Personally Need to Do the Less Enjoyable Tasks?

Whether it’s the banking, ordering stationery, reviewing tenders or paying the power bills; ask yourself if you really need to be the person performing that task?

If it’s robbing you of creative time/energy, can you delegate or outsource it?

3. Automate or Systemise The Routine Stuff

  • Got a receipt from Officeworks? Take it’s photo and post it in Xero (or to the book keeper)
  • Sick of cleaning your practice kitchen? Put a roster up on the wall for all to contribute
  • Trying to estimate the value of a concept? Run it through ProCalc (free trial)
  • Supervising a project? Implement WorkflowMax to save your brain-space

Look to automate or systemise as much as you possibly can to free up your time. Keep the tasks you enjoy – like creating spaces – for yourself.

4. Get Moving, Breathe Hard or Deep

If you’ve hit a wall, change it up a little.

Start moving. Go for a walk or crawl on hands and knees from one end of your practice to the other (insisting colleagues join you!).

Go Aerobic. Do some skipping, go for a jog, take a bike ride, have a swim. Just get that blood pumping!

Breath Deep. Do some meditation, yoga or stretching exercises to deliver a change in pace.

5. Indulge Yourself

This doesn’t have to be expensive or time consuming. It’s more about giving yourself a mental break through mindfulness.

  • Go for a 10 minute walk down the street, stopping to smell each flower type you pass. Remember the fragrance you love and think of them when you return to the office.
  • Eat lunch in the park and count as many insects as you can within one square metre on the ground. Put yourself in their shoes for a few minutes and try to piece together what each of them is doing.

6. Workshop at the Pub

Ok, so this one’s low hanging fruit but if you and a colleague have been neck-deep in contorted concentration all day, the fresh idea’s may not be coming so freely anymore.

Why not hold a workshop at the pub? No holds barred, alcohol fuelled ideation……Whoa!

Is that billable?

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