When the Creative Juices Stop Flowing: 5 Ways to Find Inspiration Again
🚧 The Truth About Getting Stuck
Some days, creativity feels like a freight train. Other days… it’s a stalled-out truck on the side of the road. And if you're balancing family, work, and a creative life, burnout isn’t just possible — it’s inevitable.
This post isn’t about forcing creativity. It’s about finding small sparks when the fire goes out. Here are five ways I’ve found inspiration when I thought I had nothing left to create.
1. Change the Scene, Not the Schedule
You don’t have to escape to a cabin in the woods to get inspired — sometimes, a walk around the block will do. Change your view, not your routine.
Take a different route to work or school pickup
Sit in a new spot with your morning coffee
Look at the same object from three new angles
“Creativity doesn’t always need more time — just a new perspective.
2. Look at Old Work Like It’s Not Yours
Open a folder of old photos. Scroll through your phone’s camera roll. Look at your past shots like a stranger would. You’ll find forgotten beauty — or spark a new idea from something half-finished.
Re-edit an old photo in black & white
Zoom in on the details you missed
Crop something differently — tell a new story
3. Photograph the Mundane On Purpose
No epic landscapes? No problem. Try shooting the ordinary in an extraordinary way.
Steam on your coffee mug
Morning light hitting the kitchen sink
The mess on your kid’s bedroom floor
These things are your story. And sometimes, photographing them with intention brings creativity back to life.
4. Set a Ridiculously Easy Goal
When you’re uninspired, don’t aim to create a masterpiece — just aim to start.
Try:
Take one photo before 9 a.m.
Capture something that feels cold.
Shoot only in vertical frames today.
Give yourself permission to make something small and imperfect. That’s often where momentum lives.
5. Step Away, But Not for Long
Sometimes, the best way to get unstuck is to walk away for a little while. Rest doesn’t kill creativity — it restores it.
Watch a movie just for the visuals
Read something outside your usual taste
Play your guitar, sketch, or listen to blues on repeat
When I’m stuck, I try to feed creativity instead of forcing it.
💭 Final Thoughts: Creativity Isn't a Constant
If you’re in a creative drought, it doesn’t mean you’ve failed — it means you’re human. Inspiration will come back. And when it does, it might look like coffee steam or a kid’s toy left on the stairs.
Just start small. Look again. And trust that the spark will return.