Creativity is hard. It’s like, really hard, guys.

That’s not a good way to start an article. Actually, creativity is really fun when the mind is properly primed. But we’ve all been there—those moments when we are in need of a creative solution, and for whatever reason, it just won’t reveal itself.

Anyone who has ever tried to think outside the box, problem-solve, or engage in any sort of endeavor that required creative thinking has come up against the infamous ‘block.’ The barricading of ideas that seem to refuse to enter the conscious part of our brains.

But here is the secret: the mind can be coaxed.

With a little TLC, it can be incentivized to loosen up, remove ‘blocks,’ and help you find solutions.

According to legendary music producer Rick Rubin—who is as famous for helping musicians find their creative sparks as he is for his massive list of discography credits—the trick to creativity is to get into proper mental states. Creativity is not something that can just be called up on command. We have to be ‘feeling the vibe.’

You may have heard some people refer to a mode of thinking they call the flow state. It’s a mental state where concentration and relaxation merge, the flow of thought becomes easy, and productivity increases. If you’ve never heard of flow state, you’ve probably heard its more common name—the zone. When people are at peak levels of creativity, they like to say they’re ‘in the zone.’

In everyday life, we generally oscillate between two modes of thought: analytical and creative. Creative thought deals in abstractions. Analytical deals in logic and step-by-step approaches.

Think of analytical thought as walking on land. The movement is firm, sure, and measured. Creative thought, alternatively, is like swimming in the ocean. It requires a looseness. One must be able to roll with the motion of the waves. The water moves you just as much as you move yourself through it.

Water is one of the best metaphors for thinking about flow states.

Mindfulness can help loosen us up. The creative mindset feels elusive, but in reality it is easy to find. It is already there waiting for us when we simply enter a state of feeling relaxed, expansive, and contemplative.

The brain is a powerful tool, yet there is not nearly enough emphasis in modern society on how to treat it well. How do we give it the love, attention, and affection it deserves? What can we do to ensure our brain is operating at peak performance levels?

Luckily, there are people alive today who make it their business to study these things, just as there were people living millennia ago who pondered these very same questions. We in the modern world are finding out those ancients got a lot of things right long before we did.

Freewriting, Doodling, and Journaling for Creative Flow

The creative mode requires play.

It might even be more accurate to say that the creative mode is play.

When tasked with summoning creative powers, the pressure to succeed can make the mind constrict. Like a closed fist. The tundra-like expanse of a blank page or canvas is daunting. Before the first word is written or brush stroke is painted, any and every choice is possible.

How do we decide which is the right one?

Your imagination is clenched. Tense. You’re stuck in your own head. Reality, from where you are sitting, suddenly reads like a sentence where the words are all out of order and completely misspelled. Your inner censor is critiquing anything that comes to mind as too ‘stupid,’ too ‘risky,’ too ‘unrealistic.’

Here is the secret: at this point in the process—‘the right answer’ has no business showing up to the party.

In the beginning, perfection is the enemy. Keep the desire for perfection at bay for as long as you can. Perfection is a step for later, when you have something of substance to mold and work with.

Purely creative thoughts strike like bolts of lightning. When harnessed, one can power an entire city. But first, it has to be caught in its natural form—raw, fast, brilliant. Only after that bolt is grabbed can it then be filtered into generators, grids, outlets, and anything else with electrical structure.

Going back to water analogies, there is a reason we call it creative flow or flow state. Creative ideas are liquid. So how do we get liquid thoughts to flow forth?

Getting into the creative state is an act of building momentum. Forgive me for yet another analogy, but think of it this way: analytical thinking is like getting into a car. You get in the seat, shut the door, start the ignition, and step on the gas. The car moves the way it’s supposed to.

Creative thought is like riding a bicycle. First, the rider must find a state of balance. Then a little energy is needed to push the bike forward. Things are wobbly at first, but as the wheels roll  inertia builds up, and the ride becomes smooth. Soon enough, the rider is able to coast while the bike’s momentum takes care of most of the work.

So the trick is to just get started.

Your inner censor will try to block you. That is the censor’s job. It wants to protect you from harm by dealing only in certainties. But the censor is overzealous. It has a habit of stepping on everyone else’s toes. It makes us uneasy. Compels us to question everything. The censor seeks to kill our ideas out of fear of them being ‘stupid’ or ‘nonsensical’ before they’re ever even given a chance to breathe.

We get around the censor by forgetting about its primary concern: being correct.

Freewriting and doodling are perfect ways to get the momentum going. They allow us to relax by removing the objective of creating a ‘good’ finished product. Instead of something logical, just write whatever comes to mind. Draw in whatever direction the pen wants to take your hand.

I used freewriting to brainstorm for this article. Before I crafted these paragraphs into anything sensible, I had a document of purely scrambled notes and thoughts. It helped ensure I got every relevant idea out of my head before I had a chance to question whether or not they would even fit.

It’s all about being relaxed.

Here are three great approaches to freewriting:

• Write about your chosen subject – This is where you take a topic you’d like to write about and just dump out every thought you have in your brain onto the page. Open the faucet all the way. Don’t stop anything from pouring out, no matter how stupid you think it is. This technique works for both fiction and nonfiction.
• Write about a random subject – Sometimes it’s good just to warm up the muscles with an entirely different topic altogether. Letting go and focusing on something else can be a great trick for getting into a creative state. If the first option fails you, try starting with this one.
• Write something bad on purpose – This is the most fun of the three. Just write the most asinine string of words you can think of. Write about people who have ridiculous things happen to them. Maybe a cat learns to speak fluent Mandarin. Maybe a man wakes up one morning to discover that microscopic aliens have founded a colony on his butt. Or just take your topic of choice and write incorrect facts about it. Make mistakes on purpose. By the end, you’ll have turned mistakes from your sworn enemies into your drinking buddies.

Doodling is easy enough, and pretty self-explanatory. Just take a sheet of paper and a pen (or pencil) and start drawing. Patterns. Loops. Logos. Little stick figures. Smiley faces. Whatever you want.

In Zen, there is a concept called mushin, or ‘empty mind.’ Draw with the intention of emptying your mind. Doodle as a warmup before taking on any serious artistic undertakings. Doodle just to relax when you find yourself stressed.

Here’s something cool: you can mix and match. Doodle before writing. Freewrite before drawing. Different mediums have the power to inspire each other. Einstein used to famously play his violin while pondering the deepest scientific questions of the known universe. Coax your mind towards answers by giving it something to play with while the wheels start to spin.

Lastly, consider journaling every day. This gives us a regular outlet to spill our guts and get more in touch with where we are. Nothing formal. Just get the thoughts out there. The important ones. The distracting ones. The personal ones. Give them a home. Treat this in the same way you’d treat freewriting, except this time the subject is yourself, your feelings, and your dreams.

In order to get creative, you’ve got to be willing to get down in the mud. Play in primordial ooze. Cut loose. Creativity requires messiness before it can be buttoned up.

The next time you begin a creative endeavor, get on your proverbial bike and just let momentum do its thing.

Observation and Awareness of External Surroundings

A creative mind needs to be fed. Art is not created out of nothingness. Think of yourself as a conduit, absorbing external information and synthesizing it into a meaningful interpretation of some facet of existence.

Our day-to-day thoughts—the ones that can feel like torn strips of paper kicked up in a storm—often become a barrier to external inspiration. They act as distractions, preventing us from noticing the world around us.

Mindful observation allows us to quiet the storm, giving us a sense of clarity and awareness. We become more perceptive to the useful details being sent our way.

The art of mindfulness is one that has been studied and practiced for thousands of years. Yogis and monks dedicate their entire lives to this endeavor. Mindful observation involves fully engaging our senses so we can exist in the present moment, detaching ourselves from judgment of what we observe. By quieting the mind, we slow down and open ourselves to the richness of the world around us.

What does mindfulness look like? Sit in a room and simply take note of all the sounds around you. Take a walk in nature and observe the trees and the sky. Sit on a bench and watch people walk by. Observe them, but refrain from internal commentary.

Instead of rushing through life on autopilot, we can pause for a few moments and engage with our senses, immersing ourselves in our environment.

Perhaps you’re writing a story and overhear a conversation in which one person utters what turns out to be the perfect line of dialogue for your fictional character. Maybe someone walking past you on the street is wearing an outfit that will look just right on a subject in your painting. It could be the way light hits a wall at a certain time of day, the scent of rain on the pavement, or the sound of a bird’s song at dawn. It can be the clatter of a train roaring by on the tracks, the sound being a perfect fit for the rhythm of that song you’ve been working on.

Life without meaningful observation is like sitting in a room with one person and only hearing their perspective on the world for the rest of your life. Wouldn’t a second or third opinion be nice? There is a wealth of valuable information that we ignore to our detriment when we are not observant enough to take it in.

As mentioned in the previous section, our good old friend, the creative flow, requires a certain level of relaxation before it is willing to show its face. Mindful observation has been shown to be an effective way to reduce anxiety, which does us the favor of keeping our old nemesis, the inner censor, at bay.

At its core, mindful observation is the deliberate act of paying attention to the present moment with openness, curiosity, and acceptance.

It strengthens our ability to focus and concentrate, benefiting not only our creative work but also our daily interactions. This heightened awareness deepens our perception of the world and brings clarity to our inner thoughts and emotions. This clarity nourishes our relationships and our overall well-being. As we observe our mental patterns without attachment, we gain insight into our own minds, allowing us to tap into a deep well of creativity and wisdom.

One simple way to cultivate mindful observation is by taking a slow, intentional walk while paying close attention to the sounds, sights, and sensations around you. There is an added bonus if you do this in nature, as spending time in nature has been proven to help recalibrate people’s internal functions while also reducing stress.

The act of immersing ourselves in the present moment offers a much-needed break from the constant stimulation of daily life.

Here are a few other recommendations for practicing mindful observation (there will be some overlap with the next section):

• Sit down and notice the rhythm of your breath, feeling the air gently flow in and out.
• Listen to the sounds around you, identifying each one individually. Try to avoid any extra internal commentary.
• Visit museums or galleries and observe textures, colors, and themes without overanalyzing. Along with engaging the senses, art itself inspires us with new ideas.
• Sketch or take notes on aspects of your surroundings that you find intriguing. It is always helpful to have written ideas saved somewhere for when you need them in the future. Music producer Rick Rubin refers to the act of recording different observations and thoughts as Idea Seeds.
• When describing a scene, focus on objective details rather than subjective interpretations. Sticking to facts prevents misinterpretations and assumptions, allowing for a clearer understanding of what’s truly present.

By incorporating these practices into daily life, we develop a deeper connection with the world around us. Observation is not just a passive act—it is an essential tool for unlocking creativity.

Meditation and Relaxation for Creative Insight

Letting go is a core principle of the Eastern philosophies that place meditation at the center of their practice. On the surface, this idea might seem paradoxical—how can quieting our thoughts help us think better? But time and time again, we find that those who lived long before us understood something vital about mental health and human well-being.

People make the mistake of thinking that meditation clears the mind of its ability to think, leaving us in a passive or vegetative state. In reality, meditation sharpens awareness and enhances mindfulness. It creates space for presence, as well as harmony of mind, body, and feeling. It fosters clarity of thought.

One important aspect of the creative process is knowing when to put a project down and step away for a little while. When we take a break, our brain continues working on it in the background, processing information behind the scenes while we’re busy thinking about other things. It’s like releasing a sailboat into the water—it may drift at first, but soon enough, it catches a rising gust of wind and makes progress on its own.

Giving ourselves space from a creative task allows us to return with fresh eyes, making it easier to see details that previously escaped our notice. New ideas present themselves more freely.

Meditation is the ultimate practice of training the brain to “walk away for a moment.” It helps us switch mental gears, especially when external circumstances are causing stress. Beyond relaxation, meditation strengthens three key skills that are essential for creative problem-solving: first, it enhances what is called ‘divergent thinking’—the ability to be open to new ideas; second, it improves focus; and third, it bolsters resilience, helping us navigate setbacks, which are an inevitable aspect of the creative process.

To continue with our water metaphors, imagine the mind is a lake. Everyday ‘busy’ thoughts are like pebbles being cast into the water, each creating ripples that disturb the surface. Our most creative thoughts lie waiting in the depths of the lake, beneath the ripples. They cannot rise up to the surface amidst so much disturbance. The lake must first be stilled.

The late film director David Lynch was a fierce advocate for meditation. His fame as an original thinker is renowned, and he is considered to have been a giant of the film industry, serving as an inspiration for artists all over the world. Transcendental Meditation became an important part of his life, and he often credited it as the practice that cleared the way for his creative ideas to emerge.

Here is his own water analogy:

“Ideas are like fish. If you want to catch little fish, you can stay in the shallow water. But if you want to catch the big fish, you’ve got to go deeper. Down deep, the fish are more powerful and more pure. They’re huge and abstract. And they’re very beautiful.”
—David Lynch

Meditation fosters expansive thinking. That expansiveness opens up more room for new ideas to flow in. It frees the mind from constrictions that prevent the creation of unique solutions. It makes us more intuitive, which is essential for honing creative instincts. The mind simultaneously becomes more pliable and easier to control. Meditation also helps us shift away from the survival-mode thinking that scares creativity away.

Want original ideas? By disconnecting from external distractions, it becomes easier to listen to our own thoughts and avoid simply replicating what everyone else is doing.

Neuroscience has shown that meditation can physically rewire the brain via neuroplasticity. Neuroplasticity is the natural brain function responsible for carving out new connections. It does this in order to increase efficiency for repeated tasks. A newly created neural pathway will decrease friction and lower the amount of processing power needed for the task to which it is related.

This is the reason why forming a new habit is difficult at first but gets easier the more often we repeat it. Your brain reconfigures itself when it recognizes that a specific task has been done with enough frequency that it needs to be incorporated into its structure as a regular routine.

Bad habits—such as rumination and constant anxiety—are a result of neuroplasticity being pushed in the wrong direction. Due to repeated subjection to negative thoughts, the brain interprets these as necessary processes, and incorporates them more permanently into its structure. Anxiety is a killer of creativity. Meditation helps the brain reprioritize its habits in order to better focus on the healthy ones.

Intelligence isn’t determined by the number of brain cells one has, but rather the number of connections between them. Meditation strengthens these connections. Creativity is often the act of taking two seemingly unrelated ideas and juxtaposing them together within a shared context.

Studies have shown that the cortex sections lining the brains of skilled meditators contain more wrinkles than the average brain, providing further proof of the power of meditation.

For regular meditators, brain scans have shown increased activity in three key areas:

• The caudate, which helps us let go of thoughts and distractions.
• The entorhinal cortex, which regulates thought control and prevents the mind from wandering.
• The medial prefrontal cortex, which enhances self-awareness.

At the same time, brain scans have shown that regular meditation, even for novices, reduces the size of the amygdala—the part of the brain responsible for the fight-or-flight response. A smaller amygdala means a lower stress response to everyday challenges, reducing anxiety and creating a calmer, more focused state of mind.

Even just 10 to 12 minutes of meditation can boost creativity, though those who practice consistently will see the greatest benefits. A study published in the Harvard Business Review tested this concept at Erasmus University in Rotterdam. Researchers divided 129 participants into three groups, each tasked with brainstorming business ideas for drone technology. One group meditated for 10 minutes before brainstorming, another engaged in a fake meditation exercise, and the third began the task immediately without any prior meditation.

While all three groups generated similar numbers of ideas, the meditators produced double the conceptual range of creative concepts compared to the other groups. Their ability to think outside the box was proven to be significantly enhanced.

There are different styles of meditation, each offering unique benefits:

• Concentration meditation involves focusing on an object, thought, or guide (such as the Buddha or a personal spiritual figure).
• Zazen meditation, which emphasizes complete mental stillness and attentiveness.
• Transcendental Meditation, which involves silently chanting a mantra assigned by a teacher.

Studies have shown that each meditation style activates different brainwaves, leading to varied cognitive effects.

Practical Tips for Using Meditation to Boost Creativity:

• Try guided meditations that focus on visualization for creative inspiration. These can be found online or through meditation apps.
• Set a timer for 15 to 20 minutes and sit comfortably. Pay attention to your thoughts without engaging with them. Listen to the sounds of your surroundings as if they were notes in a song. Pay attention to your breath.