It’s been a long, hard, traumatic road for a lot of people this past year in America. I can’t even speak for the rest of the world. A global pandemic, race riots, our beloved Capitol being attacked, being stuck at home, mandates after mandates, masks, hand sanitizers, job loss, and a lot of time on people’s hands. What’s one to do?

Some people have tackled house projects, taken on new creative pursuits, and gotten back to the basics. A lot of other people felt like the wind was taken out of their sails and they have been stuck in the Bermuda Triangle for almost a year.

Even though we can smell change in the air, for better or worse, we wonder if we will ever enjoy the things we used to enjoy again. If you are one of those people struggling with writer’s block, or any other creative pursuits that just can’t make it past an idea and a few well-intentioned purchases, here are some tips to supercharge your creative engines:

How to Find Creativity Once Again

Do Something Out of Your Comfort Zone: If you are a writer, try painting. If building things is your passion, try baking. Do something different, unusual, never been done by you before. Focus on the process, not the outcome. Along the way you will either a) really long to do what you know what to do or b) find a new creative outlet

Pick Up that Really Long-Lost Project: You know that sweater you started knitting for your high-school boyfriend. Yeah, that one, the one stashed away in your attic. How about that novel you planned to write 10 years ago, sitting in some hard-drive somewhere? How about that model train kit you planned to build with your son who is now 30 and living his own life? Nostalgia can be a great inspiration for further projects and there is something satisfying about picking up long-lost projects and remembering the good times once again.

Remind Yourself Why: When you are feeling stuck, it’s easy to stay in the stuck zone. Behind every project is a reason, an ideal, an image, an emotion of something pleasant. Remember what inspired your drive to create in the first place. Were you planning to give a gift to someone, pursue your own knowledge and skills, make the world a better place, or just have fun?