How To Be Creative In Lockdown

How To Be Creative In Lockdown

 

Despite all the negatives associated with lockdown – uncertainty, loss of income, fear, physical separation from loved ones, lack of social interaction, losing freedom, and the inability to lead a normal existence, let’s see how lockdown in this pandemic can be used creatively.

Lockdown could be the perfect opportunity to do all the things you never had time to do before. If you are a writer or artist, or some other kind of creative, count yourself lucky.

 

Creative

If you like to be creative maybe writing a book, self-publishing, making artwork, writing an article, building a website, anything of a creative nature – means that you have a project that you can throw yourself into. In a lockdown, there is every chance that you have more time on your hands.

You could be so busy that you wouldn’t have time to be lonely or bored.

Using time productively

 

You may very well have more time but are you using it productively or creatively?

Perhaps the temptation is there to stay in bed for another hour or two. Perhaps you are lacking the motivation to do anything, or perhaps you just don’t feel like doing any of the things you think you should be doing. You just procrastinate.

A common challenge for many aspiring authors and self-publishers is time – just not having enough time. If you want to manage yourself better in this regard

  • get some clarity on what it is you’d like to achieve.
  • examine what you are doing with the extra time you now have available.
  • do a time audit.

Time

Time audit

 

With TIME there are 24 hours day 7 days a week. That is absolute.

If you are challenged by time and find yourself frittering it away in lockdown identify the things you are doing that drain your time.

How does time get away from you?

Do you know what you are actually doing with your time?

If you are struggling because you are losing time do a time audit. This means tracking what you do each day over a 24 hour period and breaking this up into 30-minute time slots.  

This is a brutal exercise but it helps you to be honest with yourself. It gives you a baseline of how you are actually spending your time, and you may not like the results.  

A time audit can pinpoint those areas of your day that you need to work on and then you can plan ways in which you can generate more creativity.

Once you have completed the time audit analyse your data. What things have you been doing that have actually been stealing your time?

Did a family member distract you? Was there something on the television you just had to watch? Did you get sidetracked by doing a bit of housework? Did you start reading all your emails? Were you surfing the net?

Identify the pattern in your day to day activities and see where you are losing time.

Move forward and manage yourself more effectively. You will find more creative time by examining your activities and ranking them.

  • Identify the tasks that should take up most of your time
  • Identify tasks that are important but which are not a top priority
  • Identify tasks or activities that blatantly waste your time.

When you manage yourself and your time successfully and practise it, you will find more time to be creative. You will still fulfil life’s obligations and have the time for some rest and recreation.

The top-secret to time management rests in understanding why you are pursuing a creative goal like producing a book, and then learning to prioritise tasks. It is this ability to prioritise and select the tasks that will drive you forward to your ultimate goal.

Apply these methods to living in lockdown and make the best of your extra time. Take advantage of this and tap into your creativity. 

Eliminate what is not necessary and arrive at a mental space in which you can move forward in your quest to achieving whatever it is you desire. Let lockdown be rewarding for you. 

Most importantly keep safe.

Marji Hill

Author and Coach

 

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