Most of us can relate to that mid-summer slump when we feel the slow burn of a monotonous schedule. Especially for creatives, it’s easy to get caught up in feeling unmotivated, uninspired, and like we’re just going through the motions.
You can find the silver lining during these times by recognizing the opportunity to try different things and bring some novelty into your creative process.
Here are 4 ways to maintain your groove during slow seasons and avoid the summer blues.
1. Have the summer blues? Stop and smell the roses.
When the day to day feels mundane, you may feel like nothing is interesting enough to shoot. This is the perfect chance to start noticing the little details and capture things from a new perspective. Time to beat the summer blues!
How many times have you passed that cool sculpture on the way to the grocery store but have never stopped to observe it up close? What about that new community garden near your office? A mini photo session during your lunch break could make for some beautiful glass prints to liven up your living room wall.
So take your camera (or smartphone!) with you on the way to your afternoon dentist appointment. You may discover trivial things that can be brought to life through the lens.
2. Look in unlikely places.
French painter Claude Monet spent much of his life painting the Notre Dame Cathedral over 30 times, experimenting with different lighting and perspectives.
When it comes to overcoming the summer blues, you can do this, too. A good exercise to get the creative juices flowing again is to photograph things, even things you’ve captured before, in new and unexpected ways. Go ahead and try that weird angle, or play with the sun’s rays hitting the lens a certain way. You can also enhance the photos you already have with filters. A good Lightroom preset can be just the thing that freshens up your camera roll.
When we venture outside of our norm, we open ourselves up to remarkable breakthroughs.
3. Tap into your subconscious.
We all know self care does wonders for our physical and mental health. But it may also act as a window to innovation and inspiration when we’ve got the summer blues.
Of course, it can be challenging to designate time for ourselves when we’re already overloaded. If you know a busy season is approaching, prioritize at least five minutes of enjoyable self care per day and create a plan that allows you to stick to this routine.
These practices can be anything from meditating on happy memories, to keeping a journal with fleeting ideas you might have throughout the day, to listening to music that evokes emotion. Whatever methods you have, a surefire way to cultivate creativity and beat the summer blues is by taking care of ourselves.
4. Kick the summer blues by refreshing your space.
Our environment directly influences our mood. So when you’re feeling the summer blues and need a change of pace, take a look at your surroundings. Here’s some ideas of ways you can freshen up your space:
- Replace your old curtains with more vibrant ones.
- Visit your local nursery and bring home some summery plants. Bonus points if they’re NASA-recommended air purifying plants (such as an areca palm, snake plant, Chinese evergreens, or spider plant).
- Create a statement wall by painting it or adorning it with a Photo Wall.
- Print your favorite summer memories on glass. Hang your glass prints in empty nooks in your home, or prop them on a shelf or table with print stands.
Now it’s your turn.
Chances are we’ll drain our supply of creative juices at some point. Although this is natural, it’s fixable—the name of the game is adaptability on all fronts. Inspiration will come, as long as you remain resourceful, open-minded, and trust the process.
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