by Leah Roper
In the world of creativity, nothing is worse than hitting that dreaded wall.
You know the one I mean…bloc de l’auteur.
Though that’s only one way of saying it. You may be more familiar with other descriptions for writer’s block—burnout, work paralysis, brain strike, or creative constipation.
But you don’t give a rat’s-ass what it’s called. All you know is that your fingers hover for far too long above the keyboard. You’re one latte away from pulling your hair out. And if you waste any more time glancing at the clock, you’ll lose your mind.
You have a deadline to meet and a life to live, dammit. Where is the flow? The ease? The unidentified force that makes your fingers fly and your creativity burn bright?
It happens to the best of us…this curse of the creatives. One moment you’re flying high on the pulse of inspiration, the next you flatline.
That’s why I’m here—to tell you about one guaranteed method to change your mindset and cultivate those creative juices.
A proven technique praised for its diverse benefits: gratitude journaling.
1. You May Not Be Writing Your Next Best-Seller, But You ARE Writing
The most common advice you hear to conquer writer’s block is to:
Just write. Write about anything, everything—how frustrated you are, your thoughts on the latest hot topic, the weather, your pet, your neighbor’s secret life.
You may not be writing what you initially planned, but you’re still writing.
This is true. When you give yourself the head-space to write about anything, that mental wall has no power over you. You’re firing-up those stubborn creative-pistons whether they like it or not.
But there’s a difference between sitting down to word-vomit about anything and sitting down to write about things you’re grateful for.
It works your brain in a different way.
Not only are you writing *finally*, but you’re also redirecting your focus to a positive mindset. You’re gaining access to a different creative part of your brain.
You’re writing with the balance of controlled optimistic intention and creative freedom, a powerful combination that works wonders against writer’s block or creative constipation. Or just bad moods in general.
When you write about things you love and connect to, you eliminate artificial creativity and frustration. You don’t see people dripping sweat over their gratitude journals, trying to squeak out a happy thought. Or at least I hope not.
Gratitude journaling isn’t like writing fiction. You don’t make-up facts or spend time haggling over the details. The facts are what you love and are passionate about.
They are in the things and people around you, waiting to help you rejuvenate your creative brain when you sit down to journal.
2. Positive Thoughts Lead to Positive Results
Research has shown that when you focus on the positive, success is often mirrored back at you.
“Happy brains are smart brains. While negativity narrows our focus to help us respond to a threat, positivity does just the opposite; it opens us up, broadening the range of ideas that come to mind. This helps positive people see multiple solutions to problems and make better decisions. It also leads to greater creativity.”
~ Beth Cabrera and Steve Gladis
The best part is you get to choose where you want to direct this energy.
Ahem, even at writer’s block? Yep, even at writer’s block.
Not sure where to start?
Journal about your creative gifts:
- How grateful you are to have them
- What you love most about them
- How good they make you feel
- How excited you are to succeed
Easier said than done when they’re the occasional cause of sleepless nights and mental angst… True. But if you’re going to obsess over them, you might as well do it beneficially.
Try to readjust your perspective; think back to when you first started and how far you’ve come. If you’re new to the trade, remember when it was only a thought in your mind.
There are so many beautiful accomplishments to celebrate in gratitude.
Make it a daily ritual, something you do before you sit down to work. Grab your coffee or tea, and just do it.
You might be surprised at the new ideas and inspiration that start surfacing.
3. Give Yourself a Break
When life gets a little sticky, you tend to do one of two things. You either block it out or focus all your attention on the problem.
Writers (and artists) tend to swing towards one reaction more than the other when it comes to writer’s block.
Can you guess?
No one can blame you. You have a calling that demands exercise. And writer’s block puts a stop to any progressive movement. It’s natural for you to sit and obsess over it.
Natural, but not helpful.
This is where I recommend you stop your obsessing for a hot-minute, and pick up your journal. I know it can feel impossible to hit the pause button. But your brain needs a break.
Like with any healthy diet, you need a variety of foods. The same goes for your mind.
You can’t feed it regurgitated ideas about your creation-in-progress and expect a mind-blowing outcome.
Switch it up. Give it some healthy, happy things to chew on for a while. Let yourself enjoy the change of pace.
If you find yourself too tempted to fall off the wagon, get yourself the heck out. Grab your journal and head down to the local coffee shop, library or park.
And remember, what you journal doesn’t have to be eloquent or worthy of Dickens. This is real talk. There’s no preferred format, font or word count. Only you and what makes you all warm and fuzzy inside.
It doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to be something.
4. Rewire Your Brain to Work With You, Not Against You
If you aren’t used to mindset work or positive thinking, you might feel awkward gratitude journaling at first.
Your brain isn’t used to creating the positive pathways you’re asking it to — you’ll notice it takes a little effort and uncomfortable shifting.
That’s normal. And it gets much easier, I promise.
Our brains are muscles after all. They may be in top-notch shape in some ways, and a little less so in others. All it takes is time and consistent exercise. In this case, journalling.
When you decide to act outside your typical habits, you are rewiring your brain.
Your body is a creature of habit, and it prefers you to stay nice and comfy with the same old routines.
- Whether that’s you, rolling out of bed and immediately obsessing over your current project, PJ’s and all.
- Or the you that waits last minute to put in the hours, letting imposter syndrome get the better of you.
- Or the you about to combust with a bad case of writer’s block that seems to happen far too often.
Success isn’t found in comfort zones, my friends.
Yes, there are many ways to break the mode and change things up. Gratitude journaling
happens to be one of the most rewarding solutions—a healthy (and non-cardio) method of getting out of your comfort zone.
Alongside the writing benefits, gratitude journaling armors you with empowerment and confidence.
So that when you do finally sit down to write and just aren’t feeling it, you have a safety net to fall back on and propel you forward. You remind yourself you’re capable, talented and you deserve success. Look at what you’ve achieved so far.
What’s writer’s block to that, huh?
5. The Bigger Picture of Gratitude Journaling
Have you ever noticed how much your “everyday life” affects your “writing life”? If you’re like me, that’s a definite “YES”.
I can be cruising at top speeds with my work — then I remember the dentist appointment coming up, and SCREECH. It all comes to a halt.
And sometimes that’s it. I lose focus and struggle to regain it for the rest of my designated writing time. I’ve created my own personal writer’s block.
This happens and most of the time you can’t avoid it because it’s life. However, you do have the power to preempt this inconvenience.
Gratitude journaling does more than help you sharpen your creative writing skills and prevent creative constipation, even if you do journal the majority of the time about your writing. The rest of your daily to-do’s will affect your mindset work.
Think of it as one big domino effect:
- Gratitude journaling empowers you with a positive mindset.
- You feel capable of handling the extra details of life.
- Leaving your writing-time free of outside stress and influence.
- You produce a bestseller and you live the rest of your days sipping wine from a villa in Italy…(riiight)
The point is, when you’re empowered to handle life’s curveballs, you conserve that extra brainpower for your writing. You say “Not today, distractions!” and get your work done without the mental baggage.
The benefits of gratitude journaling are nearly limitless—an all-around win-win. No more questioning if you have the skills or if you’ve lost your gift.
Everything you need to succeed is bundled-up in that brain of yours. Now all you need to do is get a journal, settle in and get started cultivating a new positive mindset.
Hello, success and goodbye writer’s block.
* * *
Leah Roper is a copywriter and content marketing specialist for success and business coaches.
In addition to writing independent pieces for various publishers, she helps business coaches empower more entrepreneurs through cutting-edge content marketing.
She believes that though positive mindset-work and the cultivation of self-love we are capable of living out our dreams.
For information on Leah and her work, please connect with her on Linkedin or visit her website.
Sources:
Cabrera, Beth, and Steve Gladis. “How Positivity Leads to Success.” Main. Last modified December 8, 2017. https://www.td.org/insights/how-positivity-leads-to-success.