Dont Let Your 9-5 Stall You - Creative Exercises you Can do Over Lunch

Dont Let Your 9-5 Stall You - Creative Exercises you Can do Over Lunch found via Sarahs Pinterest account No more excuses that you cant get anything done because of your full-time gig! Sarah Stevenson is here to help ya take back your lunch hour. Revolution! Do you ever find that you are overworked, overwhelmed or just can’t seem to get your creativity flowing during your work day? If so, you are not alone. I used to work 90-100 hours a week at a very large corporate interior design firm and always felt too tired and too stressed to add any additional creativity into my day. What happened? Well, I was given a great creative project but was unable to put anything on the paper because I did not give myself time to step back and allow creativity into my day. First and foremost, you must schedule it into your calendar; Think about what you do during lunch and STOPThe only person that becomes important for the next 30 days during this time is YOU. Grab your calendar and mark each day of the week with a special colored pen or tape or whatever will make it stand out to you. Also, mark the end date in a really special way as you will be celebrating the completion of this project on the 30th day. Once you have your creative dates scheduled, then the fun begins.What can you do during an hour to spark your creativity. Here is my list of 30 things for you to try: visit an art museum go on a photo walk create your own list of 30 ideas make a piece of art out of your list draw your lunch visit a book store write for 10 minutes without stopping visit an art store read a book write a letter to a friend mail the letter pick a quiet place to sit and observe take notes on your observations plan a getaway gather art, color, and fabrics for an inspiration board create an inspiration board buy some fresh flowers for your desk buy inspirational magazines tear out things that inspire you in the magazines start an inspiration file cut out all social media during your lunch hour set a timer for 10 minutes close your eyes and rest take an architectural tour of your city take a walking tour of your city be a tourist in your city for one hour find a buddy to share your creative hour go to a paint store and pick your favorite colors (add them to your inspiration board) plan a celebration for your 30th day look back at the last 30 days; reflect. CELEBRATEyou did it! Now that you have committed to 30 days it should have become a habit. Don’t stop now, instead create use the list you created to go for another 30 days. Always remember to plan a celebration and celebrate your accomplishment at the end of the focused time as it is just as important to start as it is to congratulate yourself on a milestone reached. Most importantly ENJOY yourself as you will find that enjoyment frees you and makes you more able to come up with creative responses on your projects. Sarah Stevenson helps artists carve out space for creative explorations no matter how many hours a week you work.