“Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent perspiration.”
- Thomas Edison

We all get it. As freelancers, we are artists who take pride in our work. Every now and again our inspiration is killed by something and we stop taking pride in our work and create something which does not reflect our true skill. Today, I am going to share with you the things which drag inspiration out of me and then speak a little about how I get it back.

The Killers

Deadlines

When a client keeps asking about a deadline they can start to become irritable. This can cause you to rush and lose your creative skill. It can cause you to lose motivation in working on the project and can, in some cases, lead to drastic consequences. For example, it can cause you to not deliver on time and therefore create a negative image of yourself in the client’s eyes.

The way to avoid this is simple. Do not exhaust yourself and be too ambitious. If you are a freelance designer and your client is in a rush to have his/her work to them, then do not give them an early deadline just to please them. If you can not keep to the deadline comfortably, give a deadline with a later date to give yourself more time to finish the task well. Also, if your client expects silly turnaround times, then make it clear to them that quality work takes quality time.

Distractions

Many people have different types of things which distract them and keep them away from work. Try to make your workspace such that you do not have that many distractions around you. For example, do not fool yourself into thinking that you can play Halo, show your pants on Facebook, talk on MSN, eat and work all at the same time. When working focus on what you’re doing, and put all your effort into it.

Take breaks after every one and a half hours and you can do your odd antics on Facebook then, but do not mix work with play!

Remember, work hard, play hard!

Your Loved ones

Huh? Has ‘The Golem’ lost it?

Your family and friends can motivate you and demotivate you. A wife on PMS is not going to help you if you work from home, similarly, a husband who continuously moans for no reason whatsoever is not helpful! Sometimes pressure from home can affect all of us, working in an office or at home, all of us will become affected by what our loved ones express to us. This can really kill inspiration and demotivate you.

My advice is that you try to fix the problems you may have which affect you before trying to fix the problem of being inspired to work. A happy, loving family and friends will help keep you inspired and motivated naturally.

Debt

Thinking about your mortgage and bills while working on a project is going to make you tense and not help your creative side at all. If this is you, then as opposed to worrying about it and being unproductive, switch your focus on becoming the best you possibly can in your field of work. Enhance your portfolio, develop your skills, and follow the steps below to become more motivated. It will help you keep your mind off money worries, and you’ll feel much better knowing that you’re working towards eliminating those worries.

Your Health

My mum would say to me when I was in exam period “Some good fruit will help you!” and I, at the time, being a stroppy teenager would repeat to myself in a silly repetition of what she just said, and say to myself (in an effeminate voice) “fruit will help you”.

But she was right! I think it was Charles Wadsworth who said “By the time a man realises that maybe his father was right, he usually has a son who thinks he’s wrong”.

By not eating healthily, and exercising regularly, you may feel down, constantly tired, and fatigued. You’d be surprised with the wonders that food brings to your body, via increased energy levels and concentration levels. Remember your diet is very important. Just imagine going on a nice, relaxing jog, returning home to eat a good, wholesome meal – getting you ready to face the day of work, in comparison to eating a greasy McDonald’s burger with fries for lunch, and feeling down and fatigued all day.

Re-Genesis

“You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.”
- Jack London

Fresh Air

A relaxed freelancer is a creative freelancer. Sitting in a stuffy room staring at a computer monitor or a blank piece of paper, pulling your hair out, will not get you results. Instead, go for a walk outside. Looking at nature will inspire you. The greatest artist I know of is God, when He created this gorgeous world he created inspiration in it as well. Become inspired from nature.

If you’re a freelance journalist, writing about world events, nature can still inspire you, and if it doesn’t then the fresh air you get will do good for your mind – making it more reactive because of the increase in oxygen levels.

Health

We briefly touched upon health previously in this article, but here’s a little more information. Psychiatrists recommend jogging for their patients who are suffering from depression. Now, you may not be depressed, but all freelancers can get a little anxious sometimes. So, why not go with something which is proven to reduce tension? Running can have several other benefits like confidence building, character building, and – the one for us freelancers – an attitude boost.

The common expression “You are what you eat” is overused, but rightly so. If you have a greasy fattening donner kebab burger, you will feel like one straight after.

On the other hand, eat a healthy, tasty barbecued lamb chop, roasted with cherry tomatoes and stuffed peppers, garnished with fresh garden salad with a portion of boiled rice will make you feel super! Sound mouth watering? Your work will reflect this by also looking scrumptious!

Break

Unless you’re superman, like me, then you’ll need a break. Sitting continuously in front of your monitor for five hours will not inspire you in the least. It will make your brain dead!

I recommend that you take a break after every 1 to 2 hours. In your breaks do the other points which are mentioned like going for a walk/jog, or spend time with your beautiful family and loyal friends.

Mr. Motivator

I’m talking about a person who I believe has an awesome skill for personal training: Tony Robbins. I can not speak about his skills personally, as I have never been completely through one of his courses (I do regret the fact that I haven’t as ‘Personal Power’ is a course which changed my brother’s life for the better). If you are generally uninspired in life, I do recommend that you listen to, or attend a personal training programme, be that with Tony Robbins, or any other of the geniuses out there. It can really achieve results for your life as a freelancer, and your life in general as well.

Other Freelancers

Looking at the work of other people in your specific field, can prove motivational. Browsing websites on which other freelancer’s recent work appears, may get your creative thoughts flowing. Word of warning though, please do make sure you never copy anyone’s work as that’s against the ethics of freelancing and you would not like it if you were a victim of it. I recommend visiting sites such as CSSremix if you’re a designer, or if you’re a writer, you could read some of your favourite blogs (FreelanceApple) and books for some inspiration.

Final Comment

Every person has their factors which motivate or demotivate them. Whatever gets your creative side going – do it, and things which have stung your creativity previously, avoid at all costs.

What inspires you or kills your inspiration? Please share your thoughts with us below to help others learn from your experiences.

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