29 Ways to Stay Creative


Over the weekend, I found this video and thought it was a perfect fit for bloggers who need to keep the inspiration flowing for their writing.

I do everything in this list but drink coffee and sing in the shower. I sing in the car instead. :)

29 Ways to Stay Creative

My suggestion would be to print this out and put it near your computer, carry it around in your notebook, or add it to your computer’s wallpaper. Then, when you feel that bug of writer’s block, you can refer to this for some creative refreshment.

Credits to Life on Michigan Ave for the inspiration.


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About Kristi Hines

Kristi Hines is a freelance writer, professional blogger, and ghostwriter who specializes in online marketing. Connect with her on Twitter and Google+.

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Comments

  1. love this! thanks so much for sharing

  2. I love this too. I’m always searching for inspiration for writing and this list definitely helps!
    Christy@Frugalful.com recently posted {DIY Beauty} Your Own Spa Treatment From Your KitchenMy Profile

  3. These are some great motivating processes that will spark anyone conference. The take a break one is so important.

    “Black Seo Guy “Signing Off”
    TrafficColeman recently posted Backlink Profit Monster Dominates The CompetitionMy Profile

  4. WOW, I really enjoyed that. I think that you inadvertently gave us 30 ways. ie 30: Watch this video :)

    Thanks for sharing Kristi
    Alex@make money with amazon recently posted 3 Linkbuilding Tips to Help Move a Stubborn Niche Site onto Page 1.My Profile

  5. Great ideas. Drink coffee is a definite!
    Amanda recently posted Romantic love: good or dehumanising?My Profile

  6. All are the Golden rules.

    If you are a blogger rule # 2 is absolutely vital.
    Rana @ Small Business Tips recently posted Small Business tips: Why Small Businesses Need Online PresenceMy Profile

    • I’ve noticed most creative/artist types that I’ve known do this, even when they’re young. Except photographers, at least not that I’ve noticed.

      Fortunately, every smart phone can take notes these days, so I always have a notepad.

      Number 2 and number 26 are actually the same thing. I suppose the author was merely adhering to number 21 by including it twice this way. ;)
      Kevin Kimes @ Online Business Lifestyle recently posted My Strongest BacklinkMy Profile

      • Exactly! You don’t have to be a blogger to benefit from this. You don’t even have to be doing it for creative things (writing, song writing, etc…). It can be really interesting just to go back through your notepad and remember what that day was like. Personally, I love number 18 — we too often overlook the little things in the search for bigger ones. ~David Walker
        David Walker@Make Money Online recently posted Why People Don’t Like “Free”My Profile

  7. Hi Kristi,
    Lovely list; my 2 favorite is 14 and 20, that’s way I’m a survivor and always landing on my feets.

  8. Wow.. You know what, I’m lacking all of those. If ever I can do all of those during my work. I would be the happiest person working at home. :P well maybe!

    This is not just being creative. I think this is a great list of must must do things for all of us.

  9. What an awesome video and something to bookmark! I really love this list and I’ll be checking and implementing it on a daily basis.

    BTW I also love the new changes you’ve made to the blog and I think they’re doing a great job of bringing to the spotlight some things that aren’t that obvious before :)

    Thanks so much for the great post!

    -Onibalusi
    Onibalusi Bamidele recently posted 3 Realizations that Will Change Your Online Business ForeverMy Profile

    • Thanks Onibalusi! I had one of my few designing moods over the weekend and used Mashable as inspiration for the follow box, plus added some new banners for my eBook. I was quite proud of myself! :)

  10. Another awesome, awesome contribution and put together very well Kristi. As top notch as one would expect from you at this point, I’ll be doing the full monty with this post. Thanks for the time an effort you must have put in to this post, I can only imagine.
    Extreme John @ CEO Business Blog recently posted 24 Tools I Used to Build a Viral Marketing Campaign on Facebook P2My Profile

  11. That’s a great list! It’s now my desktop wallpaper and it will probably stay there for a while. I have to practice points 4 and 6 more often.

    I like to sing in the car too!
    Stephen recently posted Facebook status overload and personal page meltdownMy Profile

  12. Great vid, great suggestions. I love “don’t force it.” It seems great ideas are rarely forced. We probably unconsciously AHA! ourselves the heck out a great deal.
    Ryan Critchett recently posted Social Media Talk (And Some Strategy For Small Businesses)My Profile

  13. Fabulous! Truly fabulous! Thanks so much for sharing Kristi. I’d say this could be 29 ways to be happier, to live better, etc. This is not a list for just staying creative.
    Kim Butler recently posted Can You Sell Your House Using Online Real Estate Marketing?My Profile

  14. Love the counts your blessing and stay around other creative people :) Especially true when you are living with a bunch of whiners, you’ll find that you whine a lot too. Which is why I always choose to be around passionate, highly spirited people!
    Michael Aulia @CravingTech.com recently posted Nuffnang Blogopolis Conference 2011, here I come!My Profile

  15. I’m not exactly what you would call a creative person but I don’t really have a problem writing posts, perhaps they’re not what you would call creative works?

    There are times though when some of my posts, usually it’s either a poem or a short story or something, are sort of creative but these were not forced, they were just ready to be born. Sure as heck didn’t waste my time reading a page in the dictionary. :D
    Sire@Buy Online Lotto Tickets recently posted What Is Responsible Gambling?My Profile

    • Sometimes I think bloggers need a little creativity when it comes to figuring up new ideas for posts that others haven’t yet covered Sire, or to cover things in a different way. :)

  16. Kristi,
    Very creative video. Very nice. I especially like #2. I always think of new ideas when I’m away from my computer.
    Tom recently posted The Reading ChallengeMy Profile

  17. Have fun is the most important. You always have fresh idea if you have fresh mind.
    enursa recently posted 27 Creative Works Taken from Pencil and CameraMy Profile

  18. Nice list. I’m not sure how number 8 drink coffee would help me stay creative. I would put have to put it at number 1 just to get the day going though. I do really need to do number 27 clean my workspace, talk about a mess and clutter.
    Ray@dolphin tutorials recently posted How much time do you spend working on your websiteMy Profile

    • Clutter is the ultimate killer of creativity in my book Ray. The more open my room and desk, the more room I feel I have to breathe and create!

  19. Its a great list. Thank you.

    I think what this list did forget was
    # Pursue excellence and not success.

    Creative people often are deprived of their creativity when money is a driving factor. Imagine an artist at a web design company specifically instructed to create a blocked, blue colour 16 grid layout with predefined boxes. Your creativity goes down the drain.

    When driven by excellence , artists often discard criticism to create a masterpiece. When driven by success , artists often abandon creativity for a sub standard product.

    Nonetheless a great list. Some time well spent reading this through.
    Ajay Chavda recently posted Nine Simple Things Successful Bloggers Do Differently !My Profile

  20. I have already printed it out and put it on the wall in front of my eyes – and I highlighted points #4, 6,14,16,18,28,29.
    They are my best!

  21. Loving the bit about reading a page in the dictionary. That would help me in many ways for Scrabble, which I play often against my grandmother.

    My new favorite Scrabble word: Zax. It’s a hatchet like tool. If you place that little sucker on a triple word spot – you’d be raking in mega-points.
    Christian Hollingsworth recently posted Why do you comment on blogs?My Profile

  22. That’s a good set of rules, but I’ll definitely start by cleaning my desk :)

  23. Hey, 99% of the people I know do sing in the shower, but they’re enemy with creativity :)
    Codrut Turcanu @ SEMRush recently posted Offline Investing Tips with Gabe Young Blogger @ FreeBlogHelp.comMy Profile

  24. Kristi,

    Lol! I’m going to try singing in the shower then since that’s the only thing that I’ven’t done on your list!
    Andrew Walker recently posted Etihad CouponsMy Profile

  25. Great post Kristi. I have found that taking a walk and clearing my head works wonders for creativity. But my biggest tip would be to stop watching tv. I think it zaps your energy levels as well. When all else fails I just step away from my computer. I spend way too much time on this thing
    Annie@kitchen remodel blog recently posted how to sell a home fastMy Profile

  26. I also believe in how effective taking down notes is for productivity and creativity. Having your notes nearby will allow you to capture all those good ideas that we tend to forget if we just rely on our brains. Also, you get to form new connections between stuff when reviewing your notes.

    On a related note, a friend recommended this software to me over the weekend and I think some of you might be interested in this: http://www.thebrain.com/

    For me, it’s the best mind map, visualization, and notes / personal organizer tool i’ve ever used. I think this can also be used in other ways such as for project management. There’s a free and paid versions, and you get to try all the features for 30 days.

    I’m still in the 30-day trial so im not really sure what the difference is between free and the paid versions – but my friend says the free version is still functional after the 30day trial.
    dan recently posted What Will An IT Consultant Do For My Company?My Profile

  27. This is great! I actually may print it and hang it on the wall in front of me! I just cleaned and rearranged my workspace today and I worked so much better after it! I also do a lot of other things. Thanks so much for this inspirational post!
    Kim@themafeestjes recently posted Interview : Prinses JasmineMy Profile

  28. Thanks for the list! I also sing in the car not shower!

    I would add, put on Bose noise cancelling headphones and listen to whatever music inspires me that day!

    cheers,
    Rajka
    Rajka@ExpatDoctorMom recently posted The Dangers Of Sunscreen. How To Buy The Safest Sunscreen For You And Your Family?My Profile

  29. Nice post! Drinking coffee and stepping away from the computer are definitely great tips. I would also like to suggest reading poetry; sometimes reading a different type of writing can get the juices flowing.

    -Sylvia

  30. Wow! I am totally renewed by your list. I didn’t know staying creative only takes 29 ways. Very nice, I am inspired as always.
    Andrew @ Blogging Guide recently posted Escaping The 9-5: Do You Miss This?My Profile

  31. These are great ideas, Kristi! Such a practical and succinct list – Might just print it off for inspiration. Thanks for putting this together!
    Darlene recently posted How to Set Up a Twitter AccountMy Profile

  32. Thanks for this wonderful list Kristi. I don’t know but every time to I take a shower I feel like I’m having an idea overload and I feel like writing it all down. Weird stuff :) No. 12 & 17 are what I often do when I get stuck.

  33. Great list, thanks for sharing the link Kristy.

    I find it very helpful to carry a notebook with me all the time and also I make lists every few days or so. Not only it helps with creativity but it also increases your productivity level.
    Satrap@ Make Money Online recently posted 10 Best Ways to Make Extra Money Online in Your Spare TimeMy Profile

  34. I need to implement these ideas quickly! I’ve been running out of idea on what to blog about, so this should help.
    Darren@Cloud Hosting Blog recently posted Social Media Sites Present Security Risks To Businesses Of All SizesMy Profile

  35. I love it Kristi! Thanks for sharing this video :)
    Noel Addison@Web Development Ventura recently posted Selling Ice Cubes to EskimosMy Profile