Creativity is so important in all our lives, and is a big factor in many of the things we don’t even consider creative – yet we often dismiss it as indulgent, fanciful and not all that important in life. 

If we were to really consider it, we’d discover that it’s a part of our everyday lives from what we choose to wear each day to how we think of solutions to a problem or challenge, or even how we innovate and pivot something in business.

It’s how new breakthroughs in science start out, it’s the spark that allows us to become the best of ourselves, which is exactly what creativity coaching is – just a way to help find and nurture that spark for the greater good of yourself and your contribution to society. 

However, there’s plenty of ways to do creative self-coaching and to help boost that spark in every aspect of your life, from your creative practice right through to your business marketing and life in general. 

Here’s my top 10 tips to get started

1. Accept creativity as a part of your identity

• TIP – Creativity starts first with accepting and owning your creative identity and that it is a fundamental part of who you are. You can’t move forward if you don’t first accept that you are creative and it’s a part of your eco-system. 
  
• HOW – In society, we’re taught to ignore creativity, so we suppress it and then have a hard time accepting it as part of our whole. The good news is you can change this thought process. How you do this will depend on what works for you. Some ideas to try are – affirmations, prioritising creative pursuits, reading self-help books, coaching and many other ways. To work out which is good for you, first start with the one that appeals most and give it a try. By owning the words “I am creative” you’ll be able to start believing it, despite what anyone else might have to say. 

2. Find meaning in your work 

• TIP – Making meaning in your work is one of the most important things and creativity is a fantastic way to do that. From everything, like innovating a new product, right through to how you do your marketing, using creativity to find the deeper, more important meaning in your work or art is vital for telling the story of your soul. 
  
• HOW – Always consider the meaning behind the work you’re doing, whether it’s the latest creative piece, your marketing or just life in general. This meaning could be personal through emotional expression, recounting experiences, or it could be more societal – contributing to a wider conversation, or something else that holds meaning for you. By staying focused on the deeper meaning behind what you’re saying, you’ll always stay connected to the value and purpose of your brand or creative work. 

3. Learn to manage creative anxiety 

• TIP – Anxiety and creative expression is a natural part of the creative process. Managing this anxiety and not allowing it to hold you back is vital for staying productive.
  
• HOW – Allow fear and doubt space in your world by acknowledging they are a part of the process. This way, they lose power and won’t stop you. Try anxiety techniques, like breathing exercises or reframing negativity, to help you take control. Anxiety, doubt, and fear are all natural parts of the creative process and are not a reason to give up.

4. Learn consistency 

• TIP – Being consistent with your creative work is key to not only helping you strengthen your craft but also your creative discipline and ability to keep doing the work.
  
• HOW – Set specific blocks of time in your week to do the work. The same time each day or each week is best, as it helps you form habits. This is especially important when you don’t feel like showing up. What this will do over time is train your mind to expect creativity at a particular time. You are developing a muscle and it doesn’t matter whether you create something great every time.

5. Remember, the creative process isn’t always smooth 

• TIP – The creative process isn’t always smooth. Instead, it’s often fraught with turns, pitfalls and lots of failure along the way. There’s a myth that a creative sits at their work and a golden beam of light delivers genius to their soul and the rest of the time they sit around waiting for that beam. This is wholly untrue. It’s a lot of work like any other project and it takes showing up when you’re not feeling like it. It means tolerating the discomfort, confusion, and uncertainty as a natural part of the process.
  
• HOW – When you’re in this situation, and you will be at some point, try to remind yourself that this is part of the process and is only temporary. Do some mindset work by doing the opposite game. It works by replacing those negative thoughts with something opposite, so you might get a thought like – “I can’t do it,” and you replace it with “I have found another way this didn’t work that means I’m one step closer to finding the right way” By allowing discomfort and giving yourself the freedom to work through challenges, you can get to where you want to be.

6. Be accountable 

• TIP – Holding yourself accountable for your actions is important and can be tricky. It’s vital to set your own deadlines and then stick to them even if they start out as small deadlines.
  
• HOW – If you have trouble sticking to deadlines and staying accountable, start off small. Set some easily achievable goals and see how it makes you feel to achieve it. Then go further, set a schedule and create a coherent plan with timelines and milestones. An accountability partner is a good way to make sure you stay on track. Treat your creative work with the same seriousness as your other commitments in life. 

7. Accept and deal with resistance 

• TIP – Resistance is a natural part of the process and affects all of us. It’s first important to identify where it is coming from and then fix the issue with whatever needs to be worked on. Sometimes this is an internal issue, like fear, anxiety, etc and sometimes it’s an external issue like a lack of knowledge, societal judgement, etc.
  
• HOW – When you find that you’re avoiding doing the work, you need to discover why. Reflect on what causes that resistance and be honest with yourself. Are you afraid of failure, success, the enormity of a project, or something else? Sit with that discomfort and really examine it before you work on fixing the issue. 

8. Follow your own creative philosophy

• TIP – I think it’s important to find out what your own creativity philosophy is – the reasons, beliefs and principles of why you do what you do.
  
• HOW – Reflect on what creativity means to you – is it self-expression, discovery, or making a difference in the world? This creative philosophy gives you a reason, a why, so you can ground yourself during difficult times. Write it down and keep it handy so you can always see your values and deep motivations.

9. Choose to matter

• TIP – You must choose your creativity and accept that it is a part of you, and not only this, that it matters to you – not for external success, but because it’s a part of who you are and you acknowledge that.
  
• HOW – You can choose to see your work as valuable by deciding that it matters to you. By choosing it and confirming that it matters just because it is yours, you are accepting it as your own. When you feel doubt, simply ask yourself – does this matter to me? If the answer is yes, then you need to continue with it.

10. Celebrate the process, not just the wins

• TIP – Focus on the process of creating rather than the result. The process of creating, rather than the finished result, will creatively satisfy you. 
  
• HOW – Make a note of your daily creative work and celebrate this. Keep a journal to record what you learn through the process. What challenges did you overcome? Celebrate the small victories and you may find they become more important than the end result. This approach builds resilience and helps maintain a long-term creative endurance.