On Creativity

I’ll be honest. This week I have been feeling creatively stuck. Maybe it’s the relentlessly rainy, humid weather we’ve been having, maybe it’s general decision-making fatigue from this renovation, maybe it’s just to be expected in the slower summer months. Yet, I work in a field where I don’t really have an option to take some time out to recharge my inspiration batteries. If a client comes in needing direction on a design or if materials for a promotion are due, I need to be ready with ideas.Personally, I find when I’m creatively blocked that the best medicine is to pour myself a glass of water and force myself to start working. Usually the first few stabs of what I’m doing are complete failures and I end up deleting those rambling first paragraphs or badly thought out mock-ups, but at least they get the gears moving. There’s a certain fear of failure that comes with creative stagnation so for me, step one is getting over that fear and putting out some really bad drafts. Once I’ve swatted out a few terrible starting sentences or design mocks, then the creative spirit kicks in and the real work begins.Of course, the process differs for everyone. I decided to ask my creative team here at Alx&Co. what they do to get through the “stuckness” and their answers surprised me, in a way. While I force myself through it, our workshop team tends to give the problem “space” and focus on something else for a while. I found it interesting because whereas my challenge is to get over a fear of failure, their challenge is to not irrevocably ruin a precious gemstone or setting. Read below to see what strategies our creative team uses to get work done even when it’s really…really…challenging. 

Tim, co-owner and custom design specialist

I drop the job I’m feeling stuck on and pick up something else. Maybe I pick up something simple to work on, maybe it’s something more complicated. It doesn’t matter, as long as it’s a different design. It’s the same answer if I’m working at the bench and just can’t figure out how to fix something…I drop it and clear my head with a different project. Sometimes, if it’s especially tricky, I might even take a few days to regroup. Without fail, once I’ve given myself enough time, the solution comes to me right when I sit back down to the job. 

Ricardo, our expert goldsmith

What I do is I put the job down and start on something else. If a job is giving me a hard time -- I can’t set the stone right or something -- I just set it down and work on another job for about 15 minutes. By then, I feel more relaxed and I can go back and finish the job. I think if something is giving you a hard time, you can’t keep messing with it. Just let it sit and it will work out once you’re more relaxed. (Good life advice!) 

Ana, our manger and enamel designer

For me, music always works. Upbeat music that lifts my spirits is helpful, and I usually dance it out as well. I think also seeing a body of water is so relaxing and inspirational. I’ll go take a walk by the river and it’s just so calming, it always puts me in a different, fresh mood. 

Stevie, our polisher

I give it some space. In our job you really can’t risk messing something up so if I can’t figure out how to fix something, I usually take a break and go outside to clear my head. I’ll give myself time to slowly think about it and then come back to it about a day later. It’s better to have something take a little longer than to rush it and ruin it. 

Lawrence, our expert silversmith

I put the job down and turn on some music. If I’m working on something traditional I usually put on some classic rock, if I’m working on an industrial piece I go for something heavier, and if I’m fabricating something from scratch like a cup or a vase, I turn on something trippier like the band Air. Then, if I’m really stuck, I just hit pause and sleep on it. The answer will always come to you even if it’s in the middle of the night, but you sometimes need to just take the stress away, stop worrying over it, and take a breather from the job.