The Art of Aha! Moments and How to Conquer Creative Burnout

“The most creative people are motivated by the grandest of problems that are presented before them.”

— Neil deGrasse Tyson

If you’ve been experiencing the sting of spring-semester burnout, you’re not alone. More than 55% of college students struggled to cope with academic fatigue in the last year. As communicators, we tend to see this as a barrier to producing clever, original work (writer’s block, anyone?). However, to achieve a breakthrough, we have to fundamentally shift our mindsets and recognize this: Burnout is not a threat to our creativity; it’s just a threat to our comfort. 

In honor of International Ideas Month, here are some tips on how to cherish your spark and prevent burnout:

1. Learn to build creative resilience.

Even when exhaustion makes it difficult to access, creativity is very much alive within you – not by nature but through deliberate practice. 

Creative resilience is the ability to sustain and grow your creative energy, even when the going gets tough. This is an essential skill for those in public relations, as clients and colleagues depend on us to deliver high-quality work regardless of what is inhibiting us from reaching our full potential. 

It takes time and effort to develop creative resilience. Fortunately, the obstacles we face every day – burnout, criticism and self-doubt, for example – are also opportunities to strengthen our grit. When your commitments start to pile up, you’re forced to decide if it’s right to step back or step through the rough patch. There’s no right answer. Sometimes, building creative resilience is about setting boundaries around your workload; in other circumstances, it might mean actively seeking feedback and allowing yourself to be vulnerable with your peers. 

No matter what action you take, there’s always a lesson to be learned. Trust your gut, be intentional and reflect on how each hurdle can make you a stronger communicator.

2. Embrace the blank page.

Let’s face it: Starting from scratch is tough. Shuddering at the sight of an empty canvas is a telltale sign of blank page syndrome. When you’re dealing with burnout, the pressure to perform well is astronomically heightened. Perfectionism, fear of judgement and reluctance to fail can leave communicators in a rut.

Collaborating with others is one way to move past the initial stress of a new project. Gaining different perspectives will help inform your direction, and you might be inspired by a thought that never crossed your mind.

Though it is easier said than done, try to avoid frustration and exhaustion by focusing less on the outcome and more on the journey. It might seem limiting at first, but once you allow yourself to make mistakes and forge ahead, you’ll achieve a new level of creative freedom. Reframing the intimidation of an empty page into the empowerment of a clean slate is key to appreciating the process. 

3. Turn it off, and turn it back on again.

This classic IT advice also applies to PR. But in this instance, you’re rebooting your brain instead of your laptop. 

When all else fails, take a break. 

Burnout often leads to feelings of inadequacy. When you hit your creative stride, your ideas are fresh and bright. After a while, though, they start to lose their novelty. This has nothing to do with your talent; everyone reaches a standstill at some point. The most effective way to get past this is to listen to your cues and find time to step away from your work. 

While the need for breaks might seem obvious, actually taking them isn’t always so simple. Constantly prioritizing deadlines and expectations over self-care is a slippery slope. One of the top factors contributing to burnout is the feeling of “always being on”; in fact, 96% of public relations professionals report having trouble separating work and personal time. Navigating this balance is challenging, but finding moments to rejuvenate leads to improved productivity in the long term. Whether you prefer a walk outdoors, a journaling session or simply doing nothing, taking some kind of restorative break will help you subconsciously work through your block. 

Burnout is the enemy of confidence, but it only has so much power. If you remember to approach setbacks with optimism, charge forward and nurture your mind, they will never be able to extinguish your creative spark. 

Lightbulb moments are all around us. Sometimes, you just need to sit in the dark to see them.