Staying connected to our elusive creativity is often a matter of finding creative inspiration in the midst of the noise and the mundane.
I don’t know how I got to write those songs…
I can do other things now, but I can’t do that.
—Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan, one of the greatest songwriters of all time, once admitted he could no longer write songs like he did during his creative peak in the 1960s and 70s. He described his early songwriting as almost mystical, something that came through him rather than from him.
Dylan’s reflection reminds us that creativity ebbs and flows, and our wellspring of creative inspiration can feel less accessible at certain times in our lives.
We don’t have to accept this as our fate.
Creativity in the Ordinary
By staying curious and present, we can invite creative inspiration back into our lives, even in unexpected ways.
Creativity often feels like a fleeting force, showing up unexpectedly and disappearing just as quickly. But what if creative inspiration isn’t as elusive as it seems?
What if it’s hiding in plain sight, waiting for us to notice it in the ordinary moments?
Finding creative inspiration in the everyday is about seeing beauty where others might not and staying open to the world around us.
How to Find Creative Inspiration Anywhere
Here are three powerful steps to reconnect with your creativity:
1. Start with Presence
The first step is to slow down and be fully present. How often do we rush through our routines, blind to the subtle details around us? I certainly used to charge through the world like a horse with blinders on, head down, focused on doing the next thing, going to the next appointment.
We can choose to come home to ourselves.
We can lift our gaze up and outward. We can practice mindfulness—by doing The 5Ms or simply by paying attention to the moment and noticing what we’d otherwise overlook.
Here’s a challenge…choose one from the list below:
- Pause right now to observe how sunlight dances across the walls, casting shifting patterns of light and shadow.
- Listen to (or imagine) the soft rhythm of raindrops as they create a soothing symphony on your roof.
- Run your fingers along the surface of a worn book or your morning mug, noticing the textures that ground you in the moment.
Our brains will tell us we need to spend hours steeped in such intentional awareness for us to enjoy any results. Ignore this chatter.
Five minutes spent immersed in this energetic state of appreciative observation can settle the wild horse of us, shift our perspective, and inspire new ideas.
2. Reframe the Mundane
Seeing the extraordinary in the ordinary requires a mental shift. Instead of dismissing our surroundings as uninspiring or lackluster, we can reframe them as sources of creative inspiration.
That crumpled receipt in our pocket might tell a story.
The picture on our wall that we’ve had since childhood can take us on a Proustian stream-of-consciousness experience, sparking poignant memories.
Witnessing how treetops bend and lean in winter wind could inspire a painting or poem.
Playfulness can help here, too. Ask yourself: What if this stately oak tree in my yard could talk? What answers would you seek from this ancient sentinel?
Let your mind wander, adding a layer of wonder and awe to the everyday.
3. Step Away from the Screens
I can feel an off-rhythm staggering start in my heart when I’ve indulged too much in digital input. Doing so for extended periods of time puts my brain waves and soul in High Beta—and I can experience an almost battery acid taste in my soul.
I feel profoundly disjointed. Fragmented.
In this state, I am susceptible to being influenced by things that don’t matter or habits that pull me further away from the mountain comprised of my highest dreams.
The cure is easy—a digital detox.
Several times each year, I will unplug, dig a moat against distractions, and embrace fully my beloved analog tools. I stay in the universe of pens, graphite, ink, journals, planners, and notebooks of all stripes.
I stay off social media and let the only conversation bobbing up and down inside my brain be one I generated, surfaced. I focus on deeply listening to my words first and taking dictation from my soul.
I think. I plan. I create.
I call this going into my Creative Cave, and I encourage everyone to experience the deliciousness of this fecund and calming quiet.
Peel away from others and drop into spaciousness—time for yourself. Pick up your journal instead of your phone. Take a brisk walk with a couple of index cards and a pencil in your pocket.
Put down the old stories of duty and obligation and opt instead for doing whatever sounds like fun. In this rebellion against the cultural lore that keeps us stuck, we will feel the cellular walls of our pumping hearts come back into their signature cadence.
The cadence of who we truly are.
Connect with Your Inner Life
Finding creative inspiration in the ordinary is about more than generating ideas. It’s a way to stay connected to ourselves and the world. When we practice seeing, hearing, and feeling more deeply, we strengthen the bond between our inner lives and the abundant universe.
This connection fuels creativity, reminding us that creative inspiration is always within reach—not something to chase but something to set the table for and invite.
