Losing your mojo? Check your I.N.P.U.T.S (Beware the Doom Scroll!)
As an aspiring author, it’s important that I don’t lose my mojo… And by mojo I mean creativity. And on the occasion I do lose it, it’s important not to dwell in such a desolate waste land. Make the visit as brief as possible. I do this by quickly checking my I.N.P.U.T.S.
I - The ‘I’ in ‘inputs’ stands for intelligence, because whether you wish to believe it or not, a creative brain is an intelligent brain. No… this isn’t patting myself on the back in self aggrandizing. This is a call for all us “creative” types to check how we’re feeding our intelligence. And like I can’t stand rice three days in a row, maybe your intelligent brain can’t stand the same movies, the same music, the same art form, the same sport. Spice things up a bit. Go listen to some opera. Go learn how to juggle.
N - The ‘N’ in ‘inputs’ stands for never stop. Find new ways to keep at your art. Let the river flowth downith onto the page or canvas. With so much social media consumption, sometimes we forget, art is an individual journey that we can choose to share with others. Not everything you create has to be shared and judged. So don’t judge yourself through the eyes of others. For every short story I publish on this website, I write three outlines of other stories I think of. Never judging, never stopping, just seeing what flows down onto the page.
P - The ‘P’ in ‘inputs’ stands for… Put that thing back where it came from (bom bom bom) or so help me - so help me - and cut!
U - The ‘U’ in ‘inputs’ stands for use your god damn body! There are so many studies that show the importance of using your body. If that doesn’t do it for you, trust me when I say; my most creative time is Saturday morning straight after the gym. I can knock out a whole 1000 word story in the space of an hour and a half. I’m talking - new worlds, new characters, new conflict - everything. When I’m not using my body, my brain suffers too. And with it my creativity and mojo. So check this if you’re struggling with yours.
T - The ‘T’ in ‘inputs’ stands for take a break from technology. If you’re in front of a screen, whether phone, laptop, kindle or TV too much, your creativity will 100% be affected. By unplugging, we're giving our brains a chance to daydream, ponder, and reflect on different experiences, leading to new, creative thoughts.
S - The ‘S’ in ‘inputs’ stands for social media. This day and age, there’s no getting around working hard to engage with people on social media. Especially if you are an aspiring artist. Beware the #booktoks and #writersofInstagram pages, for our asipirations and ambitions can be easily squashed by the doubts the ‘social media comparison game’ can cause. So be intentional; give yourself set times during the day, a set duration for when you’ll use the apps, and what you’ll be doing on them. Social media is, after all, a tool for artists to use. A tool that secretly wants you to become a zombie consumer; doomed to scrolling in order to find an inkling of the self-worth you had before being subject to the ‘comparison game’.
Your brain is just like any other muscle in your body. If you want it to function at its best, you must provide it with the right inputs. By controlling the inputs, you can increase creativity and unlock your potential as a creative. So, the next time you're reading or scrolling through social media feeds, think about what you're consuming and how it contributes to your creative output. Remember, creativity takes practice, dedication and, most importantly, the right I.N.P.U.T.S.
