How to Get Unstuck
Today I want to share with you Rick Rubin's nine approaches for getting unstuck. In the book he applies these strategies to the Craft Phase of the creation process, but most could be applied to the earlier phases as well (Seed Phase, Experimentation Phase).
Before abandoning a stalled work, Rubin says, "it's worth finding a way to break the sameness and refresh your excitement in the work, as if engaging with it for the first time." (185) As a record producer, Rubin sometimes suggests exercises to his collaborators to encourage this experience. Here are the nine strategies he uses:
Small steps: take one small action on a creative project every day. For a musician, this could be as simple as writing one line every day. if more comes, that's fine, but not necessary.
Change the environment: changing the space in which you work can change your perspective. To change the environment in the studio, Rubin has recorded with the lights off, changed the time of day for recording, or had the singer hold the mic instead of standing in front of it. "To access a greater degree of variation, one vocalist chose to hang uside down while singing." (184)
Change the stakes: "Besides changing the external environment, you can also change the inner." (184) You can raise the stakes or lower the stakes. Tell yourself that this is the last time you'll ever play a song. Impose an internal deadline or restriction. Or lower the stakes and do a "rehearsal" take.
Invite an audience: Some artists feel an electricity when in front of an audience. Invite people to watch a session and see how it changes your energy. "Even if your art is non-performative, such as writing or cooking, it will still likely change with an observer present." (185)
Change the context: You can apply different frames to the same work to re-energize it. Make up a new backstory for your painting or song lyrics. "With one artist, I suggested singing a love song written to a woman as a devotional to God instead." (186)
Alter the perspective: To get a more subtle performance, Rubin might turn the mic up in the vocalist's ears so loud that they can't sing anything above a whisper without blasting out their ears. Or conversely, turning the voice down in a mix might coax a more energetic performance. What parameters can you alter to change your perspective? A different brush, a different pen, different materials. Find parameters and manipulate them.
Write for someone else: If you're a painter, imagine your favorite artist has asked you to make a painting to hang on their wall. If a musician, a song for their next album. You can also reverse this: what would an artist who is the polar opposite of your style ask of you?
Add imagery: If your art feels listless, create a detailed scene around it to give it direction. For a musical solo, this could mean creating characters and a setting. For a painting or illustration, what happened just before or after the image you are creating?
Limit the information: If you're collaborating with others, try giving each person only part of the creative vision, and let their creativity fill in the gaps. If you're recording a song that has a demo version, don't play the demo recording—instead, just give the players a chord chart. You don't even have to give them the tempo or style. "The general principle is to be protective and limit people you're working with from experiencing things that could interfere with their creative process." (189)
These are the nine strategies that Rick Rubin shares in The Creative Act. Use them to see your own work in a new way, and get unstuck.
Don't be limited by the strategies Rubin chose to include in his book. Remember, the goal when you're stuck is to find new energy and excitement in your work. Be creative and collect the approaches that have worked for you.
Put them on index cards and keep them near your workspace. Then when you're stuck, leaf through the different strategies and choose one that speaks to you. Soon you will have forward momentum and back in the energetic flow.