5 PLACES FOR CREATIVES TO FIND INSPIRATION

The life of a creative is an insane roller coaster.

One day you’re in the mindset of “I can do this! I am killing this creative thing! My mind is overflowing with ideas!”

And then the next day (or even 15 minutes later) you’ve done a 180 and find yourself in the mindset of “Hmmm, what blog post should I write today? Does anyone besides my mom even care? Am I just wasting my time?

The struggle is real.

And a lot of times, that struggle is really hard to push past. Like harder than getting out of bed early on Monday morning.

Sometimes I stare at a blank screen for what seems like hours.

Waiting for inspiration, waiting for that cartoon light bulb to pop up above my head. Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn’t.

And if it doesn’t, you need to have a plan B. And for me, that plan B is looking to others.

Accept that sometimes you need to go outside yourself to find creativity.

When you are struggling to find inspiration within, it’s totally okay to look outside to find that spark that gets you going.

Know that everyone struggles with being creative at times.

You are not alone in your creative block!

No creative is ever 100% on top of their game.

That’s a major part of who creatives are — they are following the ebbs and flows of creativity.

So, when I’m feeling BLAH and 0% creative, these are my go-tos.

#1. Daily Stoic Instagram

There is no shame in finding inspiration in inspirational quotes. Where do you think they got their name from?

Inspirational quotes have gotten a bad rep, but if they work for you, GREAT.

Some work for me, and some I just roll my eyes over.

However, these inspirational quotes are all about stoic philosophy which traces all the way back to the 3rd century B.C.! You can read more about Stoicism here.

#2. theeverygirl.com

Sometimes just reading about other #girlbosses helps me find motivation.

And theeverygirl.com is a great place to do that.

With tips on everything from career, to health and beauty, to fashion and everything else a girl needs, this website is sure to get your noggin going.

#3. Goal Digger Podcast by Jenna Kutcher

This girl has the creative and business stuff down to a T.

Her attitude about business and life is just absolutely fabulous and the advice she offers is just incredible.

I love listening to these podcasts while I’m getting ready in the morning to really get a great start to my day. I begin work feeling ready to kick a** at being a creative.

But I also reach for the Goal Digger Podcast when I’m at the gym or when I’m feeling I need a little pick-me-up.

Trust me, you will not regret listening to this!

#4. The Skinny Confidential Him & Her Podcast

Lauryn, the girl behind The Skinny Confidential blog is just AMAZING.

She is real, raw, and says it like it is. Never apologizes for who she is and has great advice on everything from beauty to business. We could all learn a little something from her.

This podcast she does with her entrepreneur husband offers some great tips and insight into the world of running your own business, with some TMI stories and fun guests thrown into the mix.

If you’re looking for a laugh and some tips to apply to your life, give this podcast a listen.

#5. Gary Vee Instagram

If you’re in need of some butt kicking, head on over to Gary Vee’s Instagram.

Brutally honest and fearless of profanities, Gary Vee is sometimes just what you need to get things in gear.

I like to head to his page when I start to doubt what I’m doing.

Gary gives a quick shot of “stop doing sh** you hate” and I’m back on the creative wagon again.

Sometimes that’s all it takes!

I hope you guys will find some of these helpful and inspirational. Don’t forget — we all get lost sometimes, so don’t overthink it!

xx

MY #1 TOOL FOR PRODUCTIVITY

Sitting there staring at my list of to-dos, I felt the anxiety coming on STRONG.

So much to do and I can’t even start.

I’m sure you’ve been there – we all have. And we hate it.

Few things feel worse than staring at your long list of tasks and staring some more, and staring some more . . . never really getting started.

And once that feeling of panic and anxiety starts coming in, it is HARD to back yourself away from it.

I can’t even tell you how many times I was faced with this.

I struggle with anxiety normally, and this to-do list panic certainly wasn’t helping.

So, I decided it was time to figure something out.

I was a bit scared to plunge into the world of electronic organization, to be honest.

My whole life I have LOVED writing down assignments, projects, etc. in my agenda.

Doodling around my to-dos to make them prettier and also, to postpone actually starting on them was a fav activity of mine.

Also, can we talk the physical act of crossing things off your to-do list? It’s possibly the most fulfilling feeling.

However, at one point, agendas/planners just stopped working for me.

So I went to my computer and researched some task planning tools. Nothing really grabbed me.

That is, until I found . . .

Google Calendar. (Cue “Hallelujah” song.)

No, I am not getting paid to write this. I am writing this from the bottom of my OCD, yet easily distracted heart.

Let’s go into the reasons why Google Calendar has been a literal lifesaver.

Why I Am Obsessed With Google Calendar

1. Color Coding!

I am a sucker for color coordination. I used to be that girl who matched her purse to her outfit daily (thankfully, I’ve realized my time can be used better elsewhere, but that color coordinating is still inside me.)

I use purple for anything Copy Girl.

I use green for health stuff (gym time, workouts, etc).

I use yellow for social things (dinner dates, events, and so on).

I use turquoise for all things wedding.

This makes it super easy for me to take a look at the day and see if it is going to be a more work-heavy day, a more social-heavy day, etc.

2. Plans Change

I LOVE how easy it is to change the times on your Google Calendar tasks. Sometimes I don’t allot myself quite enough time to finish an article, and it takes all of about a minute for me to adjust other things to make room for more time.

I always hated scribbling things out on my agenda an re-writing them somewhere else.

YUCK to clutter and scribbles and ugly planners!

** The key to this feature of Google Calendar is only using it when you need to – not just when you want extra time to watch “Big Little Lies” again.

3. Plan Ahead

It is so easy to skip a couple months ahead to place a reminder to email someone, or check up on something.

4. No Time NOT To Do Things

This is probably the most important reason why I love Google Calendar.

I open up my calendar and see that my day is pretty packed with stuff to do.

A busy day means no room for B.S.

I know that if I waste time on Instagram rather than doing what my calendar says I should be doing, it will postpone everything else and I will end up working far later into the night.

By allotting tasks certain times (ex: Write article for X from 1 – 3:30) I can seriously get s**t done.

I am forced to get “in the zone.”

With Google Calendar, I feel like a task master king. 

5. It’s Also on My Phone

Honestly, the Google Calendar app is far more beautiful than its desktop version.

I use my desktop one more since I’m on my computer so much, but I love having the option of the app when I’m on the go.

Are you ready to give Google Calendar a try? It’s super quick to set up, incredibly user-friendly, and totally FREE.

I’d love to hear about what tips you have and what tools you use for productivity. Share below!

xx

TOP 10 PLACES YOU USE COPY ONLINE

Now that you know what the heck copy is, you should be able to see that it is almost everywhere in your business.

However, there are 10 places online that you use copy the most.

Here they are:

• Blog posts
• Website Home Page
• Emails
• CTAs (calls to action)
• About Me Page
• Tweets
• Facebook Updates
• Guides/Ebooks
• Sales Pages
• Webinars

You may think twice next time before shooting off that quick email . . .

But don’t put too much thought into it.

Just make sure you pay attention to what you’re writing and what message it may be conveying.

You always want your copy to be in your voice.

And you want your copy to serve as a way to connect with people.

So before diving into that blog post or Facebook post, take a minute to think about what you’re writing.

You just may hook your next client if you use the right words!

(That’s the point, right?!)

xx

HOW TO USE SUBHEADINGS & GET TO THE POINT

So now that you guys are in the know about copy, let’s get into it.

Do emails with massive amounts of text terrify you?

Whenever I open up a long email, I feel just like Lucille Bluth.

Uh uh. Not happening.

Too much text is an immediate turn-off. And no one wants to be turned off. Ever.

No matter how much time I have to read that long email, I just can’t bring myself to do it.

And in reality, that’s the way 99% of people feel.

Don’t make the same mistake with your copy.

You don’t want to shut the door in your readers’ faces with your long text.

The world is fast-paced, and you’ve gotta keep up.

So give your readers a break, a visual one.

Allow them to take a moment to scan through your text, note important things and then go back to read more.

They’re likely to gather more information from your copy if it’s written like this.

So let’s break it down.

Short, sweet, to the point.

You can add fluff later on and where it’s appropriate.

Now you try it.

Think about the copy you need to write – an email, a blog post, whatever.

Write down the major points you want to cover — those will be your subheadings.

Then, fill it in with a little “fluff.” But don’t go too far with your fluff, your readers will get distracted.

Speaking of fluff . . .

Don’t let your readers get distracted.

Don’t give them time to get distracted.

This subheading method will help keep things to the point.

Which is great for those of us (ahem, ME) who can get a bit too blabby sometimes . . .

Stay tuned for more tricks like this!

xx