I’ve returned from a week-long holiday with the family where I have completely switched off from everything work related. No internet, no phone-calls, no emails (I actually remembered the ‘out of office’ – win!) and very little of anything else for my business. Now I am someone who loves my work – truly a workaholic, because I cannot get enough. It interupts my day with flashes of inspiration, bursts of creativity, an idea machine billowing smoke all day. Great for my line of work, actually. But now, it feels like I can’t kick start that engine again.

ideas

Maybe its the post-holiday blues, or its because its ‘back to reality’ time. It could also be the fairly strong allergy medication I’m taking (Hello Spring!) But I need to get a way of putting back what was there – the creative spark. Next week the office opens again, its business as usual – What to do?

I’ve been here before – so I am going to tackle this head on and by Monday, I will have a difference perspective. If you are in the same boat, try some of my ideas for relighting that fire:

  1. Go on holiday – tick, did that last week.
  2. Tidy your workspace – that’s definitely planned, packing away the SAD lamp until winter will free up some breathing space. I’m filing away and shredding the paperwork too, as using some gorgeous stationery I picked up overseas. Cheshire Cat notebook, you and me are going to make wonderful music together.
  3. Get some exercise – indoor perhaps due to aforementioned allergies.
  4. Get a business mentor – this is my favourite actually, as I found that this works the other way around for me too. This week I will start working with a new business, mentoring the owner to develop their business, building on their marketing and promotion, and creating some packages for their services. This really scratches my itch! Looking forward already…
  5. Work somewhere new – change the scenery. This week I’ve booked in a remote working desk with a colleague, with a scenic drive to- and fro-. That’ll do nicely.
  6. Make some future plans – Just like planning the next holiday, this could also be some business goals, or more specific targets. I’m tackling my calendar this week to block out time over the coming months, and allocate it to my personal projects.
  7. Surround yourself with creative people – because this stuff spreads 🙂 Networking is an obvious choice to find like-minded business people. Where else can you find those in your own industry who can inspire you?