Your office or studio is where you do the brainstorming for your current project or the next one. But, it doesn’t mean you have to stay in there each time you have to work. Having a career in creativity gives you that advantage. Unlike other types of careers, you don’t have to be confined in an area to be productive (or forced to be). You have the whole world as your workspace. Plus, you don’t have to worry about punch in/out clocks. You hit the time when ideas hit you, and there’s absolutely no limit to how long you can keep working, allowing you to strike while the iron is hot.
Unfortunately, even when we want to go elsewhere to work on something, the atmosphere does not always agree with our plans. When you have to stay indoors because weather conditions are not auspicious for some creating and innovating, there are ways to counter the unproductivity. Visit and make use of the different quarters in your abode. Below, I have some suggestions for you.
For when it’s too cold outside:
- Drink hot chocolate and have your laptop or sketch pad with you, or whatever it is that you need for making drafts. Don’t underestimate what the comfort that a warm cup of anything can do.
- Listen to the classics. They’re proven to help ease the mind and improve the activity of brain cells, so you stay alert mentally even when the weather is seducing you to take a nap.
- Stay in the guest room. If you don’t have one, pick any room that you normally wouldn’t hang out in. You can even sit by the staircase or squat on the floor along the hallway. The point in this is to let you learn how you can find comfort in the most unexpected places, to appreciate the relief in spots that you would normally just pass by. Do the imagining there and write your thoughts on a notebook. Trust me, you will be able to use that.
- Read or watch some drama, suspense or action-packed novels and films, even if you’re not a fan. Why these genres? As I’ve mentioned earlier, the cold can tempt you to be lazy. These types of entertainment are firmly engaging because you need to fully focus on them to understand the story throughout the end. Then after, you can use them as inspiration for your work.
For when it’s too hot outside:
- Eat some ice cream (or any frozen treat), still with your creativity tools handy. To help beat the heat while you’re working on a project, incorporate the cool delight you get from what you’re eating into your work. I’ve tried this last summer. In spite of the great discomfort that the humid weather is giving me, I felt like frost fairy. You’ll get highly imaginative. Believe it.
- Listen to modern songs. Unlike the classics, they will allow your brain to be just a bit passive, but not to the point of drowsiness. You can create a personal playlist of feel-good tunes to keep the vibe seemingly breezy, making it extra fun for you to work. However, if you’re not used to noise when working, you can always just opt for silence or listen to the mere sound of nature.
- There’s neither storm nor snow, but the sun is too harsh. Sit on the porch or out in the backyard, under a shade of a tree. In the absence of any of these, any outer extension of the house will do. If you have air-conditioning, that works too. But I wouldn’t recommend it for when you’re working, especially when inside your room where it’s likely for you to fall asleep.
- Read a humorous book. It’s too hot already, you don’t need something that requires you to be over-receptive. Laughter is a remedy for many things, it can also aid creativity relapses. No television this time. It only worsens the present uneasiness brought about by the abnormally warm weather. Also, an informative manuscript is a good alternative.
One place can’t really hold all the functions you need for an ideal workspace, but if you use your creativity when the situation calls for it, you will be able to deal with what’s available and continue to be productive. It’s part of your being creative to keep doing what you do, no matter what.
“Aerodynamically, the bumble bee shouldn’t be able to fly, but the bumble bee doesn’t know it so it goes on flying anyway.” – Mary Kay Ash
