5 Ways to Get Over a Mental Block
Have you ever been in a place where were needed to come up with a good plan for a huge project only to have no idea popping out of your head? Yet when you’re idle or tackling light tasks at hand, lots of ideas come through? Perhaps you’ve experienced hitting a mental or psychological wall in the middle of a progressive project?
We’ve all been there; it’s every professional’s biggest fear and nightmare—encountering a mental block, slowing down your progress. Then there’s goes your motivation as well to continue on your work since a huge has wall got in the way. Successful people don’t let mental blocks to hold them and let opportunities slip away. These people have their own approach to conquering this hindrance and cultivating amazing results. Here are a few ways you can do so!
1. Tackle Minimal Tasks First
Work can be a little (too much) overwhelming at times and you have to accept that. If you’re feeling frustrated with the task at hand and completely unmotivated, especially if the task is too much for you, take a break from it every 20 minutes and do some minimal and/or mindless work.
Doing so allows your mind to breathe and wander. If you’re a freelance writer stuck in an article while working from home, you might as well get up and wash the dishes. If you’re in an office as a graphic designer, take a break from your desk and walk outside or take a smoke break. Even small things such as sorting your emails help the mind release pressure. This step shall help clear your mind, therefore, allowing ideas and creativity flow right through smoothly.
2. Take a Break
Our brains cannot take too much and hence, it needs enough downtime to get recharged or restarted especially if you’re in constant contact with technology.
Take note that that browsing on your phone or watching TV does not equate to taking a break. Get up from your workstation and walk around, do some sudoku, solve puzzles, take a coffee break, and the likes. This shall help reduce the stress and increase your concentration once you get back to your task/s.
3. Change Your Environment
Being in the same environment every single day for 8 hours, five days a week can be totally constricting both literally and figuratively. The shortage of your creative juices can be blamed on the dullness of the cramped creative environment you have.
You need to boost your creativity and imagination and find inspiration from other environments. This can be done by bringing yourself to other surroundings. Work from home? Why not take the day and your work to a coffee place? Dull and boring office cubicle? Spruce things up by adding color to your walls and in forms of decor. Changing your environment can stimulate your creativity; try it sometimes.
4. Do Something Out of the Box
Sometimes, shifting your perspective is the solution to wrecking your mental block. If you’re on the process of having one and are struggling to get over it, open your bookmarked Youtube video or bring your work outside (if you never do this) to get a change of perspective.
Doing something you wouldn’t otherwise do had you been clear headed is a great way to exercise and at the same time redirect your mind to clarity.
5. Seek Help and Advice
Often times, we just don't know how to deal with it and we need to call a friend. Do not hesitate to ask someone for help. You don't have to deal with everything by yourself; you need help from someone from time to time and that’s okay. Who knows Sarah has the answer to clean your road block!?
