A Tiny Creative Reset

Creativity does not need to begin with inspiration.

It does not require an expensive set of paints, a beautiful studio, a free afternoon, or even an idea of what you want to make. Sometimes, it can begin with five minutes, a piece of paper, and a pen.

One of the things I have learned through my own creative practice is that making art can become much harder when I put pressure on myself to create something good. The moment I start thinking about what the finished piece should look like, whether I am doing it correctly, or whether someone else would like it, I have already moved away from the experience of creating and toward evaluating myself.

A five-minute creative practice offers another option.

My 5 min drawing: Inner Child holding hands with Perfectionism

How to Try a Five-Minute Creative Reset

Find a piece of paper and something you can draw or write with. You can use a pen, pencil, marker, crayon—whatever is nearby.

Set a timer for five minutes. Then begin making marks on the page.

You might draw lines, shapes, patterns, spirals, dots or completely unrecognizable scribbles. You could write words that come to mind or move between drawing and writing.

There is no goal.

Instead of asking, What should I make?, experiment with noticing what is happening while you make it.

What sensations do you notice in your body?

Maybe your shoulders soften. Maybe your jaw feels tight. Maybe you notice the pressure of the pen against the paper or the movement of your wrist.

What emotions are present?

You do not need to explain them or turn them into a picture. Simply notice.

You can also pay attention to your impulses. Do you want to press harder? Change colours? Fill the whole page? Leave half of it empty?

And then notice something particularly interesting: judgment.

You might hear thoughts like: This looks ridiculous. I don't know what I'm doing. I'm not creative. This is a waste of time.

Rather than arguing with those thoughts, notice the thought, name it "thought" and bring your attention back to the activity at hand. You'll need to practice this on repeat. This is the beginning of a mindfulness practice.

Creativity Can Be About the Experience, Not the Outcome

For me, creative practices have increasingly become less about producing something impressive and more about being present with myself. Some days I create something I love. Other days, what appears on the page is messy, strange, unfinished or completely forgettable. Both experiences count.

The five-minute limit can actually make this easier. There simply is not enough time to perfect everything.

You get to experiment.

You get to make something unnecessary.

You get to stop when the timer goes off.

And perhaps most importantly, you get to practice creating without needing to prove anything through what you create.

Reflective question: What might change if you gave yourself five minutes to create something with absolutely no expectation that it needed to be good?