Gary Bloomer | SHAKING THE TREE # 258
What do you do when you’ve hit a wall?
How do you move forward when your content feels old, stale, and wooden?
Your process, you know, the thing that was once a source of joy, excitement, and wild anticipation now feels, dull and worn rut.
Sure, you’re creating new stuff, but somehow, things feel old and unappealing; you’re not discovering anything new within yourself. Not in your work, probably not in your relationships, and certainly not in yourself.
So what do you do? Do you quit? No. You don’t. Do you get angry? Well, you can get angry, but unless you’ve got an outlet for that anger, what’s the point of letting it get the better of you?
All right then, now what? Well, what about a counter-intuitive direction? How about a new content creation prescription?
How about becoming an amateur in something you know nothing about!
How about plunging headlong into a new field of study or interest and doing so fully, deliberately, and enthusiastically?
If you’re a writer, don’t write. Instead, have a go at composing a terrible song on a free app. You could even add some rally bad lyrics to it.
If you’re a graphic designer, back away from your computer and put down the stylus and try your hand at pottery, or weaving, or juggling.
If you’re a master of the 10-minute YouTube tutorial, try to write a page of terrible poetry about the feeling of a breeze.
If you’re an accountant, have a go at fly fishing, or joke writing, or stand up comedy.
This isn’t procrastination. It’s what I call Deliberate Amateurism, and it’s one of the most potent creative fertilizers I’ve ever encountered because when you are a true novice, the crushing weight of expectation vanishes.
You have no audience to please in this new domain. No algorithm to game. No “best practices” to follow.
There is no good or bad. There is only done and not done. There is only attempted and not attempted.
This new found freedom can be intoxicating. It’s the pure, unadulterated play of children, the sort of approach we’ve systematically trained out of our personal and professional lives because it’s too innocent, too simplistic.
When you’re exposed to a new set of materials, processes, methods, and tools, suddenly, your brain is forced out of the comfort of its usual, efficient, well-paved neural highways and it’s shoved out onto the dusty backroads of problem-solving.
Out here, you’ve got to roll up your sleeves and get stuck in. You can’t rely on experience or muscle memory or even on expertise out here. Instead, you’re forced into thinking inside out, back to front, and sideways.
The writer trying to make music suddenly finds themselves understanding rhythm and pacing in a boldly new and visceral, non-verbal way.
The designer trying to sculpt with clay develops a brand new relationship with form and negative space that will subtly influence their layouts and use of type for years to come.
The coder turned painter is now forced into thinking about processes and logic and emotion in a completely new light and context.
The banker turned pastry chef is now mixing sweet and tangy fillings with pastries and cake mixes that are awash with new and exciting flavours and textures.
And it is here, in this odd mix of unexpected connections and backgrounds in this landscape of sudden shifts in directions that the magic happens.
Rather than your expertise in your primary field disappearing, it lies in wait, subconsciously cross-pollinating with your new, bumbling efforts until the day the strange and different becomes second nature.
Gradually, you begin seeing reflections and metaphors for your work everywhere. You begin applying new logic to old problems. You start using new tools in new ways. You start breaking your own and existing rules because in truth, you didn’t know the rules existed in the first place.
Your initial reluctance to change gears and dive into new processes is probably a direct assault on the tyranny of perfectionism.
As a master of your craft, you’ve likely internalized a fear of shipping anything that’s less than flawless. But as an amateur? Your work isn’t supposed to be top notch. No one’s expecting you to be at the top of your game! That’s the whole point!
Giving yourself permission to create something new, something wobbly or garbage is a liberating act f revolution that will, ironically, and if you let it, raise the ceiling on your “professional” work. It’s something that will show you it’s OK to take yourself less seriously.
It reminds you that not every creation needs to be a lasting monument; some can just be sandcastles, beautiful for the moment and then washed away with the incoming tide.
So, here is your assignment for this week:
Pick a field you have zero experience in. The further from your own world of work or experience, the better.
Give yourself a comically small constraint. “I will write a four-line poem about my pencil.” “I will make a 30-second video using only three shots.” “I will draw my coffee mug with my non-dominant hand.” Whatever. Just get into it!
Create the thing. Do not strive for perfection or greatness. Instead, strive for completion.
Throw it away or file it. This thing isn’t for your portfolio. It’s for your process.
The goal is not to become a master potter or a renowned poet. The goal is to shatter the creative routines that are dragging you down and that are holding you hostage.
The goal is to reclaim the joy of not knowing what you’re doing so you can savour that feeling, so you can wallow in its unpredictability.
Go on, give yourself permission to become an amateur at something. While it may not make you famous or win you awards, it might make you laugh, it could help you see some aspect of your life a little bit differently. Who knows? You might learn something that your professional will thank you for later.
As always, thanks for reading.
—Gary
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P.S. If you found this useful, share it with another creator who needs an ego check (in a nice way). Want more unfiltered takes on content creation? Join my newsletter. No fluff, just the stuff that works.
Next time on Shaking the Tree: Resonance and honing your sixth sense
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Originally from the U.K., Gary Bloomer is a writer, branding advocate, marketing specialist, and an award-winning graphic designer.
His design work has been included in Creative Review (one of the UK’s largest design magazines). Since 2009, he has answered over 5,000 marketing and business questions in the Know-How Exchange of MarketingProfs.com, placing him among the top 3% of contributors. He lives in Wilmington, Delaware, USA.