You know when you get stuck in a rut and you just have ZERO energy to do anything? You know when you feel unfulfilled, uninspired, and upset because you feel like you could be doing so much more?

I used to feel this way all the time. When I was in university, I was constantly working, but somehow I still wasn’t getting the amount of work done that I should have been getting done.

I was confused, disheartened, and mad at myself. I thought something was “wrong” with me. Why wasn’t I being more productive?! Why couldn’t really do anything?

It wasn’t until after I graduated university that I realized that working A LOT isn’t the same thing as working SMART.

Now, the topic of ‘working smart’ is worthy of a blog post in and of itself, but I’ll save that for another day. Today, I want to talk about the connection between productivity and creativity.

I believe that the key to being productive is being inspired to actually want to work! And to be inspired to actually want to work, you’re going to need to do something that aligns with your specific creative talents.

If you want to work HARD, you have to do stuff you LIKE

Revolutionary stuff right?!

Why is it that something so simple and so obvious can be SO difficult? Why don’t more people just do what they love?!

As someone who did things that I did NOT love for a long time, I have to say that I get it. It’s because we trick ourselves into thinking we “can’t” do the things we love. We say things like, “I don’t have time”, or “I have something more important that needs to be done first”.

These are just excuses.

Doing things that you love are the things that are MOST worth your time. Why? Because they’re the things that are going to make your soul feel alive!

For some reason, many people (including my younger self) feel like it’s a “bad thing” to prioritize their feelings. This is SO backwards. Life is meant to be enjoyed, not worked away.

I mean, working hard is great (and it can definitely get you far), but if you overwork yourself, the quality of your work will start slipping, and you’ll feel completely unmotivated.

Besides, when you do things you enjoy – whether that’s art, journaling, hiking, playing music, doing yoga, reading, or whatever it is – you’re actually using different parts of your brain which can end up making you more productive in other areas in your life!

There are so many different things that you could enjoy doing, and I know that not all of them are necessarily creative. But in this post, I want to focus specifically on how creative hobbies are good for you.

The reason why creative hobbies in particular are so good for you is because they allow you to express your TRUE SELF far more than other activities do.

You can only access this self when you’re doing something that allows you to 100% JUST. BE. YOU. Being true to yourself allows for many wonderful changes. For instance:

• You’ll get to know who you truly are
• You’ll gain more confidence in yourself
• You’ll gain more life experience which will help you approach problems in other areas fo your life differently
• You’ll meet like-minded people that you can connect with about shared hobbies (this is my favourite benefit of doing creative things!)

And most importantly… You’ll end up realizing how FULL and AWESOME your life is!

I can’t advocate enough for this, because my life changed so dramatically after I started doing more of the things that I love – especially my creative passions.

I felt confident in my abilities, I met and connected with people I wouldn’t have met otherwise, and I felt a million times more inspired (which ended up making me WAY more productive in other areas in my life!).

Okay, but what if you have no inspiration whatsoever and can’t possibly imagine being motivated to do something?

This was my life in university. I couldn’t stand my program, I never wanted to do any work, and I had no motivation to do anything else.

If you relate to this situation, then please take a good, long look at what you’re doing and ask yourself: is it even worth it?

If you’re NEVER inspired, then it may be a complete waste of your incredible potential. If you can’t change the path you’re on right now, don’t worry. You can still find inspiration by doing the things you love on the side.

Okay… but what if you’re super busy and can’t seem to fit anything fun into your schedule?

If I’ve learned one thing in my self-growth journey, it’s that you can ALWAYS spare a half hour to do something you love. In fact, it’s healthy to have a break every once and a while – you need to give your poor brain a rest!

Just start out by setting aside 10 minutes a day for doing the things you love.

Sketch, write a song, write a little story, or go to that dance class you’ve been meaning to go to. I promise you won’t regret it. And I promise you will feel amazing.

We humans are a very creative species – we need to express ourselves to feel fully alive. I want to help you connect with that side of yourself so that you can be the very best version of yourself that you can be. I’m also along for the ride with you, so in my blog posts to come, I’ll constantly be experimenting with new ways to help get you in touch with that brilliant soul of yours.

If you want to learn more about how your hobbies and passions can add fire into your life, then I suggest checking out my Anxiety Course! In the course, I’ve dedicated an entire section to discussing why adding more of what love is ESSENTIAL to living a happy, fulfilled, and anxiety-free life! Honestly, one of the biggest causes of anxiety in the world we live in is feeling unfulfilled and unsatisfied with our lives. I know how difficult it is to find time to do the things you love, but it is SO necessary for your mental health!