I have recently felt very uninspired. As an extrovert I get my energy from being around other people, and that has not happened in a quite some time. In the past year I have worked really hard to stay motivated by finding things in my home that inspire creativity. The great thing is I truly love learning from great articles, books and documentaries. That being said after a year of being stuck at home and only interacting with my husband and dog I am desperate for human-to-human interaction. I cannot wait to visit someplace, or get the chance to talk to someone, and feel part of the world again. In the meantime though I thought it might be helpful to round up the things I do to power through my uninspired days.
Activities to become inspired at home:
- Watch a documentary: I have watched so many documentaries during the pandemic. I recommend going onto Netflix and watching the first one that pops out at you. For me, I loved watching GLOW: The Story of the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling on Amazon. It is about the real life woman who inspired the Netflix tv show.
- Watch a Ted Talk: In general Ted Talks are quite short and you can quickly learn about a subject, or a field of thought. Whenever I am feeling frustrated I watch a Ted Talk for inspiration.
- Masterclass: I purchased a membership to Masterclass last April and it was the best decision. I have watched, and rewatched, a few of the courses. Each course is made up of 6-10 classes and the average class time is about 12 minutes. When I am hit a moment in my day where I simply do not want to work I watch one class and I feel re-energized.
- Listen to a podcast: It feels like everyone has a podcast nowadays, which is great! Much like the field of documentaries there is something out there for everyone. I take work breaks throughout the day to take care of household chores and it is during this time that I turn on a podcast. It is a nice change to lose yourself in a conversation of others.
- Read a coffee table book: I started collecting coffee table books a few years ago and I mainly bought them because they looked really pretty in my house (shameless confession). This past year I have actually sat down and read them. Coffee table book are designed to give you inspiration. There is no better time than now to take advantage of that.
- Look at art websites: Some of my favorites are Saatchi Art, Charleston Artist Collective and Artlifting. I cannot wait till I can visit an art gallery again, but in the mean time these sites bring beauty into my life.
- Subscribe to a magazine: I recently decided to go old school and subscribe to a few magazines. It is so refreshing to read a magazine versus looking at articles on my computer or phone. It forces me to take a technology time out which I what I really appreciate.
- Look at your favorite website: When all else fails refer to your favorite website for inspiration. For me I look at Domino or Moda Operandi. Both of these sites inspire me to rethink how I am currently styling my house and the clothes I already own.
- Write down your post-pandemic plans: This might seem really obvious but I tried this recently and really helped me conceptualize what I have to look forward to.
- Finally, give yourself a break: We are approaching a year of not being able to engage with life in a normal way. There are days when you have to give yourself a break and know that inspiration cannot be forced.
