From my previous blog posts, you may have found that I’m a big advocate for work-life balance, not because I like to take time off (but I do, actually), but because it actually betters my performance as artist and designer.

This isn’t a new science. Richard Schmidt, the living author of the most sought after book on art and how to paint, has a chapter on this. He’d advice that painters should paint only during the right state of mind.

Why? Painting is a deliberate process to stay creative, it is a living organism that depicts and transfers your energy onto canvas, and the brush is the mediator. You have to lay in the right brushstroke, the right value and the right color, with the right movement and the right design.

For this, he’d advice you to not paint while hungry, frustrated, tired, thirsty… you get the picture… you have to avoid burnout in the first place before you are creative. This was groundbreaking to me at the time, of course, it all made sense after I read it, and looking back, I found that I painted the best when I was comfortable with myself, in all those areas and more.

This is an extreme example, because frankly, oil painting is an extreme but creative activity. It is unforgiving, (no ctrl+z) and it is one way it directly translates how you felt at the time of painting the image, much like photographing someone in a key moment or writing a poem.

This is it, if you don’t get it here, you don’t get it anywhere else, that what you must know about staying creative is…

1. Clients hate it;

2. Art school teachers try to hide it from you;

3. Your boss will threated to sue;

4. Police will call you in for questioning:

It’s to touch grass. Really.

Go outside. Go workout, stretch your legs, exercise your skeleton. Humans were not made to be sitting as much as they are nowadays at sedentary but highly creative jobs like ours. This is how to stay creative and avoid burnout. (I’m not saying you should if you have a deadline, but you should, if you find time for it, I’m not saying don’t hustle when it make sense, but don’t do it when it doesn’t.).

In previous blog posts I’ve covered the benefits of Surfing and Skateboaring, and how it empowered my creative journey and its art… they’re my muse at this point.

Here’s a few more tools to help you disconnect from the tunnel vision:

Meditate. with Headspace, it is easy to get into meditation, the app’s UI/UX is super super clean and designed to turn easy habits out of using it. After a week meditating, I started to see results. I became more aware of my surroundings, thoughts, the dynamics of what was happening to me and around me, given contexts that’d happen throughout the week.
I highly recommend Headspace to get started, they do have a free trial as well, my extended trial will give you 30 days free instead of the usual one week. Enjoy!

2. Automated Cloud Sync.

This may go from 8 to 80, but the truth of the matter is that a cloud system such as OneDrive made my life so much easier, I no longer have to worry about backing up files in case my system gets corrupted. The versioning feature has saved me a few times already, whenever my Photoshop crashed or I saved a file over another by mistake, or I just needed to access my files from somewhere else, having said files on the cloud, available at any time, via Phone or Laptop, has provided peace of mind. The less you do, the more energy you have to stay creative, and manual backups are now out of to-do lists.

Not everyone likes OneDrive, so I also recommend Dropbox.

3. VPN.

The benefits of a VPN, specially for those traveling and accessing sensitive files or want to secure client data, are paramount. Proton or NordVPN (Get 3 Months Free and 70% Off with my exclusive offer.) are the ones I’ve liked the most.

I’ve liked NordVPN a bit more than Proton, while Proton allows for extra email tools and adds Cloud Space, the fact is that NordVPN I’ve found to be a bit more user friendly. It connects auto to unknown wi-fi networks, while I can whitelist my data plan and home wi-fi and it wont bother connecting while I’m there, saving data and protecting my real location, on top of all of that, it goes easy on my cell phone battery, specially on iOS.

I know I started by recommending a meditation app and went to tech recommendations but the main theme stays: Get tools that provide value to your life and free up space in your mind. So far you’d eliminate the need for manual and scheduled backups of your files and protecting your data and identity while out and traveling.

The less you have to do, the more energy you have and the more you focus on that one important mission.
This isn’t rocket science, if youve ever had a concept artist job and taken freelance work on the side, you know how easily it gets for all of it to become overwhelming.

4. Go workout.

Working out is the best and fastest way to stay creative and in shape, thus, healthier.

A good way to do it is with Nike Training App. (Free program includes all you need)

One of the favourite things to do amongst creatives and concept artists is to get into Jiu Jitsu or Martial Arts as well. It doesn’t surprise me as both require a lot of discipline on oneself, a detachment from ego, self-confidence, among others where they overlap as industry essential skills to cultivate.

For that, I use ClassPass, an app that will show me all the Gyms around me and sign up for a class, even if I’ve never been there before. They include Martial Art Schools world-wide, whether you’re on vacation or seeking a local gym, my patner brand will link you to the best of the best.

My current limited offer for ClassPass will net you 20 credits if you sign up for the trial.

5. Find a Co-work space that inspires you to stay creative.

I saved the best for the last. Have you heard about WeWork? It’s a GPS powered app that searches for all the best co-working spaces *in the entire world* no matter where you’re at. The icing on top? It’s luxurious, fast internet speeds, very quiet and productive and it will totally revamp your energy for working.

A lot of these spaces have bar or lounge area and include free coffee and private meeting rooms in your subscription, among other things.

Thanks for reading. For more content don’t forget to check the rest of the blog.