Designer’s block? Here’s how to overcome it

A designer’s creativity can swing between two extremes: some days you’ll feel productive and inspired and other days will be so frustrating they’ll have you questioning whether you were ever meant to be a designer at all. These lows almost always manifest as a result of designer’s block, something that happens to every designer — yes, even the most prominent designers in the industry.

The creative process demands a certain disposition and focus in order for a designer to produce work they are happy and proud of — some might refer to this as being ‘in the zone.’ Arguably one of the most frustrating things about designer’s block is that it can happen during any point of a project. It’s more likely to happen at the start of a project, but it can feel more debilitating when it halts a project you’ve already been working on for quite some time.

We all know what this feels like; when no amount of coffee, no number of motivational podcasts, and no multitude of online distractions can shake off the heavy weight of designer’s block. In an industry where your job is contingent upon your creativity, feeling stagnant and ineffective are two of the worst things a designer can experience.

I’ve been in the design industry for over a decade and have worked in a variety of roles, from freelancer designer to Senior Designer. Now, I am the Global Managing Director at Shillington Education, where I also teach. I want my design students to understand that creative block will never feel good, but when you understand how to persevere through it, it becomes easier to overcome. The cure isn’t staring at your computer or the materials laid out on your desk until the feeling magically disappears, it’s about taking a proactive approach to overcoming the mental hurdles you’re experiencing.

The next time you feel like you’ve hit a creative dead end, try this:

Plan for designer’s block instead of ignoring it

Ignoring a problem is never a good solution. Dealing with designer’s block shouldn’t be any different. As an expert in your field, most of the time you run on autopilot; the creative process is something that comes so naturally to you that you’re rarely consciously thinking about how you work. When designer’s block interrupts this intuitive process, it causes a designer to doubt their own creative ability. What’s only a temporary hurdle feels crippling and unceasing.

Have you ever tried ignoring a pressing problem? It’s impossible, because it can’t be resolved until you address it. Avoiding designer’s block generates a dangerous cycle of self-doubt. If you question your aptitude and undermine your talents, it will only worsen your creative block and eventually validate your feelings of inadequacy. Designer’s block will happen to you; instead of ignoring it, plan for it. Eventually, you will notice that every time it happens, you will conquer it quicker than the time before. That gives you more time to focus your energy on what’s more important: your clients and your projects.

Try something new — and don’t be afraid if it’s bad

Leaving our comfort zones can be intimidating. We’re good at what we do because we’ve spent so much time developing our skills. When we think of trying something new, we often associate that with creating something that will inevitably be “bad.” Designer’s block is often a consequence of our fear of failure. There is a lot of pressure on us to constantly generate great work for our clients, so we’ve built up an intolerance towards anything that feels incomplete or uninspired — or just plain “bad.”

Succeeding over failure can only happen when you change your definition of failing. When you feel stuck, set aside the project you’re working on and try something completely new. Are you an expert at typesetting in InDesign? Get off the computer and try hand lettering. The end product may be messy and imperfect, but you should feel good about creating something, even if it will get tossed in the trash at the end of the day — or, better yet, maybe you’ll discover a hidden talent you didn’t even know you had.

There is a difference between having no good ideas and no ideas at all. Isn’t it better to have a bad idea than feel creatively paralyzed? All that matters is that you are flexing your design muscles. Getting all of these “bad” ideas out of your system can be exactly what you need to overcome your designer’s block. Paula Scher, an influential graphic designer, knows that bad works can inspire great pieces: “It’s through mistakes that you actually can grow. You have to get bad in order to get good.” And, as Bob Ross puts it, these “happy accidents” are what force us to confront our creativity.

Revisit past projects and see your progress with fresh eyes

In the midst of a creative block, it’s easy to convince ourselves that this is the worst bought we’ve ever experienced — that we’ll never see the other side of this rut. That’s never true, of course. When you begin feeling this way, try revisiting past designs. Looking through previous projects you’ve completed will likely dredge up a time where you forgot you struggled to finalize one of your designs.

Although completing the project may have felt impossible in the moment, you are now looking at tangible evidence that you not only got through your creative block, but you produced something that both you and your client were happy with. Seeing a physical timeline of your progress as a designer will remind you of how much you’ve grown and how capable you are in producing quality pieces of work. We are our own worst critics. When we look at our past projects as if we were a third-party observer, it challenges our own perspectives.

Get a fresh perspective from someone you trust

There are a few steps you can take to inspire a new perspective: take a fifteen minute walk, work on a more straightforward project for a while, or try working in a new surrounding (a coffee shop, a new room of your house, etc). Yet, there’s another solution to gaining a fresh perspective that many designers don’t talk about, and it could be sitting right next to you. After you feel like you’ve tried every alternative and you still can’t shake yourself free from the white-knuckle grip designer’s block has on you, ask your coworkers for help — or, if you’re a freelancer, try getting in touch with a friend or mentor.

The people you know and work side-by-side with every single day can be the remedy you so desperately needed. These fellow designers have all experienced designer’s block and will have some strategies on how to get through it that have worked for them in the past. Or, you may work through your creative dead end just by talking through your situation. If anything, it’s just reassuring to know that you aren’t struggling through it alone.

At Shillington Education, collaboration is a crucial part of our curriculum. Receiving feedback from teachers is valuable, but students must also be part of the process as well. We not only encourage our students to constantly critique their own work, but also the work of their peers, just like if they were working in a real design studio.

Don’t allow designer’s block to fuel feelings of doubt and incompetence. When our talents are put into question, we should use that as an opportunity for growth, not regression. Designer’s block is inevitable when you work in the creative field. If you plan for it and use these strategies to overcome it, you will come out the other side as a stronger designer.

A designer’s creativity can swing between two extremes: some days you’ll feel productive and inspired and other days will be so frustrating they’ll have you questioning whether you were ever meant to be a designer at all. These lows almost always manifest as a result of designer’s block, something that happens to every designer — yes, even the most prominent designers in the industry.

The creative process demands a certain disposition and focus in order for a designer to produce work they are happy and proud of — some might refer to this as being ‘in the zone.’ Arguably one of the most frustrating things about designer’s block is that it can happen during any point of a project. It’s more likely to happen at the start of a project, but it can feel more debilitating when it halts a project you’ve already been working on for quite some time.

We all know what this feels like; when no amount of coffee, no number of motivational podcasts, and no multitude of online distractions can shake off the heavy weight of designer’s block. In an industry where your job is contingent upon your creativity, feeling stagnant and ineffective are two of the worst things a designer can experience.

I’ve been in the design industry for over a decade and have worked in a variety of roles, from freelancer designer to Senior Designer. Now, I am the Global Managing Director at Shillington Education, where I also teach. I want my design students to understand that creative block will never feel good, but when you understand how to persevere through it, it becomes easier to overcome. The cure isn’t staring at your computer or the materials laid out on your desk until the feeling magically disappears, it’s about taking a proactive approach to overcoming the mental hurdles you’re experiencing.

The next time you feel like you’ve hit a creative dead end, try this:

Plan for designer’s block instead of ignoring it

Ignoring a problem is never a good solution. Dealing with designer’s block shouldn’t be any different. As an expert in your field, most of the time you run on autopilot; the creative process is something that comes so naturally to you that you’re rarely consciously thinking about how you work. When designer’s block interrupts this intuitive process, it causes a designer to doubt their own creative ability. What’s only a temporary hurdle feels crippling and unceasing.

Have you ever tried ignoring a pressing problem? It’s impossible, because it can’t be resolved until you address it. Avoiding designer’s block generates a dangerous cycle of self-doubt. If you question your aptitude and undermine your talents, it will only worsen your creative block and eventually validate your feelings of inadequacy. Designer’s block will happen to you; instead of ignoring it, plan for it. Eventually, you will notice that every time it happens, you will conquer it quicker than the time before. That gives you more time to focus your energy on what’s more important: your clients and your projects.

Try something new — and don’t be afraid if it’s bad

Leaving our comfort zones can be intimidating. We’re good at what we do because we’ve spent so much time developing our skills. When we think of trying something new, we often associate that with creating something that will inevitably be “bad.” Designer’s block is often a consequence of our fear of failure. There is a lot of pressure on us to constantly generate great work for our clients, so we’ve built up an intolerance towards anything that feels incomplete or uninspired — or just plain “bad.”

Succeeding over failure can only happen when you change your definition of failing. When you feel stuck, set aside the project you’re working on and try something completely new. Are you an expert at typesetting in InDesign? Get off the computer and try hand lettering. The end product may be messy and imperfect, but you should feel good about creating something, even if it will get tossed in the trash at the end of the day — or, better yet, maybe you’ll discover a hidden talent you didn’t even know you had.

There is a difference between having no good ideas and no ideas at all. Isn’t it better to have a bad idea than feel creatively paralyzed? All that matters is that you are flexing your design muscles. Getting all of these “bad” ideas out of your system can be exactly what you need to overcome your designer’s block. Paula Scher, an influential graphic designer, knows that bad works can inspire great pieces: “It’s through mistakes that you actually can grow. You have to get bad in order to get good.” And, as Bob Ross puts it, these “happy accidents” are what force us to confront our creativity.

Revisit past projects and see your progress with fresh eyes

In the midst of a creative block, it’s easy to convince ourselves that this is the worst bought we’ve ever experienced — that we’ll never see the other side of this rut. That’s never true, of course. When you begin feeling this way, try revisiting past designs. Looking through previous projects you’ve completed will likely dredge up a time where you forgot you struggled to finalize one of your designs.

Although completing the project may have felt impossible in the moment, you are now looking at tangible evidence that you not only got through your creative block, but you produced something that both you and your client were happy with. Seeing a physical timeline of your progress as a designer will remind you of how much you’ve grown and how capable you are in producing quality pieces of work. We are our own worst critics. When we look at our past projects as if we were a third-party observer, it challenges our own perspectives.

Get a fresh perspective from someone you trust

There are a few steps you can take to inspire a new perspective: take a fifteen minute walk, work on a more straightforward project for a while, or try working in a new surrounding (a coffee shop, a new room of your house, etc). Yet, there’s another solution to gaining a fresh perspective that many designers don’t talk about, and it could be sitting right next to you. After you feel like you’ve tried every alternative and you still can’t shake yourself free from the white-knuckle grip designer’s block has on you, ask your coworkers for help — or, if you’re a freelancer, try getting in touch with a friend or mentor.

The people you know and work side-by-side with every single day can be the remedy you so desperately needed. These fellow designers have all experienced designer’s block and will have some strategies on how to get through it that have worked for them in the past. Or, you may work through your creative dead end just by talking through your situation. If anything, it’s just reassuring to know that you aren’t struggling through it alone.

At Shillington Education, collaboration is a crucial part of our curriculum. Receiving feedback from teachers is valuable, but students must also be part of the process as well. We not only encourage our students to constantly critique their own work, but also the work of their peers, just like if they were working in a real design studio.

Don’t allow designer’s block to fuel feelings of doubt and incompetence. When our talents are put into question, we should use that as an opportunity for growth, not regression. Designer’s block is inevitable when you work in the creative field. If you plan for it and use these strategies to overcome it, you will come out the other side as a stronger designer.