Creative Burnout? How Coaching Can Help You Recover, Reset, and Reignite
As creatives, we know what it takes to constantly generate new ideas, images, stories, and innovative ways of doing things. It requires dedication, grit, and often a lot of unpaid or underpaid work. Many of us working in the creative industries spend years investing time, energy, and emotion into a passion project, hoping someone might publish our book, buy our art, or take our concept to market.
So it’s no surprise that creative burnout happens. One minute you’re thriving, full of ideas and creative energy the next, it feels like your brain has shut down, like a metaphysical power cut.
So, what can you do to get the power back on when you hit that roadblock? These are some strategies that have helped my clients from artists and writers to game developers and designers reignite their creative spark.
1. Take a Break
If you can, step away from the work. Creative fatigue doesn’t go away by pushing harder — in fact, that can make things worse. The signs of burnout, sleepless nights, fatigue, even physical symptoms like high blood pressure won’t ease unless you break the cycle.
Take a temporary detour:
• Go on a short holiday
• Stay with friends for the weekend
• Reconnect with an old hobby
This isn’t about giving up, it’s about giving your mind the space it needs to rest and recover.
2. Do a Residency
Artist residencies are a fantastic way to disrupt the routine. Whether you’re a writer, painter, actor, or game designer, immersing yourself in a new environment surrounded by other creatives can be transformative.
I used to book spontaneous trips, backpack across South America with no plan now, life is a little more complicated (and travel insurance a lot more expensive). But that same sense of adventure, curiosity, and challenge can still be found in structured residencies even locally.
Residencies provide creative reset buttons. They offer time, space, and support, everything burnout tends to erode.
3. Try The Artist’s Way
If you haven’t read Julia Cameron’s classic, The Artist’s Way, I highly recommend it. First published in 1992, the book outlines a 12-week journey of creative self-discovery, with practical exercises like “Morning Pages” a daily journaling practice that helps clear mental clutter.
Even if you don’t consider yourself spiritual, the process is grounding and illuminating. Many of my clients and myself included have found renewed clarity through it.
4. Change Careers or Explore One
Sometimes, burnout is a signal, not just a symptom. It could be telling you that something in your life or values has shifted.
Taking time out can give you the perspective you need. You might discover that what you’re craving isn’t just rest it’s realignment.
A career change doesn’t mean failure. It means you’re growing.
• Explore other paths that align with your current priorities
• Take a sabbatical
• Speak to a life coach about what truly matters to you now
• Reconnect with your long-term vision
In today’s world, career transitions are common and often, liberating. Work-life balance and personal fulfillment aren’t luxuries; they’re essentials.
Coaching Can Help
If you’re stuck in a creative rut, coaching offers support and structure. It helps you navigate the fog, identify what’s blocking your energy, and develop a plan to move forward whether that means reconnecting with your creative practice or moving in a whole new direction.