4 Reasons Your Creative Spark Feels Shot

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Most creatives have found themselves stuck in a creative rut at some point or another. For starters, in-house creative teams have to keep up with more work than ever before. According to the 2016 In-House Creative Services Industry Report, nearly half of the in-house creative teams of every size reported working on over 1,000 projects a year!
But sometimes more work is only part of the problem. Here are four other possible explanations for why your creative spark feels shot.
1. You’re missing personalized communication.
Now that we’re well into the digital age, more and more in-house agencies are embracing the idea that different team members don’t necessarily have to be in the same location to work together. The 2016 In-House Creative Services Industry Report found that 59% of in-house creative teams currently have team members in more than one location. Digital work environments can definitely have their upsides, from providing creatives more flexibility to allowing for a more diverse team. But most in-house creatives rely on healthy, regular dialogues about their work for inspiration—and improvement. If in-person communication is lacking, or digital collaboration is occurring without a personal feel, your creativity can take a hit.
2. You’re spending too much time on administrative work.
Sixty percent or less of work time is actually spent productively, according to an Atlassian study. So where is the other 40% of the creatives’ time going? Unproductive meetings and unnecessary emails are definitely chief offenders. But according to the , over 66% of creatives report their teams spend at least an hour every week on administrative tasks. It can be hard to feel inspired when digging through email, collating feedback, managing versions, and tracking down project info is encroaching on creative time. If you’re struggling to produce the amazing work you were hired for, it might be because you don’t have enough creative time and space in your workday.
3. Your colleagues are overwhelmed.
Sometimes getting stuck in a rut has more to do with the people you work with than the environment you work in. Creatives thrive on collaboration and feedback, which means it’s vital that your colleagues, managers, and clients avoid becoming so overwhelmed that they’re unable to give you what you need. A study conducted by the Center for Creative Leadership found a whopping 83% of employees reported that their time is wasted by managers or colleagues with too much on their plates. If your creativity is feeling stifled, take a look at what’s going on with the people you work with. Their workloads might be negatively influencing your creative spark.
4. Your creative process takes too long.
Most creatives are all too familiar with delays during the creative process. According to the inMotionNow Workflow Checkup, for 73% of creative teams, getting final approval on an asset takes at least two days. Meanwhile, for 62% of creative teams, it takes two or more rounds of review to get final approval. It’s easy to feel disconnected from the creative work you’re producing if your process is regularly taking much longer than expected. And for many creatives, a personal connection to their work is one of the essential fuels for creativity. Take a look at if the length of your process is devaluing how you feel about your work—it could be the reason you’re feeling uninspired.
For more content tailored to creatives, check out the other resources at inMotionNow.com.
Ellie Baldini is the Content Marketing Manager at inMotionNow. Having been a member of several creative teams herself, Ellie knows the challenges of inefficient workflows. Ellie draws on her experience to connect creatives and marketers with the benefits of inMotion, so more teams can get back to doing the work they love.

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