What are some ways to overcome creative burnout in product design?

A long time ago, I was given a piece of advice that still resonates and is useful in this scenario. Keeping your creativity alive is a fundamental part of your role. To do so make sure you are inspired, challenged and exposed to new things. - walk a different route to work - expose yourself to new influences - opera, drama, food, podcasts, art - meet new people, places and cultures - try new experiences - get outside - assess and create opportunities for new exposure on a daily basis. Have something to look forward to. - find something to get excited about!

I rotate crop my creativity. Painting, drawing, writing help to fertilize my full time design job by offering my mind different places to wonder and lets ideas & thoughts find their rightful homes and become mature works. So many times I've thought of some seed of an idea or concept meant for one thing, only to end up another! The other key for me is digging in the dirt; gardening, planting,(mowing the lawn is another outlet) become cathartic escapes on weekends. I also love to visit my "happy places"; Museums, Galleries, Music venues, help to recharge the batteries. Interacting with my team & colleagues @ work, and my friends at home help so much as you can share where you're at and steady your senses. When all else fails; meditate!

It’s important to recognize and acknowledge burnout. Sometimes it is caused by focusing too narrowly, and other times it is a result of focusing too broadly. In either scenario, it is important to speak up, consider options and opportunities, and change the direction of your focus. Alternatively, burnout can occur due to a lack of outside inspiration or just simply taking a break. Creative thinkers and doers never fully “turn off” but there are ways to offset burnout while remaining inspired creatively.

We are creative minds. Not machines. It is natural that our creative batteries can go low from time to time, so it is really important you do things that give you back the energy. For me, I always listen to music while doing designs, and once I am stuck on something I always ask the colleague next to me what they think about the stuff I am building. However, if you feel like this is not helping as well, just stand up a bit or take a short walk. It is important that your mind and body are healthy so try to clear your mind and give your body some good (healthy food) fuel.

Taking a break allows our subconscious mind to process the hard problems that we’re working on. There is a great book about this called “Rest: Why You Get More Done When You Work Less” by Alex Soojung-Kim Pang that talks all about this. Fascinating read that taught me a lot about the neuroscience of taking breaks. I like to take a half hour walk in the middle of the day after doing a good 2 hour focus session. I find that I often “figure out” the issue I was working on when I get back from my walk.

While taking a break, it's wise to change your scenery by traveling to another country. Visiting museums or exhibitions also helps in gaining new visual impressions.

I once read that creativitiy is the ability of seeing connections between different things which are not visible for others. And in my experience that is true - but it requires being out there to see, feel, smell, or taste different things. Looking beyond your current environment to get a new or different perspective can help spark new thoughts - take a different route to the supermarket, attend a class at the local community center, engage with a person in a cafe, or visit other cultures. All those experiences enrich my pool of ideas.

Please note my questioning of the term in the final section. If I called it 'a creative process roadblock', then the language allows me to consider my expectations: what were they in the first place? By this kind of review, the act of breaking away from the inability to continue (burnout), serves as a window of reflection. The creative process is a result of various actions as much as it is a concept. I develop something new (process), I run out of ideas (roadblock), and at some point, I reach a breakthrough (creative). If the result aligns with my needs, then all's good. If it's useless, I have an opportunity to assess both my expectations and the result so that new directions are proposed.

Ask someone you know about what you are doing and how they will solve it, I know it seems stupid, but trust me in this, sometimes we want to innovate and forgot to actually solve the problem

During my design career, I always felt like many of my design colleagues had the same problem. They tend to put their ego in front of their designs. Once they receive feedback they don't like they get offended and they start feeling bad. However, if you learn how to accept the feedback, and then later even ask for it by yourself you will discover a realm of creativity. People should learn from each other and should push each other forward. Collaborative feedback can give you a wider picture of things that are happening in your design flow. Keep in mind that you are watching certain screens for hours, and a fresh pair of eyes can give you that spark you need to create something even more amazing.

Reading novels, poetry, inspirational citations, life stories rather help against professional burn out. The less common they have with reality and moment life situation, the best.

En mi experiencia es fundamental escuchar al mercado. En la industria ferretera es muy útil implementar iniciativas como workshops, voice of customer o focus group, para obtener directamente de clientes, distribuidores, vendedores de mostrador o instaladores (cerrajeros, plomeros, eléctricos, pintores, etc.), información sobre cuáles productos hacen falta en nuestro portafolio, o escuchar sugerencias para mejorar productos ya existentes. Esta información es 100% fiable, pues proviene de quienes diariamente venden, promueven, recomiendan o utilizan nuestros productos. Además que de esta forma, conoceremos las principales tendencias del mercado. Otra de mis recomendaciones es realizar benchmarking, estudiar a la competencia es muy relevante.

There's not enough self-care in the world to offset the stress of being underpaid and overworked. Consider starting a union with some of your coworkers in order to advocate for your needs and achieve better work-life balance.

I learned in college that putting an all-nighter to finish a project or study for an exam, may do the work for one day. But very likely your mind and body will make you forget everything you learned and did that night because of all the stress you went through to push a deadline. (This is not always the case)

Mental health should be a top priority for creative individuals. Remember, there is no job worth sacrificing your mental well-being for

A week off or more bubble baths rarely change burnout trajectory. The key to facing creative burnout is to rethink and redesign your practice so it’s more sustainable. Sure the time off will be nice, but once you go back you’ll step back into the old ways of working that got you there in the first play. I recommend working with a coach to reset your approach and design experiments to help you balance your energy.

Sometimes the best way to be inspired is to get feedback from experts .. go out there and talk to some of the best in the business.. this trick has helped me overcome any sort of “creative block”

I am not sure i agree with the word burnout in the creative process. It can be a rollercoaster if a ride because we deal with uncertainty. Burnout might come from other external factors, but one can get stuck somehow. Chilling, not thinking about it and taking a step back can help. Often aha moments happen when doing something else, unrelated, even waking up in the middle of the night or while 🚿