Cultivating creative resilience
It’s nearing the end of 2021 and what a rollercoaster the last 18 months has been. Studio life is settling-in to a ‘new normal’ and the work is alive and kicking again. It’s exciting and there’s a buzz in the air. But how did design teams keep those creative juices flowing during a pandemic?
When the world stopped, many businesses and individuals entered uncharted territory, not knowing where the next few months or weeks were going to take them. When brains switch into this type of survival mode, how was it possible to contemplate, ideate and artwork with the focus elsewhere? Where did inspiration come from whilst we remained within our own four walls? How did people juggle home-schooling with client calls and deadlines?
There were no quick solutions that made this journey easy, that’s for sure, but here are a few insights from some of the kitchen table ‘studios’, that helped keep projects on track and teams feeling creative, collaborative and building resilience.
Flexibility is key, get those yoga poses out
This is true for studio operations and individuals alike - you must be able to adapt. Change is inevitable, but when it hits you in full pandemic force, it’s one hell of a whack. Overnight, home studios were set-up on kitchen counters, bedside tables and any combination of other flat objects that could just about hold a laptop. Software that had never been used before was installed and put into action and a new way to do - almost everything - was adopted.
Flexibility was built into our work and home lives, and in some cases the 9-5 was totally flipped on its head. Working from home came with a new variety of schedules. Work and home life merged, and being able to accomodate the team’s new needs was a must. For the more junior team members, this change meant a loss of studio support, in person collaboration and peer learning, but also the social side of studio life (perhaps the best bit). However, studios adapted, and fast. There were many Zoom catch-up calls and project drop-ins. New forms of feedback via Slack channels and collaborative project work through tools like Miro kept things moving. And now with studios reopening their doors, many are keeping these tools and new routines in place - maintaining that flexibility with a mix of studio and home working.
Newness in the sameness; finding inspiration in four walls
New is exciting. You just have to look at the science. Novel objects perk up the reward systems in our brains making us feel happy, and life feels good. Not surprisingly, being constantly stuck in the same house or bedroom doesn’t offer new experiences. As a result, during the pandemic we all had to find our own newness. All those sourdough starters, home crafts and bits of DIY that didn’t previously fit into busy schedules helped to keep people mentally active (alongside Netflix of course).
Another source of inspiration for some was a newfound ability to slow down. Daily walks and mindfulness created more time to enjoy little life experiences. It gave some the extra breathing space for creativity to creep in.
The mind marathon
Covid-19 has been a long-haul, mentally and physically, even for those of us who have been fortunate enough to remain healthy. These long-hauls require endurance, and much like marathon training, breaking down the weeks, days and hours into achievable mental chunks, makes it possible to go further than we might have originally thought possible. To-do lists, endless post-its, copious tea breaks, offering a helping hand, and cheering each other on, kept everyone going. With a little encouragement and support, an ever-growing task list can suddenly seem achievable. Being that cheerleader for studio colleagues is more important than you may think, even at times when you might feel the need for some extra team morale. The pandemic brought many changes, but it reminds us that you can’t always do it on your own, and you never know who might need that little supportive boost the most.
This blog was written by Kesia Hemming, Designer at Halo. Kesia was also a previous participant of Werkhouse weekend in 2017.