Overcoming Creative Blocks in Content Marketing

With so many rules and strategies around “how to create content that converts” these days, it’s easy for us feminine souls to feel blocked around content creation. 

This happens due to the need to “perform” (aka create results/sales) fast. On social media, for example, we are fed with images of business coaches and gurus getting instantaneous sales from just one post, one call-to-action, one copy, and this can add pressure for us to perform the same.

Therefore, creating force and pressure around every word you write, every idea you have, every attempt to film, that it begins to stifle the creative spirit inside of us. When this happens, you may find yourself overthinking, over analyzing, and over perfecting– like spending hourssss to write a 200 word instagram caption. 

Because of that, it’s common for business owners to feel like content creation is a chore rather than a therapeutic activity that brings you joy and satisfaction. And instead of actually creating and letting our ideas land in the hearts of our clients/audience, you may find yourself spending more time trying to find a good enough idea and waiting for a good idea. 

I’ve been in those shoes myself… I remember the days early on in my coaching journey when all I did the entire day was write one good instagram post. It was not because I was trying to relax or because I was allowing myself to do nothing, but because I was spending more time deleting and re-typing words before hitting “Publish”. 

While the topic of being productive through feminine creative flow is for another day, my point is that hyperfixation in content creation can end up blocking our content creation flow rather than connecting with our audience. 

And I’ve learned that most of the time, these creative blocks happen due to sneaky beliefs around how our content should be. But the good news is that, when we identify when the limiting beliefs we have around content creation are, we can then ease into the current of prolific and joyful content creation. 

Below are some examples of them…

The need to prove to your audience through your content

This is a common belief especially when you are a creative who also desires to mentor, coach, and guide others through your content. Especially on social media apps like instagram, it can seem like a must to prove to others with a luxurious lifestyle and external metrics of success in order to attract attention and make people take your content seriously. 

While I believe that it is important to be embodied in our gifts and transformations, what I’ve learned is that when you are trying to sell others through only external proofs (such as through insta-worthy lifestyle/outward appearances), people can hire you for wrong reasons. 

For example, this can look like clients coming to you, not because of your wisdom but because they want your lifestyle/ the things you display (aka show off) on social media. I have personally found that when we attract clients that way, it does not lead to perfect match clients– i.e. the ones who resonate with your values, your work, your truth, beyond the things you have. 

For me, this is one of the reasons why I started a blog because here, I can express whatever that is sizzling in my heart and educate my audience through my wisdom alone, without needing to use flashy, drool-worthy, perfectly-curated instagram scenes to garner attention. And I find this to be totally freeing to my creative spirit.

The need to have fresh ideas everyday

Another reason why it can be hard to stay consistent with our creative flow in content is because of a belief that we need to have breakthroughs and fresh ideas everyday.

While this is a beautiful desire to keep innovating in your content, one thing I’ve learned within myself is how I was holding myself from expressing my thoughts/ ideas because I feel like they were repeated regurgitations of what I have expressed before. I thought that the people who view my content will be like “she just keeps saying that…” I am bored now. Unfollow. 

While the above example is a possibility, what is even more possible, especially for the right people who are meant to work with you, is that the people who resonate with you will keep coming back, because you are deepening an idea/solidifying a concept– from different directions and angles.

Simply put, this happens because it is your level of consciousness (aka your view of the world), not necessarily the exact thing you say or create that keeps people coming back for more.

I know this because I feel the same way when I read posts from certain bloggers. They could be talking about one topic (e.g. feminine energy) over and over again but then I keep coming back to check their work because their viewpoints resonate with mine, even if I have heard the same concept before. 

There is a magic to repurposing content and repeating concepts. In fact, it creates a strong recognition around what your brand is about. 

Writing on the platform

This is less of a belief but more like an unconscious habit. While it is important to make sure that the content you are writing fits the length and style preferred by each platform, what I’ve discovered throughout my creative journey is that every platform you create on carries a specific impression on your subconscious that can either inhibit or enhance your creative flow. 

For example, the creative flow you have when typing up your ideas on Instagram stories will be different from what you experience as you write in the captions for Instagram feed. For me, my creative flow feels more natural and seamless to write/create on IG stories (in fact I have even more profound ideas there) than on the IG feed. Similar to that, the creative flow you experience when typing up on a phone will be different from you journaling out your thoughts and ideas– the latter being my recommendation for kickstarting and deepening your creative flow.

The realization of how our creative mediums can impact our creative flow state is also another reason I started this blog. I noticed how whenever my most profound revelations come as I write about them, sometimes before I even know what to write about. Following through this realization has helped me get into one of the most prolific, creative, and productive times in my business. Knowing your ideal creative medium can make a huge difference in the quality and quantity of content you create. 

More likes = better ideas

When we are measuring how good our creative ideas are with external metrics (e.g. likes, engagement), it actually stunts our creative flow to come up with more (or even better) ideas. One reason is because instead of expressing ALL of you, you become attached to only specific parts while being afraid of others (the parts we think are less palatable or engagement-worthy).

However, the truth is, the source of creativity comes from allowing and accepting ALL parts of you.

To be actually creative means to unapologetically mix, connect, and highlight different parts of you– just like how an artist would paint their most beautiful paintings through experimenting with different shades, colors, tones, and textures. On the other hand, if the artist is to stick to the rails of what other people have liked/validated, he/she will not be able to discover their true artistic potential (i.e. be most creative).

I firmly believe your most potent, powerful pieces of content come from trusting your own gut instinct more than what you see as likes/metrics. This is because the number of likes only measure the reach/broadness/exposure of your content, however, it does not measure the DEPTH of potency that the people who resonate with you feel. And it is depth, not broadness of our content, that leads to soul-aligned sales. 

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I believe creative inspiration is a state of abundance that is available for all of us– it is not reserved for only those who only have good days or are the most blessed with physical things to display. The only blocks that hold us back are the thoughts/beliefs you hold that tell you what you “should” be/do/have in order to create. 

Through holding space for these beliefs, one can understand more of them and finally see the truth beyond those beliefs. It is through seeing this Truth (that you have the gift of creativity simply who you are now), that you wash away these “blocks” and instead submerge yourself into the infinite waters of creative flow within your marketing.