The Key To Consistent Creativity: Environment Design
Want to achieve your creative goals? Develop a set of creative rituals. If you have consistent creative rituals, each day will bring new progress and rewards. But if you’re attempting to be consistently creative in an unpredictable environment, you’ll have an almost impossible time. Here’s one research study, one personal story, and one piece of advice that will convince you to design a better environment.
We only have a limited amount of willpower at our disposal. A research study in 1998 led by Roy E Baumeister showed us that willpower can be depleted, and have immediate effects on our next actions. In his study, Baumeister and his team invited three controlled groups to attempt an impossible geometry puzzle (the people being studied didn’t know it was impossible). The three groups were placed in a waiting room that either had freshly baked cookies that they weren’t allowed to eat, cookies they were allowed to eat, or nothing to eat at all. The groups that were allowed to eat the cookies, or weren’t presented with any cookies, attempted the impossible puzzle for an average of 19 minutes. But the group that had to exert willpower to refrain from eating the homemade cookies only attempted the puzzle for an average of 8 minutes. Baumeister concluded that willpower is a finite resource that can be depleted.
When I did my first creative sprint of daily blogging, I didn’t have a ritual. I published on this blog every day for 30 days. Every day looked different. I wrote blogs in bed, in Ubers, at birthday parties, on walks, and at my desk. I had a firm commitment to accomplish my creative sprint, but it was really hard to do in these varying environments. When I had to leave a party to go on a walk to write a blog, it felt like a big sacrifice. When I did myself second creative sprint, writing 60 days in a row, the sacrifice felt even more drastic. But when I committed to my third creative sprint of 100 days, I knew I had to develop a system. I could muscle my way through for 2 months, but more than 3 months seemed like too much. So I designed a system for success. I woke up, went for a walk, got coffee, read a book, and then wrote. I did it in the morning when my roommates were asleep, right after the caffeine kicked in, before the emails started arriving. This creative ritual made all the difference.
In his book Atomic Habits, James Clear makes a strong case for intentional environment design based on The Law of Least Effort. He writes, “The central ideas to create an environment in which doing the right thing is a s easy as possible. Much of the battle of building better habits comes down to finding ways to reduce the friction associated with our good habits, and increase the friction associated with our bad ones.” I saw this in my own experience. When I designed my ideal environment, I encountered much less friction, and had an easier time creating.
It’s simple yet profound: if we create a frictionless environment in which we can create, it becomes much easier. Those who achieve extreme consistency don’t necessarily have more willpower than the rest of us—they simply have designed an environment in which a large amount of willpower isn’t necessary.
What does your environment look like? Is it filled with distractions? Are you surrounded by people who aren’t on board with your creative goals? Is it generally not motivating? Don’t leave your creative dreams in the untrustworthy hands of your expendable willpower. Instead, design an environment that decreases friction, reduces your need for willpower, and increases your chances of achieving your creative goals.
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5 Steps To Achieve Your Creative Goals.
