Why You Need Rest For Your Best Ideas

There are some weeks as a creative when absolutely nothing gets done. That's when you're stuck and you don't really know where to go. Productivity equals zero. Or does it?
Rick Rubin, the legendary music producer, has another opinion on the matter. In his book “The Creative Act: A Way Of Being” Rick describes the way in which sometimes we need to let some ideas incubate – just like a seed. But seeds don’t flourish when you pound them with all you’ve got. In order to blossom, seeds need time. You have to let them develop in the dark.

There are going to be weeks where ideas flow freely, but nothing makes it onto paper. Yet there was so much inspiration and so many groundbreaking things that came to you. In the end, this will probably turn out much more productive than if you had just worked through it like a maniac. Busyness is not productivity. Hard work matters, but sometimes resting and letting your ideas incubate leads to them blooming much faster and also much more beautiful. That’s why when it feels like nothing gets done, it might be that creative work is happening everywhere – but not in plain sight.