--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The way to get over creative block is to…" description: "\"“The way to get over creative block is to simply place some constraints on yourself. It seems contradictory, but when it comes to creative work, limita..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/367/austin-kleon-1835_constraints_the-way-to-get-over-creative-block-is-to_1255422.jpg" --- # The way to get over creative block is to simply place some… ![“The way to get over creative block is to simply place some constraints on yourself. It seems contradictory, but when it comes to creative work, limitations mean freedom.” quote by Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/367/austin-kleon-1835_constraints_the-way-to-get-over-creative-block-is-to_1255422.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/367/austin-kleon-1835_constraints_the-way-to-get-over-creative-block-is-to_1255422.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/367/austin-kleon-1835_constraints_the-way-to-get-over-creative-block-is-to_1255422.jpg) > ““The way to get over creative block is to simply place some constraints on yourself. It seems contradictory, but when it comes to creative work, limitations mean freedom.”” [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Imposing limits on creative work paradoxically unlocks freedom and productivity. **In simple terms:** Constraints can boost creativity. Key Takeaway Set intentional limits to spark ideas. Themes creativity constraints productivity Mood inspired practical Type educational motivational When to use this quote - writing - design - music composition Key Concepts design thinking artistic process innovation Questions to Reflect On - Which limits help you create? - How can you turn a restriction into an advantage? A Different Perspective Too many constraints can stifle. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Creative block](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative-block/) [Creative work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative-work/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Limitations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/limitations/) ## Related quotes > [The reason for you complaint lies, it seems to me, in the constraint which your intellect imposes upon your imagination. Here I will make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-schiller/the-reason-for-you-complaint-lies-it-seems-to-me-in-the-constraint/) [Friedrich Schiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-schiller/) > [“If you ditch the rulebook, you lose the grace. Even the wacky, avant-garde, convention-defying arts—experimental film, expressionist painting, professional wrestling—draw their power from playing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-orlin/if-you-ditch-the-rulebook-you-lose-the-grace-even-the-wacky-avant/) Ben Orlin > [Constraints are not limitations; they are insight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/constraints-are-not-limitations-they-are-insight/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In recovering from our creative blocks, it is necessary to go gently and slowly... These are baby steps. Progress, not perfection, is what we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-cameron/in-recovering-from-our-creative-blocks-it-is-necessary-to-go-gently/) [Julia Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-cameron/) > [Most artists have experienced the creative block. We get stuck in our work. We beat our head against the wall: nothing. Sometimes, it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lukas-foss/most-artists-have-experienced-the-creative-block-we-get-stuck-in-our/) [Lukas Foss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lukas-foss/) > [Smash creative blocks. Change the problem or sneak up on it from a different direction. Try something fresh - a new way with an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nita-leland/smash-creative-blocks-change-the-problem-or-sneak-up-on-it-from-a/) [Nita Leland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nita-leland/) > [“I think many of us live with this nagging sense that we could go deeper. That there is some elusive "next level" in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-kretz/i-think-many-of-us-live-with-this-nagging-sense-that-we-could-go/) Kate Kretz > [“I have a binging imagination and thus a mental hoarding problem. What I need to do is host an estate sale in my heavy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-stokes/i-have-a-binging-imagination-and-thus-a-mental-hoarding-problem-what/) Stephen Stokes > [What's wrong with creative block? Might it not just be that periods--even extended ones--of productive hiatus are essential mechanisms of gestation designed to help…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexi-murdoch/what-s-wrong-with-creative-block-might-it-not-just-be-that-periods/) Alexi Murdoch > [The power of mistakes enables us to reframe creative blocks and turn them around...The troublesome parts of our work, the parts that are most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-nachmanovitch/the-power-of-mistakes-enables-us-to-reframe-creative-blocks-and-turn/) [Stephen Nachmanovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-nachmanovitch/) > [“The next time you experience a creative block, resist the temptation to doubt yourself, or to put in more blind effort. Stop and ask…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jocelyn-k-glei/the-next-time-you-experience-a-creative-block-resist-the-temptation/) [Jocelyn K. Glei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jocelyn-k-glei/) > [When I have a creative block, I take walks. I like to see what shapes stick out - so many legs rushing by at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caio-fonseca/when-i-have-a-creative-block-i-take-walks-i-like-to-see-what-shapes/) [Caio Fonseca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caio-fonseca/) > [I think a lot of times when people have "creative blocks" and I know my share of friends do as well if they're at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/i-think-a-lot-of-times-when-people-have-creative-blocks-and-i-know-my/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [There's no excuse for having a mental or creative block in sound. You can just go out and collect things in the real world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-rydstrom/there-s-no-excuse-for-having-a-mental-or-creative-block-in-sound-you/) Gary Rydstrom > [A creative block is a fear about the future, a guess about the dangers dwelling in the dark computer and the locked studio.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-maisel/a-creative-block-is-a-fear-about-the-future-a-guess-about-the-dangers/) [Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) ## More by Austin Kleon > [“The thing is, you can cut off a couple passions and only focus on one, but after a while, you’ll start to feel phantom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/the-thing-is-you-can-cut-off-a-couple-passions-and-only-focus-on-one/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [Don't think of your website as a self-promotion machine, think of it as a self-invention machine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/don-t-think-of-your-website-as-a-self-promotion-machine-think-of-it/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“We want you to take from us. We want you, at first, to steal from us, because you can’t steal. You will take what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/we-want-you-to-take-from-us-we-want-you-at-first-to-steal-from-us/) [austin kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Validation is for parking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/validation-is-for-parking/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“If you want fans, you have to be a fan first. If you want to be accepted by a community, you have to first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/if-you-want-fans-you-have-to-be-a-fan-first-if-you-want-to-be/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Social media sites are the perfect place to share daily updates. Don’t worry about being on every platform; pick and choose based on what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/social-media-sites-are-the-perfect-place-to-share-daily-updates-don-t/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Writing a page a day doesn't seem like much, but do it for 365 days and you have enough to fill a novel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/writing-a-page-a-day-doesn-t-seem-like-much-but-do-it-for-365-days/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [Be boring. (It’s the only way to get work done.)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/be-boring-it-s-the-only-way-to-get-work-done/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [It sounds a little extreme, but in this day and age, if your work isn't online, it doesn't exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/it-sounds-a-little-extreme-but-in-this-day-and-age-if-your-work-isn-t/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Don't wait until you know who you are to get started. If I'd waited to know who I was or what I was about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/don-t-wait-until-you-know-who-you-are-to-get-started-if-i-d-waited-to/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [Your brain gets too comfortable in your everyday surroundings. You need to make it uncomfortable. You need to spend some time in another land,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/your-brain-gets-too-comfortable-in-your-everyday-surroundings-you/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [Nothing is more paralyzing than the idea of limitless possibilities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/nothing-is-more-paralyzing-than-the-idea-of-limitless-possibilities/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Whenever Picasso learned how to do something, he abandoned it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/whenever-picasso-learned-how-to-do-something-he-abandoned-it/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“The writer Jonathan Lethem has said that when people call something “original,” nine out of ten times they just don’t know the references or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/the-writer-jonathan-lethem-has-said-that-when-people-call-something/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Stock and flow” is an economic concept that writer Robin Sloan has adapted into a metaphor for media: “Flow is the feed. It’s the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/stock-and-flow-is-an-economic-concept-that-writer-robin-sloan-has/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) [Explore all 204 Austin Kleon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) ## More Constraints quotes > [I write the way you might arrange flowers. Not every try works, but each one launches another. Every constraint, even dullness, frees up a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/i-write-the-way-you-might-arrange-flowers-not-every-try-works-but/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [The only reason why I tend to pass on a movie is either I don't think I'm right for the material and can't play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-cage/the-only-reason-why-i-tend-to-pass-on-a-movie-is-either-i-don-t-think/) [Nicolas Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-cage/) > [The search for truth is a cooperative, unending endeavor. We can, and should, engage in it to the extent we can and encourage others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-search-for-truth-is-a-cooperative-unending-endeavor-we-can-and/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [To me the female principle is, or at least historically has been, basically anarchic. It values order without constraint, rule by custom not by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/to-me-the-female-principle-is-or-at-least-historically-has-been/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [Since the nations founding, African Americans repeatedly have been controlled through institutions such as slavery and Jim Crow, which appear to die but then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-alexander/since-the-nations-founding-african-americans-repeatedly-have-been/) [Michelle Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-alexander/) > [Style is the outcome of constraint.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-maurois/style-is-the-outcome-of-constraint/) [Andre Maurois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-maurois/) > [Every event has a cause-that is ... for every event e1 there exists an event e2 (or a class of events e2, e3 ...)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ermanno-bencivenga/every-event-has-a-cause-that-is-for-every-event-e1-there-exists-an/) Ermanno Bencivenga > [The natural world is not only a set of constraints but of contexts within which we can more fully realize our dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-shepard/the-natural-world-is-not-only-a-set-of-constraints-but-of-contexts/) [Paul Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-shepard/) > [Bird taxonomy is a difficult field because of the severe anatomical constraints imposed by flight. There are only so many ways to design a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jared-diamond/bird-taxonomy-is-a-difficult-field-because-of-the-severe-anatomical/) [Jared Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jared-diamond/) > [Engineers love to optimize problems. Now I optimize logistical problems. I ask: 'What's the goal? What are our constraints? What is the optimal, elegant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruchi-sanghvi/engineers-love-to-optimize-problems-now-i-optimize-logistical/) [Ruchi Sanghvi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruchi-sanghvi/) > [If you give a little credit to the concept of the artist, I think you ought to indulge excesses a bit, because that reflects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-watterson/if-you-give-a-little-credit-to-the-concept-of-the-artist-i-think-you/) [Bill Watterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-watterson/) > [“By setting oneself totally free of constraints, free of thoughts, free of this debilitating activity called work, free of efforts, elements hidden in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/by-setting-oneself-totally-free-of-constraints-free-of-thoughts-free/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) > [Constraint inspires creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/biz-stone/constraint-inspires-creativity/) [Biz Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/biz-stone/) > [“Creativity is what happens when a mind encounters an obstacle. It’s the human process of finding a way through, over, around, or beneath. No…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-orlin/creativity-is-what-happens-when-a-mind-encounters-an-obstacle-it-s/) Ben Orlin > [Water is an astonishingly complex and subtle force in an economy. It is the single constraint on the expansion of every city, and bankers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-catley-carlson/water-is-an-astonishingly-complex-and-subtle-force-in-an-economy-it/) Margaret Catley-Carlson Browse all 407 Constraints quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The way to get over creative block is to simply place some constraints on yourself. 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