10 Books to Overcome 10 Creative Challenges
- Productivity
Zach- 22 minutes read
Looking for help to overcome procrastination, burnout, and other creative blocks? Here are 10 books to help you overcome 10 creative challenges.
In the creative process, every artist, writer, and innovator encounters challenges, that left unattended can hurt well-being and result in creative blocks. To turn these stumbling stones into stepping stones, here are 10 highly-rated books to help you overcome creative challenges like procrastination, imposter syndrome, burnout, and more to not only find creative success but also support a happy, healthy, and productive creative life.
Goodreads Rating: 3.89
Do Nothing: How to Break Away from Overworking, Overdoing, and Underliving by Celeste Headlee tackles the pervasive issue of overworking, fueled by hustle culture and detrimental habits leading to creative burnout.
With a fresh perspective, the book calls for a global shift in our mindset, urging us to prioritize well-being, step away from constant work, and embrace a more fulfilling way of living.
Despite our pursuit of peak performance, humans are working harder, not smarter, leading to increased loneliness and anxiety. Celeste Headlee questions our obsession with efficiency over meaning and challenges the need to constantly strive for higher standards. She draws on history, neuroscience, social science, and paleontology to provide insightful research on breaking free from overwork and cultivating a happier, more productive, and creative lifestyle.
Goodreads Rating: 3.87
Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time by Brian Tracy is an essential guide to overcoming procrastination and maximizing productivity.
This book states that if you start each day by “eating a frog,” i.e., tackling your most challenging task, you’ll gain the satisfaction of accomplishing the toughest job first. This opens your day to better living, focus, and flow.
By learning this book’s fundamental principles of decision-making, discipline, and determination, creatives can master the art of effective time management, overcome procrastination, and pave the way for success in both their creative endeavors and lifestyle.
Goodreads Rating: 3.99
The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles by Steven Pressfield is an essential read for any creatives dealing with creative blocks.
Inspired by Sun Tzu, this succinct, engaging, and practical guide for creatives will inspire you to approach creative blocks with a new perspective and energy. The War of Art emphasizes the resolve needed to recognize and overcome the obstacles of ambition and then effectively shows how to reach the highest level of creative discipline.
Whether an artist, writer, or business person, this simple, personal, and no-nonsense book will inspire you to seize the potential of your life.
Goodreads Rating: 4.2
The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are by Brené Brown is a powerful book that encourages readers to embrace their authentic selves and let go of the societal pressures and expectations that weigh them down.
With extensive research on vulnerability, shame, and resilience, Brown presents a compelling narrative that resonates particularly with creatives facing challenges like imposter syndrome and perfectionism.
Through the lens of vulnerability and compassion, this book offers valuable insights to cultivate a profound sense of self-worth and fulfillment. Brown introduces ten guideposts, each serving as a compass to navigate the path of wholehearted living. These guideposts become invaluable tools for creatives seeking to express their authentic selves, and overcome creative challenges and blocks.
The Gifts of Imperfection is a beacon of encouragement and support, empowering creatives to embrace their imperfections as sources of strength and authenticity. It serves as a roadmap for fostering self-expression, resilience, and self-compassion in the face of societal pressures and self-doubt. With Brown’s guidance, readers embark on a transformative journey towards greater self-acceptance and the realization of their true creative potential.
Goodreads Rating: 3.89
Solitude: A Return to the Self by Anthony Storr explores a common problem creatives face, loneliness.
Solitude is a necessary and valuable part of creative living. However, there’s a big difference between solitude and loneliness. Originally published in 1988, Anthony Storr’s bestselling meditation on the creative individual’s need for solitude has become a classic.
This pre-eminent work in self-help and popular psychology literature is still a valuable read for creatives that seek solitude for their creative work. Citing numerous examples of brilliant scholars and artists—from Beethoven and Kant to Anne Sexton and Beatrix Potter—he argues that solitary activity is essential not only for geniuses but often for the average person as well.
Discover the creative and health benefits of solitude as well as tips for avoiding loneliness in the creative lifestyle or creative process.
Goodreads Rating: 4.37
Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James Clear is the quintessential read for any creative that has trouble building and maintaining habits. This creative problems book is based on the simple rule that tiny changes lead to remarkable results.
This New York Times bestseller will teach you a proven framework for improving every day and staying motivated while you build good habits, break bad ones, and create a lifestyle you love. If you’re having trouble changing your habits, the problem isn’t you. The problem is your system.
Drawing on the most proven ideas from biology, psychology, and neuroscience, James Clear has created an easy-to-understand guide on how to make good habits inevitable and bad habits impossible.
Goodreads Rating: 4.09
Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol S. Dweck, Ph.D. shares transformative insights into redefining success, building lifelong resilience, and supercharging self-improvement.
Based on decades of research, world-renowned Stanford University psychologist Carol S. Dweck, Ph.D., has discovered a simple but groundbreaking idea: the power of mindset.
Learn how to overcome failure and achieve success in school, work, sports, the arts, and almost every area of human endeavor by simply changing your mindset. What is known in zen as the beginner’s mind, Dweck explores the ideas of people with a fixed mindset—those who believe that abilities are fixed—are less likely to flourish than those with a growth mindset—those who believe that abilities can be developed.
Mindset reveals how great parents, teachers, managers, and athletes can put this idea to use to foster outstanding accomplishments.
Goodreads Rating: 3.88
Group Genius: The Creative Power of Collaboration by Keith Sawyer is a transformative exploration into the science and methods of collaboration in the creative process.
Praised as “A fascinating account of human experience at its best.” by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, the author of Flow and Creativity, this creative book challenges common misconceptions about creativity, highlighting that it is inherently a collaborative process, even when undertaken on your own.
Drawing from his extensive research on jazz groups, theater ensembles, and conversation analysis, Keith Sawyer unravels the secrets of enhancing creativity within collaborative group settings. Through compelling insights, Group Genius equips readers with the tools to improve organizational dynamics and harness the full potential of creativity within themselves and their teams.
Group Genius offers an eye-opening account of the creative process and emphasizes the profound impact of collaboration in unlocking humanity’s creative potential. Whether you are an artist, a professional, or simply seeking to unleash your creativity, this book provides valuable guidance and inspiration to foster innovation through the creative power of collaboration.
Goodreads Rating: 3.95
Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert is a must-read for all creative minds. From the author of Eat, Pray, Love comes an insightful, inspiring, and empowering book on a key ingredient of creative living, overcoming fear.
Using examples from her own life and other famous creative minds, Gilbert shares wisdom and unique perspectives about creativity to help you overcome your fears and live a creative lifestyle. Learn how to embrace your curiosity, let go of needless suffering, and how to tackle what you love most without fear.
Whether you are looking to write a book, make art, find new ways to address challenges in your work, embark on a dream long deferred, or simply infuse your everyday lives with more mindfulness and passion, Big Magic cracks open a world of wonder and joy.
Goodreads Rating: 3.34
Unfuck Your Brain: Getting Over Anxiety, Depression, Anger, Freak-Outs, and Triggers with science (5-Minute Therapy) by Faith Harper is a no-nonsense and helpful guide on how to cope with anxiety, stress, and other mental health issues that can block creativity and hurt well-being.
With humor, patience, science, and lots of good-ole swearing, Dr. Faith explains what’s going on in your skull, and talks you through the process of retraining your brain to respond appropriately to the non-emergencies of everyday life, and to deal effectively with old, or newly acquired, traumas (particularly post-traumatic stress disorder).
Zach is an international writer, photographer, filmmaker, martial artist, and creator of Creative Enso, the Zen art of creative living. His goal is to empower and inspire creatives to live healthier, happier, and more creative lifestyles.
