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Creativity During COVID-19

Reflections on Working Remotely
By The BARK Team
CreativityCOVID

UPDATED 10/18/2024

Navigating Creativity in a Changing World

How can nothing and practically everything change so much since November 2019? The COVID-19 pandemic has forced businesses and individuals to adapt to a new normal.

For creative teams, working remotely has presented both challenges and opportunities. Here are some insights from our experience as a Creative Team and Marketing Agency at The BARK Firm:

Brainstorming remotely

This is not our first rodeo, working from home is what we do…but we miss each other. There’s something about getting a small group of creative minds together to really get some ideas flowing.

How we’re adjusting: Bring the coffee, bring the energy and use video conferencing. Good things will come from just seeing someone’s face.

Embracing Remote Collaboration

  • Leveraging Technology: We’ve embraced video conferencing tools to maintain face-to-face interactions and foster collaboration.
  • Virtual Brainstorming: Creative brainstorming sessions can be just as effective remotely when facilitated effectively.
  • Building a Strong Team Culture: Even when physically apart, we’ve maintained a strong team culture through regular communication and virtual team-building activities.

Being creative when there are more distractions (dogs/kids/spouses)

The BARK Firm has been working remotely since it began a decade ago. We know how to do it, and we pretty much NAIL it. But when you add in changes to kid/daycare schedules and your spouse trying to work in the same space as you, things get complicated.

How we’re adjusting: Blocking out stretches of time whenever and wherever to just let the creative juices flow and keep flowing. Sometimes taking a walk can help clear your headspace and good ideas come.

Managing Distractions and Maintaining Focus

Working from home can be challenging due to increased distractions. To stay focused and productive, we’ve implemented strategies such as:

  • Creating a dedicated workspace: Establishing a designated workspace can help you mentally transition into work mode.
  • Setting clear boundaries: Establish specific work hours and communicate them to your team and family.
  • Taking breaks: Schedule regular breaks to rest and recharge.
  • Prioritizing tasks: Focus on completing the most important tasks first.

Being Positive

Creativity in a doom and gloom world starts with attitude. It’s hard to kickstart creativity when you are upset, worried, confused, scared, or anxious.

How we’re adjusting: You have to sit down and get in a positive mental space for it to get going. Do something in the morning that makes you happy, hug your family, hug your dog, and maybe put reading the news off for a few hours.

Staying Positive and Creative

Maintaining a positive mindset is essential for creativity to flourish. Even during challenging times, it’s important to find ways to stay inspired and motivated.

  • Practice self-care: Prioritize your physical and mental health.
  • Seek inspiration: Look for sources of inspiration, such as books, podcasts, or art.
  • Collaborate with others: Connect with other creatives to share ideas and stay motivated.

Adapting the WORK WE DO to the current climate

We’ve had to adapt our creative in response to the COVID-19 pandemic – and we plan to make similar alterations as the crisis continues to unfold.

What we’ve done:

Guidelines to social distancing, mass gatherings, public spaces, business closures, mask-wearing, and more are changing and evolving. Communicating that on behalf of our clients has to be communicated quickly–sometimes within hours. We’ve been creatively thinking of ways to craft and rework messaging, and being flexible and available to put the message out fast. We’ve had to rely heavily on all our digital platforms to do this effectively.

We’ve had to adjust and sometimes scrap entire campaign materials to adjust to the current climate:

  • Provide essential and useful information.
  • Acknowledge we are in a different time, display empathy, and focus more on how to be helpful rather than pricing and selling.
  • Avoid certain lifestyle imagery. (Large gatherings, spring break, etc.)

Hitting the Pause Button. 

It felt as though the entire world hit pause when Coronavirus erupted, and it was a weird feeling for all of us. When work slowed or halted for some, we saw people channeling their creative energy into all sorts of things; hobbies like gardening or cooking, getting more active outside and exploring nature, or learning a new language keeping their minds and bodies engaged.

One thing we know is that it’s difficult for any creative mind to simply stop creating things… and we’re thankful we’ve been able to keep our creative energy flowing here at The BARK Firm.