If you do anything with your life more engaging than watching paint dry, then you’ve probably run up against creative block in the pursuit of a goal. Creative block, no matter what discipline, can be a maddening ordeal. Conjuring the muse is often the difference between work that is merely adequate and work that stands head and shoulders above the crowd. Consistent creativity is required to reach the highest echelons of mastery, regardless of field, yet being creative is one of the most difficult skills to improve.

While difficult, having the muse at your beck and call is not impossible. Creativity is a skill like any other, so it can be learned and improved. Creativity is like a frog, you need to find the environment where it likes to live, and make a point of being there when you need inspiration. Feed it, love it, care for it, and your creativity will be there for you when you need it.

I’ve spent a lot of time recently getting in touch with my “creative frog”. Since I do many things that require my creative abilities, I need to take extra special care to make sure my creativity keeps working at peak efficiency. Since I couldn’t find a creativity gym (that’s a million dollar idea right there), I started doing the next best thing: blogging.

Blogging is one of the best ways to increase your creativity. I started blogging to describe the trends I was seeing in social media, but I soon found that it was also helping me in my other creative pursuits. While the benefits of blogging are many, some of the positive effects I’ve noticed are:

1) It Gets You in the Habit of Creating Something, However Short, on a Frequent Basis.

The first step towards improving something make a habit of doing it. Blogging is a great creative outlet because you do it every day, and the time commitment does not need to be overly draconian to see results.

2) It Gets You in the Habit of Organizing Your Thoughts, Which is Half the Battle of any Creative Project. 

One of the things I have the most trouble with when writing music is how my ideas evolve over time. Blogging forces you, in a small amount of words, to get your thoughts out cogently and succinctly, which goes a long way in channeling creativity.

3) Blog Right After You Get Off Work, It’s a Great Transition into a Creative Day

This is something I’ve been doing recently that’s helped my creativity a great deal. When I get done with work, I immediately draft up a blog post about something that grabbed my attention on the internet that day. It helps transition my mind from the strategizing of the office, into the more relaxed creativity of my evenings.

4) Share Your Thoughts with the Online Community. Creativity Hates Living in a Void

One thing most creative people fear is that no one will pay attention to the work they have created. Blogging, combined with social media, is a great way to find an active and supportive community of people to share and discuss your ideas. I’ve written about the importance of creating and disseminating content in the internet community, and the creative community is no different. Write your thoughts and go out and share them. You’ll be amazed at the creative insights that come from other people about your own work.

I might be biased towards blogging as a creative tool because I’ve had so much fun writing for the Social Chic, but I’m sure anyone who tries this method is sure to get some creative benefit. So head on down to your friendly WordPress.com dealer, pick out a nice little blog format, and get to work training your creative skills. Let me know when you do. Creativity always loves company.

Mr.  David Benson is a social media analyst and coffeephile. He currently lives in New York City and works as an analyst for Mashwork, a social media analytics company.