Warmup routine

Priming my body and mind for creativity

Over the past two months I’ve developed a morning routine to kick my ass into get and get my brain and body ready for creativity. As someone with ADHD, routines are a challenge. But I’ve set up a basic morning routine with some simple constraints — necessary to keep me focused and on task — to prime myself for creative work.

As soon as I get up in the morning, I strap on a knee brace and head out for a walk. I love walking. It’s my favorite form of exercise, and something I never take for granted given my knee issues over the last several years. Some days I’ll just go two miles; other days I’ll do up to six miles. Two or three times a week I’ll strap on a weighted backpack. The walk allows me to clear my head and get my energy up.

Once home, I’ll have a quick breakfast and head straight up to my studio to do a warmup sketch. That’s where the proverbial magic happens.

Here’s the setup: I give myself 45 minutes to do a simple sketch on a small Post-it Note using only a mechanical pencil with red lead, a felt-tip art pen, and a gray marker. I keep a cheap kitchen timer on my drawing table. The time constraint gives me a hard deadline, which helps me get out of my head and keeps me on task. And the Post-it and limited drawing supplies helps keep my perfectionism in check. I can’t get lost trying to create a masterpiece when I’ve got 45 minutes, a three-inch canvas and a few drawing implements.

I then close my eyes, and using the pencil, I make a random scribble on a Post-it.

I don’t approach these warmup sketches with any agenda or preconceived notions about what I’m going to draw. The random scribble acts as a primer for my imagination. I often turn the Post-it around for a few minutes, lightly sketching in contour lines, waiting for something to spark my imagination. Once I’ve got a basic idea, it’s go time.

I draw the sketch in red, refining the idea as I go. I try not to get hung up on details — 45 minutes goes by fast.

As soon as I have a loose sketch I’ll jump right into inking with the art pen. I’ll add some shading with the pencil and a gray marker, but I keep everything simple. Once the timer’s bell rings, I put my pen down and tape the sketch into a small notebook.

I often surprise myself by what I draw. Some sketches are simple and take only 20 or so minutes. Other days I’m racing against the clock, trying to finish a full scene. Some sketches feel like finished illustrations. Other sketches are sloppy. Many don’t make a lot of sense. But I’ve noticed that they’ve helped spark my imagination as I get into the day’s actual creative work. More importantly, they’re a small island of personal creativity, when so much of my work is public.