Guest post by Mary Walton
If you are a person that works with creative things, you may have heard the advice to “Create drunk, edit sober.” Although this advice is most applicable to writers as Ernest Hemingway allegedly worked by these words, other professions where creativity is the main focus are also sometimes opened to similar ideas. Have you ever been in a slump and that logo design that you have been working on for days nearly drove you crazy? Naturally, your brain might start to search ways in which you can spark your creativity and get the job done. Among the other things that may come up on your mind, alcohol will surely be pretty high on the list. And that’s not your fault since alcohol relaxes people and when stress is not there the mind might come up with something. However, is doing that a good idea? It’s definitely not, and here are five reasons why.
1. Creating drunk spreads the myth of creativity
If you’re a person that has a career based on their creative skills, then you should respect the skill that you possess. Although every person to some degree can be creative, not all of the people can use that creativity in creating something amazing. Putting the idea out there that all you need to do to be a professional web designer is to experiment with alcohol or drugs is a very bad thing.
While one thing is for sure—that some people are more creative than others, creativity and innovation are not just that. Any person that is working hard on nurturing their thinking skills and that imposes new experience onto themselves can develop their creative thinking and skills. It is not a magical gift that only some chosen people possess, it is a skill that can be learned if paired with constant effort.
So instead of respecting your profession and efforts, spreading the myth that all it takes to produce something unique and amazing is to get wasted like it is some kind of a joke is a bad idea.
2. It can lower your reputation
If people are looking for a good web designer, chances are that they will read the reviews from his or her previous clients. And that’s a logical thing to do. If the clients are even more serious than that, they can contact some of the previous clients and ask them how the web designer delivered, how was the price, the whole process of building the site, the cooperation, and many other things. Or shortly stated, they will check the web designer’s reputation. In a world that is getting more and more competitive, reputation is something that is invaluable. So playing with it might not be a very wise idea.
3. It encourages addiction
If you ever had the chance to get close to a person that has been struggling with addiction of any type, you know the struggles. All the shame, the drug testing, the alcohol rehab, are not fun things to see at all. Encouraging young people that are getting into web design or any other creative profession to create under the influence is a morally questionable thing to do. Instead, encourage people to try their best, to work hard, and to put in an effort for the results that they want.
4. It is bad for your brain
Everybody knows that alcohol in excessive amounts is bad for your health. It’s a fact. And even though it is bad for many organs in our bodies, it affects the brain a lot. There are many short-term and long-term damaging effects of alcohol, but some of the most serious ones are connected to the ability to think and the way your brain works. Loss of productivity, loss of focus, damage to the brain that is permanent, amnesia, apathy, disorientation, depression, and many, many, more!
There are some studies in the world that are claiming that moderate drinking can, in fact, help spark some creativity, and maybe on some occasions, you can allow yourself a beer or two while designing. However, it is one thing to drink alcohol and it is another thing to get drunk. The latter is going to influence your brain if you keep doing it over and over again.
5. It would give you an excuse
Finding an excuse not to work hard can be a dangerous thing. You can try different methods for sparking your creativity, and you can even ask for help fellow colleagues. Nevertheless, anything that you do other than getting wasted looking for the answers will prove that you are a professional that takes his or her career seriously. Experimentation is good to some extent, but in the end, all that matters is how willing you are to be the best version of yourself that you can be.
Mary Walton is a professional editor, content strategist and a part of NCSM team. Apart from writing, Mary is passionate about hiking and gaming.
