It is the height of Spring and instead of the sun shining and birds whistling, you are faced with the misery that sits outside your office window.

With so much grey and dullness surrounding you, it is hard to stay motivated and get the creative juices flowing. Despite the weather, you still have to work and find ways to be inspired to come up with those great ideas.

So how do you beat the gloom?

Consume content you wouldn’t normally consume

Reading articles and blogs in our own industries spike our interests, but they don’t help much with sparking creativity. That is why reading blogs, articles, and books in a completely different industry can help spike creative thinking. Just choose an industry you are interested in so that you don’t lose interest on the activity with something you find boring.

Write a 500-word article with no topic

This is a fun exercise as it gives you the opportunity to freely write. Don’t choose a topic, don’t make a title, and don’t edit what you’ve written. Just write whatever comes to your head, you’ll end up with a crazy article in the end that is sure to have you feeling creative.

Go to a movie

It’s always fun going to a movie, but who knew it could stimulate creative thinking? Movies will pop questions and theories into our heads to predict what will come up in the next scene or even the next movie.

Talk with someone you don’t know

It can be a visit or a phone call with someone you don’t know. Have a stranger tell you their story; it could really be an eye-opening and mind-expanding experience. They may teach you things you never knew, or even give you a different perspective.

Eat differently

There are studies that say our diets affect the way we think. If you want to start thinking differently then try eating different and healthier.

Do a “No Bad Ideas Brainstorm”

Get at least one other person to join you in a brainstorm session with no technology and no criticism. Come up with a topic and write down every idea you have whether it is good or not. Odds are, out of all of the ideas you came up with, at least a few will be good. The more you do this, the better you become at it.

Learn another language

Download free apps such as Duolingo or Babbel which help you pick up another language. You do not need to become fluent in your choice of language, but waking up the brain by learning another language can really get those brain cells working.