Turning Down the Volume: Staying Inspired in a Loud World

By Joel Robison

It goes without saying that the world is particularly noisy lately. The news pulling our attention and focus, social media is an endless billboard of videos and music and memes and our own day to day lives all work together to make it quite a busy and overwhelming place. This can really have a negative impact on our creativity, our motivation, and even our mental health. Finding peace amongst the noise can be a challenge but I think it’s important to find ways to tune out the chaos and give ourselves a calm space to keep our creativity and inspiration growing. Here’s three tips I think can help turn down the volume.

Photo by Joel Robison

1.Set limits

This step is probably the hardest to do but is really the most important one. Because we have the world at our fingertips, it’s easier than ever to have access to everything all at once. While this can be useful at times, we’re not designed to absorb so much. Setting limits is an important part of tuning out the noise.

This can look like setting a timer for social media (or you can download an app like Forest, Freedom, or StayFocusd) that can help you limit your time spent scrolling. You may find it helpful to keep your phone on silent or in a different room. You might even want to start by looking at how much time you actually spend on certain apps or websites, and that may be enough to spark some changes!

Try to set limits on absorbing news as well. Personally, I watch the first 5 minutes of the news in the morning and in the evening and after that I switch off as I feel informed on any big events.

Setting these boundaries can help you develop a healthier relationship with social media and the news cycle and give you a bit more freedom. It’s a tricky habit to break but so important to build some consistent habits around usage times.

2.Go Naked

Now I’m not suggesting you strip off and strut your stuff out there for the world to see, but I am suggesting you go ‘naked’ a few times a week. By naked I mean going out without anything distracting you. I recommend going for a walk or a run or a bike ride without headphones or music and keeping your phone well out of reach.

By ‘going naked’ we’re giving ourselves a chance to spend time with our own minds and thoughts (scary for some, but vital for us all!) We can give ourselves an opportunity to dream, process, think, analyze and otherwise develop a healthier relationship with our inner voice and in doing so, we’re able to give more time and energy toward our goals and our creative vision.

I try to get out three times a week without any distractions and the bulk of my ideas and my own creative planning and workflow gets sorted during this time. It can be a highly beneficial way to get some quality thinking time in while getting a physical boost too.

3.keep it visual

You’ve probably heard of vision boards, mood boards, or even the practice of writing down your goals. There’s a good reason why these methods are so popular—they genuinely help you stay focused and work toward achieving what you want.

Personally, if I try to keep all my ideas, goals, or dreams just in my head, they tend to get lost in the daily chaos. But when I write them down—whether on a board or in a notebook—they become more than just passing thoughts. They turn into something tangible, something I can actively work toward.

Having a visual reminder keeps these aspirations front and center, making it easier to give them the attention they deserve. At the same time, it helps filter out distractions, allowing us to focus on what truly matters and giving us a good chance to stay creative and inspired.

The noise of social media, the news, and life in general can quickly sap our creative potential and over time we may even start to feel guilty about not tending to that part of our life. But by setting some limits, giving ourselves dedicated time away from distractions, and writing down our goals and intentions, we can work toward a healthier creative life with slightly less noise

Joel Robison is a conceptual photographer and artist from British Columbia, now living in the UK.

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