We all get stuck.

Whatever the project, sometimes our creativity is less like the juice that’s supposed to be flowing and more like the pulp that gets caught in our teeth.

So how do you start clean again? Especially when that fundraising event is right around the corner or you have to write the story of how your social enterprise started right now?

In his book Unstuck, artist Noah Scalin offers ideas for 52 exercises to help you get out of the rut and keep taking those steps forward. From the six-word memoir (30 seconds) to a photo mashup (two minutes) to blackout poems (30 minutes) to making a creativity shrine (one hour), each activity is selected to fit with your (obviously busy) schedule.

The idea for the book came from Scalin’s year-long project of making skulls out of everyday objects: stencils, hands, trash, pumpkins, chains, and more. From the process, he learned a lot about staying committed to a project—even when you don’t feel like it.

Here are his seven tips:

1. Let go of preciousness. The reality is that treating your creations as precious little things to protect keeps you from the world of possibilities that comes from trying new things out, making mistakes, and getting things wrong.

2. Freedom comes from limitations. It’s only from narrowing down the options that creativity becomes possible, as you are forced to push against the walls that close you in.

3. Get out of your environment. No matter how inspiring your workplace is, there’s only so much creative work that can be done within it.

4. Get out of your comfort zone. At some point in our lives we’re probably told not to make a fool of ourselves, but the fact is that’s one of the most effective ways to get creative inspiration!

5. Get things by giving them away. The more I gave away, the more people gave back to me.

6. Collaborate. Some of best things I got out of doing my own project were the wonderful new friendships and the deepening of my existing friendships that came from incorporating other people into my work.

7. Inspiration is everywhere. Once you start practicing, the ability to find ideas in even the most mundane environments gets easier and easier.

Go to Noah’s website, Make Something 365 & Get Unstuck, for more inspiration or to show off a project of your own.

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What tips do you have for getting unstuck?