Staying Creative with a Newborn: How AI Can Help

The Creative Itch vs. The Contact Nap

There’s a silent conflict that arises when you become a new parent: How do I be fully present for my child without completely neglecting myself?

Many people feel compelled to put all personal projects, the novel, the side hustle app, the YouTube channel, on hold. And while it’s true that your priorities shift entirely, I want to argue that you don’t have to hit the “pause” button on your creative life entirely. Especially not in this age of advanced AI tools.

For those of us who have that persistent, nagging itch in our fingers to keep creating, but also want to be there for every tiny coo, we need a new approach.

The Secret Weapon: Your Phone and an LLM

Here is the reality of life with a newborn: They sleep a lot, but often only when they are close to you. Contact naps are a beautiful, essential part of a baby’s early life. But they also mean you’re often stuck on the couch, one arm pinned, with a perfect, tiny human sleeping on your chest.

Historically, this was dead time for a focused creative project. Now, it’s a window of opportunity, thanks to the power of modern technology right in your pocket.

Instead of doom-scrolling, open a language model app on your phone.

• Writing: Outline your chapters, draft key scenes, or ask the LLM to structure your next blog post’s paragraphs based on a few bullet points.
• Coding: Pseudo-code your side project. Ask the AI to bounce ideas with you about the app’s architecture or turn your high-level pseudo-code into actual boilerplate code.
• Content: Brainstorm video titles, blog concepts, or podcast segments.

You are keeping your child safe and close, tending to their needs the moment they stir, and yet you are still committing time to your project. When you finally get a proper session at your usual workstation, you can jump right back into the thread of the AI conversation and pick up the momentum you built on the couch.

A Crucial Word on Exhaustion

Let me be clear: this is not a “rise and grind” post from a LinkedIn success coach. If what you desperately need right now is to binge Friends for the tenth time because you are completely exhausted, more power to you. Sometimes, that is absolutely the only healthy choice.

This message is simply for those who feel the creative urge and the conflicting guilt about pursuing it. You can do both, just in smaller, more fragmented bursts.

The Importance of Self-Care for Both Parents

In the chaos of a newborn’s arrival, it’s vital for you and your partner to carve out dedicated time for yourselves. An hour or two where one parent takes full responsibility for the baby allows the other parent genuine space to breathe, create, or just decompress. This can work absolute wonders for mental health during a very pressed time.

While this post isn’t parenting advice, it’s a necessary reminder that your own well-being, which often includes your creative outlet, is part of being the best parent you can be.

The future of creation is hybrid, and it’s also mobile. Leverage your tools to keep that creative fire lit, even with a sleeping baby on your chest.

What is your current creative project, and how are you adapting your workflow to fit into life with a newborn? Let me know!