We all intuitively grasp this distinction between work and labor. Work can be fun, although it isn’t always. Labor is never fun—it’s trying to break a rock with a toenail clipper in the desert. Work is something you undertake by choice. Labor is assigned to you by some threat of violence. Occasionally, we must labor, but we avoid it as much as possible.
If creativity feels like labor, you’re probably forcing it. Perhaps you are going after a fake ambition that was memed at you by the evil memeplex. Or perhaps you’re trying to do something original, which is a trap. Try, instead, doing something inspired by what’s most obvious to you specifically. Note that if you find something obvious, that’s because of a whole mess of your own concepts, memories, and associations that are unique. Obviousness is built on particularity. Therefore, if you explore what’s obvious from your perspective, you will often end up with what’s least obvious to others.