Betsy's comment on my last post addresses a common problem for creatives. She mentioned how daily responsibilities keep from doing her creative work at the time of day that she feels she's at her best. She feels drained by the time she gets to her art. Here's my suggestion: patchwork creativity.
Step One: Before going to sleep at night, set an intention for what you want to create the next day. Be sure to write it down. By doing this, you're sending a message to your subconscious mind, along with a self-addressed, stamped envelope for its reply. The subconscious is great to have in your employ, because it works tirelessly 24/7. Just before sleep is the best time to jumpstart it.
Step Two: Reread your intention as soon as you wake up, preferably aloud. The subconscious mind is very open to suggestion at this time before you are fully alert.
Step Three: Always carry something with you to jot down or electronically record any bits and pieces that pop up while you are carrying out your other responsibilities. These become your patches for your patchwork creativity.
Step Four: When your time of day to create finally arrives, make it a ritual to sit down and "sew" your patches together. You can create this way even when you feel drained from your other activities, because you've already built a foundation for it in bits and pieces. As "The Artist's Way" author Julia Cameron would say, you have made your creative work into "no big deal." And I know when I'm tired, everything feels like a big deal, so I'd better have my creative goals cut down to size in this way.
My wish for all of you this week is a beautiful piece of patchwork creativity, whatever that means for you. Give it a try and let me know how it goes. Or if you have another method that works for you, please tell us about your experiences and results. Thanks!
Blessings,
Susan
P.S. A note to local folks: Last call for the "Design Your Future" workshop on Saturday, February 25, from 1 to 5. The registration deadline is Wednesday, February 15!
1 comment:
Hey, this sounds like something I can actually do! Wow! This is great - you know how sometimes you read magazine articles or books and their advice is always "get up 1 hour earlier in the morning". If I took this advice I'd be getting up at 2 AM to accomplish what I need to, and that is not going to happen! When I was a kid (not exactly last week) I used to keep a notebook by my bed because I would have dreams of stories and music and I needed to write them down as soon as I woke up, before I forgot them. Maybe if I try your idea of writing a note to myself it will restart this cycle again. I will try this and report back on the results. Thank you!
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