1. Creating takes really different energy than any other kind of work
Creating, just like buying a house, is really different energy:
- your energy has to be big
- be willing to look at a lot of options
- ability to see possibility (e.g. in spaces that aren’t designed for you or are undone/need repairs and upgrade)
- listen to your gut and sometimes make quick decisions without all the facts available
- You won’t always get what you want, but you know what you absolutely can’t live without
Whereas the energy or state of mind to sell your house takes really different energy than buying
- you have to always be ready for a showing
- it can take months longer to get that one buyer
- your next step or dream house is dependent on when or whether that one buyer sees your home
I could come up with a million more metaphors, but you get the picture. Making something out of nothing takes work, vision, willingness to find and pull ingredients together. It’s creating, failing, learning, pivoting and moving forward again, again and again.
Creating something out of nothing is not easy, it’s not for the faint of heart, but it’s an amazing, incredible experience, so do it at least once in your life. Maybe for you creating is having kids, building your career to the next level, rather than working a J.O.B, or learning a skill and then making something using that skill. I’m quite impressed by @spiritualknitter’s hand-made or vintage creations/re-creations, and @delia.seeberg’s photo-a-day award winning collection, or the hundreds of thousands of bloggers who just started sharing their experiences and have connected with people around the globe. Not everyone needs to start a business out of a passion. All I’m saying is create something. Let yourself explore, learn, and go deep enough to make something that didn’t exist before, that only you can claim as the creator or author, and affects, at least, a few lives.
My favorite resources about the creative process:
Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert. This may not be so much about “how-to” be creative but rather how to stay in the process of creating even when it doesn’t feel creative or artistic. It’s written by someone who’s been a serious, starving, and relentless artist within her recent memory, and truly embraced the process. She lives to tell. She talks about sending manuscripts out and getting rejections, then sending more out, like she’s hitting a tennis ball in return. This is her “cosmic tennis match.” I, seriously read or listen to it at least 3 times a year. It rekindles my fire every time.
Artist Date: I’ve been doing this inconsistently, but consciously about once a month for 20 years. I got the idea from the Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron, which I read in the mid 1990’s when it first came out. Here’s a video where she explains it perfectly. And here’s a link to some ideas for an Artist Date.
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