Have you ever wanted to create something, but can never find the time or don’t know where to start?
For years, my main income was teaching. In many ways, teaching was such an inspiration. The creativity of the kids always blew me away. They gave me so many ideas, but by the time I got home, my energy was pretty depleted. Most evenings I used whatever I had left to make dinner and plan for the next day and most weekends I caught up on everything that I hadn’t been able to do throughout the week. And, over time, I lost my way with my own personal art-making process.
So I get it. I definitely had times where I didn’t know where to put creating in my schedule and when I didn’t even know where to start.
Being in a state where I am not making things is rather unnatural to me. When that happens, a big ol’ siren starts going off and I know I have to figure out what is going on. During the investigation, I started noticing lots of little things...
My expectations for what I would make were pretty darn high. They were as high as they were when I was in college spending 40 hours a week in a studio making art. And that was years and years ago. I felt a lot of pressure.
My brain was stuck on the idea that I had to have a number of hours to work on something or I couldn’t work on anything at all. I felt cheated out of time.
I wasn’t giving myself transition time from work to making. So, when I sat down and nothing immediately came, I gave up quickly. I felt disappointed in myself.
This was just some of what I noticed and some of what I felt. Pressure, cheated, disappointed was also accompanied by fears, anxiety, frustration. Sometimes this all led to avoidance and apathy and let’s not even talk about how all the harmful messages we receive around creativity only add to the mess… This is how creative blocks happen.
Creative blocks are not from a lack of ideas or time. They are from a stack of scary emotions blocking all our ideas and motivation!
So the good news is that we are never lacking in creative ideas nor motivation. It’s all there, ready for us. We just have to navigate the emotional landscape. Though sometimes this can be tough work, on a daily basis this can actually be done creatively with a sprinkle of fun!
I have learned and developed lots of fun, creative ways to get into a joyful making flow that I would love to share with you during the next Create It Class: Idea to Creation in Four Weeks! With practical structures, creative activities, encouraging support, helpful tools, and a group of creative minds, you will find a way to make that thing you have been wanting to do for a while now!
And you will gain confidence in your own power to conceive, create, and share something that is an authentic expression of you!
But, if you can’t make it, take a breather, check in with yourself, give your emotions a little attention and soothing, and see what magical things might happen.
Find more information on our Create It Class here or sign up now as class size will be limited for an intimate experience!
You can also join us monthly gatherings in partnership with FeelReal. Learn more about our Creative Wisdom Doodle-Shops and our Thriving Artists gathering.