I’m a lucky gal to have so many creative friends. Not all of them are self-declared artists, but they live in a creative space as entrepreneurs and mothers and thinkers. In the past week alone I’ve heard them articulate major shifts in perspective. One from “What’s wrong with me?” to a “Lean-on-my-team” perspective, one from “I’m too old” to a “More! More! More!” perspective, and one from a disparaged “No one gets me” to a charged up “I’m a plugger!” perspective.
Each shift was motivated by an internal struggle that finally met its threshold: a stronger desire for fulfillment. Since that shift, each woman has moved her creative business forward -- organizing focus groups, testing out new program ideas, and committing to a spiritual regimen.
Shifting perspectives is a lot like changing hats. While you drink your coffee this morning ask yourself, “What hat am I waking up with today?” Take a look at that and decide if you’d like to try something else on. It could be your “abra-cadabra! hat,” or an “ice cream sundae” hat, or a mountain climber or Wonder Woman. It doesn’t have to make sense to anyone but you. See if the awareness you call to your unconscious perspective empowers you to move through your day with more presence and more power.
Honoring our creative power is recognizing that we can choose to play with options that will break up our love affair with our habituated and self-limiting thoughts. Actions resulting from a new perspective can awaken those snoozing pests, so you’ll have to get good at shooing them away.
A few tips to dealing with negative thoughts while you step into your creative power in 2013:
1. Play with perspectives and notice what happens. Start with a few deep breaths and ask yourself, “What is my perspective right now?” Then just notice what comes up. Is there something that you want that you are not asking for? Do you feel any physical tension that is trying to tell you something? You don’t have to know the answers. Just take note.
2. Articulate your vision. Think of your vision as a life raft always available to grab when the water gets rough. For it to inflate, you need to take time to develop a detailed picture of your future as if there were no limiting circumstances to cloud your view. Make something that reflects your vision – a journal entry, a collage or a painting or an object. This way you’ll be able to revisit your vision or develop it further.
3. Do one thing toward your vision today. Show your work to a fellow artist, tell someone about your vision who you know will champion you, or call a colleague to inquire about her journey. Do something. Anything you do is movement forward, and gaining momentum is a valuable first step.
4. Be kind to yourself. Shifting your awareness is hard work. A great way to stay on course is to acknowledge yourself for what you have already done toward your vision. Take yourself to lunch, a gallery, or do some other thing you’ve been putting off as a nurturing reward.
Just know that wherever you are in your creative dance, you can always go back to Step 1: breath and observe. It’s a place to begin.
Join my partner Jill Liflander and me at Open Canvas Discussion at The Purple Crayon the first Thursday of each month and find energy to keep playing with perspectives! Follow this blog on the Patch on a creativity topic that will inspire community around artistry, creativity and movement.
