As a child, you may have yearned to play the piano at Carnegie Hall, to perform on Broadway, or to write a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Perhaps you mentioned your aspirations to someone and were met with mocking laughter or the assurance that there was no money in it.
You swallowed your creative dreams and satisfied yourself with listening to music on the radio, to reading books or watching movies.
How often have our creative selves been swept to the side, making us an observer rather than a producer of creative projects? We internalize the belief that we don’t have what it takes to make it big, and of course we don’t make it because we have hardly tried.
I say it’s time to go for it. There have never been more opportunities to express yourself and be heard. There is no proof that you will get rich, famous, or even produce anything worthwhile. What you do know is that your creative impulses aren’t going away.
You sense that there is something behind this creative urge, that expressing yourself creatively may be the missing piece to a fulfilled life.
I believe that creative expression, whether through daily creativity or through making art, is worth the effort. During years of coaching clients to bring their creative expression to light, I’ve tracked a number of benefits that people experience when regularly engaging in creative play. Added up, they contribute to a richer life.
[Read more…] about Why Bother? 10 Benefits of Expressing Your Creativity
Creativity
Creative Person’s Hierarchy of Needs
You’ve heard of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. In a nutshell, as humans, our basic needs are: Physiological, Safety, Love/Belonging, Esteem and Self-Actualization.
Parisian pastries aren’t on the list, but we like them anyway, especially on Valentine’s Day.
Creative people, those who are making things – books, businesses, design, art – have additional needs. Recognizing these needs and making sure they are met are essential to applied creativity.
When we don’t acknowledge our needs, we’re allowing life to dictate our experience. Knowing your needs and being willing to take action to make sure they are met will make the already challenging work of creating much easier.
Over ten years of coaching and almost twice that time creating things myself, I’ve identified ten needs creative people have. But unlike Maslow, I don’t prioritize them. Each person will have their own hierarchy for these needs and will also have their own needs to add.
Here they are:
1. Need for creative space, as Virginia Woolf called a ‘room of one’s own’. Depending on what you’re creating, you may not need as big a space as you think you do. Write or draw out your ideal space and then assess how you have elements of that in place now.
2. Need for creative peers. When you’re on the leading edge of creativity, you need other creative people who understand the risks you’re taking and who encourage them. We need creative peers to talk, share, spark insights and ideas and to encourage us. Commit to connecting with people who ‘get’ you more often. This is one of the most common reasons people hire me, because I ‘get’ them and what they are trying to do.
3. Need for creative fuel. In her book The Artist’s Way Julia Cameron calls this need ‘filling the well’. I get so inspired when I am out in the world seeing what other people are doing. A favorite source of inspiration for me is museum shops.
The Tate Modern shop blew me away and gave me an idea for my work that I love. You can draw inspiration from books, magazines, blogs art galleries, and other well filling activities. Wherever you get it, get it often.
4. Need for imaginative space. This is different than physical space. It’s the time we need for noodling, doodling, wandering, and gathering thoughts. While it appears to be the antithesis of productivity, it’s actually vital to a productive creative cycle. Don’t pack every moment full of activity.
5. Need for the body to be expressed. We’re out in the ethers most of the time, us artists. We need to remember to take good care of our bodies by walking, dancing, practicing yoga, playing tennis, or whatever moves you regularly. I receive so many of my ideas when I am exercising. Get moving on your terms, but get moving.
6. Need for your creative edge. Solving problems, pushing boundaries, developing something new is at the heart of the creative process. Rather than despair about how difficult it is to write a really good article, embrace the challenge of your craft.
While you’re at it, embrace the challenge of your creative industry. For instance, publishing a book traditionally seems nearly impossible these days. Take that challenge on by either figuring out the publishing game or self-publishing. Relish the creative edge – you need it.
7. Need for ample amounts of faith and belief. When we’re making something from nothing, we need to be able to rely on faith and belief in ourselves and our work. Without this we can operate from despair and give up before our work is complete. Tap into your belief that you are on the right track, and do it often.
8. Need to have our work responded to. Whether it’s ego or a deep desire to share your creative work, most of us need for our work to be seen and received by others. This will vary for each person, some wanting just close friends to see our work, others wanting a wider audience.
Just be sure to get feedback from the right people at the right time.
9. Need for certainty. Ironically, one of the needs for artists is the ability to live in uncertainty. Traveling the creative path can make you feel lost most of the time. That’s why certainty in other areas of life: home, relationships, income, can help you have a sense of being held while you soar.
Have some rootedness so you can be ‘out there’ as much as you need to.
10. Need for time. This seems to be the need that people struggle with the most. If you never get any time alone to work on your art, your life will be filled with other people’s ideas and thoughts.
Make choices that allow time for your art. The laundry, your e-mail, your garden will all be there an hour later, after you have spent time with your art.
Again, I did not prioritize these. While I believe we all share these needs, everyone will have their own sense of the needs’ hierarchy.
In a comment below, tell us which needs have priority over the others, and add a need you have that I haven’t mentioned.
To go further, make a list of your needs and assess how well those needs are being met right now.
Brainstorm one thing you could do to work toward having those needs met, and then do it.
And then go get a pastry! 😉
Where Have You Been? Assessing Your Creative Year
The end of the year provides us with the perfect opportunity to assess our progress over the past months. Why not do this with a focus on your creativity? Take some time to look at where you have been. This will help you to acknowledge the progress you have made. Taking this step is incredibly empowering.
Whether you have done all that you wanted or not, your actions can show you where your commitment is, what got in the way if you didn’t write as much as you wanted to.
Be kind as you look at what you have given to your creative life. This is not an opportunity to beat yourself up for what you have not done. Take into account the other obligations you have committed yourself to. Be honest about where you could have done something differently, given your circumstances. Be grateful for what you did do.
Use the following questions to guide your inquiry, and jot your answers down in your notebook.
- What are the major accomplishments of your creative year?
- What are the minor accomplishments?
- What happened that you didn’t expect?
- What are you most proud of?
- What did it take to have this kind of progress?
- What have you learned?
- What was missing from your creative life this year?
Now that you have a sense of where you have been, next Monday I’ll share ideas on how to set powerful intentions for next year.
Creativity: Why Bother? 10 Benefits of Expressing Your Creativity
As a child, you may have yearned to play the piano professionally, to act on Broadway, to write a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Perhaps you mentioned your aspirations to someone and were met with laughter or the assurance that there was no money in it. You swallowed your creative dreams and satisfied yourself with listening to music on the radio, to reading books or watching movies.
How often have our creative selves been swept to the sidelines, to being the observer? We internalize the belief that we don’t have what it takes to make it big, and of course we don’t because we have hardly tried.
It’s time to go for it. There is no proof that you will get rich, famous, or even produce anything worthwhile. What you do know is that ignoring this urge to create isn’t making it go away. More and more people are heeding the call from within themselves to act upon their creative urges.
We have tons of ideas for stories, for songs, for decorating or creating in our homes, gardens, workplaces. We sense that there is something behind this creative urge, that expressing ourselves creatively may be the missing piece to a fulfilled life.
Creative expression, whether through mundane means or through art, is worth the effort. I coach writers and creative types, and have seen the difference in my clients’ lives when they are expressing themselves. I have compiled a list of benefits of expressing creativity that myself and others have experienced. Added up, they amount to a lot of benefits that might not make you a lot of money, but instead can give you a richer life.
[Read more…] about Creativity: Why Bother? 10 Benefits of Expressing Your Creativity
Transition Rituals for Creatives
You’re in the middle of writing the most fabulous paragraph when the phone rings. It’s your child’s school and you’ve forgotten to pick her up.
You leap up, caroming from blissful creative mode to full-on panic mode. You rush out the door, the cursor on your screen blinking, your creative bliss lost. We become grumpy, resentful and our desire to write dissipates.
Sound familiar? This wrenching transition style happens all too often. It’s one of the main reasons we fear entering the creative zone. We’re afraid we won’t be able to make a graceful return to the ordinary world where our real-world obligations await us. Going in and out of this magical place can be jarring. The demands of life — children, housework, jobs, other people — are much different that the demands of the creative life.
It doesn’t have to be wrenching. Transitions between life and writing can be easy. But it requires some effort and some training on our part to make transitioning between our roles work for us.
How can writers and artists make the transition smooth and easy? I suggest ritualized acts help to honor the creative time. Below are ten transition methods that my clients have used successfully. Experiment to see which rituals work for you.
Free-writing offers a quick way to move from one thing to the next. Limber up your brain and word flow with ten minutes of flow writing. You may write about your topic or about what you are transitioning out of, as a way to release that role and focus on the writing role.
Read a short and inspirational passage from a book about writing or another inspiring text. Better yet, read the last things you wrote and pick up from there.
Create a mantra or saying that helps you to step into creativity. “I honor my creative time” or “Welcome to the creative zone” or something that suits you. Feel free to make a sign and post it in your writing zone.
Tune in to music to train yourself to easily access the writing zone. Try playing the same music when you write or have a handful of inspiring tunes ready. Mozart’s music is known to stimulate creativity and brain power. I have also used the relaxing Hemi-Sync sounds when writing my novel to help me access the flow state.
Take a walk before or after you write. Get your body moving and let your mind wander. You may pick up some fresh ideas along the way, so bring a small notebook or have your digital device ready to capture your brilliance.
Prepare your writing space. When things are in order and ready for you, it is easier to jump into the flow. End your writing sessions a few minutes early and take that time to tidy your writing zone.
Create your insertion point. At the end of every writing session, pinpoint where you will start the next session. This will save you so much time and help you move past any emotions that may try to dissuade you from writing.
Do some stretching or other physical activity. Prepare your body to sit still for longer periods of time. This will serve you both going into and coming out of the creative zone.
Say a prayer or take time to meditate or be still. Accessing a deeper, sacred space can help you to swim in the creative pool more easily.
Honor the boundaries you have set up around your writing. If you have communicated that you are unavailable, do not be available. Turn off your phone and put it out of reach.
What helps you transition into and out of creative mode? Share your transition rituals in a comment below.
Find your Creative Ancestors
It’s always scary to leap into the new, which is why I always suggest looking for role models. Those who have gone before give us inspiration, provide a map of courage, and prove to us that it can be done. My biggest Creative Ancestor is Sylvia Beach, the subject of my novel.
Sylvia went to Paris in 1917 and opened a bookstore with a $3,000 check from her mother. She kept the bookstore alive until 1942, when the Nazi Occupation of Paris forced her to close her doors. Sylvia devoted herself to helping writers, selling their work, hosting readings at her store, and connecting people when they came to Paris to live the writer’s life. Her friend Ernest Hemingway said that she had ‘a God-given gift for friendship.”
You can see why I draw inspiration from Sylvia – her courage to move to France and become a businesswoman (and that was not a common thing at that time!), her ability to form a community of people who loved literature, and her sense of service to help others.
Creative Ancestors can be dead or living. A few of my living Creative Ancestors include: Ani DiFranco, Julia Cameron, and Natalie Goldberg. These are creative women who do their work well and inspire others.
Who are your Creative Leap Ancestors and why do they inspire you? Inspire others by sharing them in a comment below.
Psst…
Your journey takes you beyond your expectations.
Ten Paper Tigers Scaring You Away from Your Creative Ideas
Brian Clark, of Copyblogger, issued a challenge: Write a headline that is sexy a la Cosmo magazine – something that grabs the reader by the collar and makes her stop at the checkout counter and pick up the magazine to see how she can titillate her man in bed all night long. Here’s my headline that relates to what I know about the creative process.
When faced with a roaring tiger, you run, right? But these excuses don’t offer enough reason to not create. [Read more…] about Ten Paper Tigers Scaring You Away from Your Creative Ideas
Carving Out a Home Writing Retreat
The phone rings. The laundry pleads to be stuffed, cycled, dried and folded. Chaos reigns in the kitchen, e-mails queue for attention. Our lives are at once mundane and undeniably seductive at the same time. When we sit down to write at home, suddenly everything that marks our existence as tedious becomes compelling. Writing at home can seem tantamount to training for the Olympics past age nineteen.
Yet carving out time to write at home is possible. You can even design a home writing retreat. This weekend, I have staved off all other obligations and have Friday and Saturday free. I look forward to delving into my novel revision with hours of uninterrupted time. How to make sure I don’t veer into work mode. I’ve developed a strategy for an at home writing retreat.
Tune in tomorrow for eleven ways that you, too, can carve out space for uninterrupted writing bliss. (Psst…this works for all artists, not just writers!)
Thirteen Words Associated with ‘Adventure’
The best way to make adventure for yourself is to make your art, write your works and build a business. We help you do that here! One:One coaching, group coaching and writing workshops in Paris all lead you to live your life as a creative adventure. I’m Cynthia Morris and I’ve been coaching creatives since 1999. I write books and make art and live life as a creative adventure; I want that for you, too!
I love the word ‘adventure’ and encourage others to embrace life as an adventure. This comes from the Helen Keller quotation, “Life is a daring adventure or it is nothing at all.” If a deaf and blind woman can consider life an adventure, then those of us with full use of our faculties can certainly embrace life as an adventure.
Researching this word in my writer’s thesaurus, I found the following words associated with adventure.
- thrill
- stimulation
- risk
- danger
- daredevil
- intrepid
- unshrinking
- unafraid
- dauntless
- exciting
- bold
- fearless
- brave
How many of them apply to you and your life?
Post-Show Debrief
Have you ever done a performance, mounted an art show, given a speech, taught a class, or any other scenario where you are in front of a group, doing your thing? If so, chances are the performance gremlin has shown up right afterward, ready to tear you apart.
This mean-spirited or judgmental part of yourself may pounce on your efforts with words like:
- You blew it!
- They hated it.
- Why did you say that?
- No one bought anything – see, I told you…
- Don’t ever do that again!
Sound familiar? This voice lures many of us to shrink down and play small in life. It’s exactly counter to that part of us that wants to soar, that wants to express our deepest self, that wants to go out there and share our work with the world.
Yet doing so can seem risky. When we put ourselves in front of others, we risk judgment. We risk flubbing up. We risk exposing the naked truth that we are not yet perfect.
But these risks are no reason to stop ourselves from launching our work into the world. Many of my clients are putting themselves out there, and I do too, with my tours to France, my workshops and my speeches. I’ve developed a simple tool that will take the sting out of that post-show gremlin that seems to want to criticize us until we huddle in a dark, safe spot in the corner.
I call this the Post-Show Debrief, and you can use it after any kind of show or public thing that you put out there. Schedule time the day after or even that same day to take yourself somewhere pleasant. You may want to go to a park, a café, your creative zone, a wine bar, whatever works for you. Bring a notebook and write your answers to these questions:
- What worked? What went well?
- What can you acknowledge about your efforts?
- What would you add or change for the next time?
- What have you learned?
- How will you celebrate your efforts?
Feel free to add your own questions and write as much as you want in your Post-Show Debrief. Notice that the only question that invites a smidgen of criticism is the one where you ask what would you change or add. Framing it this way allows for growth, but not a critical attack. The voice that wants to criticize gets to add its opinion but in a constructive way.
Use the Post-Show Debrief to continue to grow and hone your skills. Tell the bouncer at the show that your critic isn’t allowed backstage.
What methods do you use to keep your critic at bay? Share them with us here!
13 Ways to Bust Through Writer’s Block
Yippee! It’s Thursday again. Time for another Thursday Thirteen. And it just happens to be the 13th of the month. Woo-ooo. Here’s advice on getting over yourself and getting to the page.
Want to write but feel the weight of writer’s block? Use any or all of these ways to get your fingers in gear and your words on the page.
1. Look at things in increments, or cycles. For instance, for the next three months (or the rest of this season) I will focus on one element of my writing, for instance: writing as much as I can, learning as much as I can, research etc, etc. Setting an overall intention for a few months or weeks can help to prioritize your decisions for that time period.
2. Find and commit to a writing buddy. Meet once a week at a neutral location and spend at least 3/4 of the time writing. Watch out for chatting your writing time away.
3. What’s it about? Get clear on your motivations for writing. Having a foundation can be helpful to remind you why you are writing.
4. Schedule time to get the writing done. You are creating a new habit and will need persistence and discipline to stay on track. Whether you have large blocks of time or tiny pockets in which to write, use them.
5. Put aside the books on writing and just write. Do not confuse reading about writing with writing.
6. Set attainable goals with deadlines. Do not think you need to accomplish the entire project in one goal. Chunk it down by working in stages. Be sure to celebrate or reward yourself when you achieve these small goals.
7. Enroll your community in your writing. Let your friends, family and loved ones know why this is important to you. Ask for what you need in terms of time, space, respect for your creative life. You may be surprised at what you can get when you simply ask for support.
8. Call in help from your source. Ask God, the Universe, whatever your spiritual source for support. Don’t think you are alone.
9. Make your writing life your own. Take all the suggestions and advice you have heard and tailor them to suit your own needs and style. Be persistent and don’t let one unsuccessful attempt at someone else’s method stop you from writing.
10. Read really good writing. Inspire yourself with others’ magnificent words.
11. Do whatever it takes to enjoy the process.
12. Cease believing in that voice that tells you not to write. What seems like a giant boulder in the road is really a paper curtain. Just blow past it.
13. Sign up for my Creative Leap Program, offered in the month of September (2007) only. What a deal: three coaching sessions for half my normal rate. That’ll move the block out of the way.
Self-Censorship Hurts
If I told you to shut up, that you could speak only this way, and that you had permission to only speak in specific places or situations, how would you react? You’d tell me to take a hike, to get out of town, to get away from you and stop telling you what to do. In short, to let you live and speak as you like.
Yet there may be a part of you that does this to yourself every day. The part of you that censors what you say and how you act. You may be following a set of rules that says you must be polite, that you shouldn’t say what you think if it isn’t nice. You may allow your sense of humor free reign at home but not at work.
Many of these rules work well for you – you live in the way you want, doing what serves your values and goals, for a life of fulfillment and joy.
I suspect that many of us chafe under these self-imposed rules. When I ask clients and students why they want to write or create art, they cite self-expression as the number one reason for wanting to create. After hearing this reason so many times, I have come to believe that self-expression is vital. Yet we don’t give ourselves permission to be expressive. If you are not living the life you want, you may look at how you censor yourself.
How honest do you allow yourself to be? In what situations do you feel fully self-expressed? By self-expressed, I mean that you feel comfortable stating your opinion, even if it differs from the norm or from others’ viewpoints. You feel comfortable being humorous and in asking questions. Your version of self-expression is different from everyone else’s.
I offer some ways to assess your level of self-expression. In the tradition of my coaching, I extend a few questions for you to ponder. Feel free to write about them in your journal or engage in a discussion with a friend or your coach about them.
- Notice what stops you from expressing yourself.
- Where do you self-censor the most? (work/colleagues, your intimate partnership, friends, family, children, other)
- What is at stake if you speak up?
- What is lost or gained by self-censorship?
- If you were to be more self-expressed, where would you start?
- What permission do you need to remove the bonds of self-censorship?
I am not telling you to head out into the world with your voice as a wild gun, telling people off left and right. Speaking up requires thoughtfulness and courage. Go forward with an experimental mind.
Start small and be willing to make mistakes. As with any new endeavor, gauge your success on your efforts rather than results.
For instance, you may speak up at a meeting. You may not get the response you expected, or even be sure of the response. Beware of going home and saying, “No one said “anything when I spoke up so I failed. I won’t speak up again.”
If we are all able to speak up more authentically, then we are able to have real and true relationships with the people and situations in our lives. We will feel more satisfied and the world will benefit more greatly from our contribution.
Through coaching, I have worked with all of my clients to help them speak from their hearts for more peace and fulfillment. I work on this authentic self-expression every day, in my words and writing.
Have courage, speak up and let us know how it goes in a comment below.
13 Thoughts on Creative Business Success
The Starving Artist myth proliferates because it is often
accompanied by that other myth: creative people aren’t good at
business. With these ideas circulating, it’s easy to see how artists
struggle to succeed professionally.
But I don’t buy these myths. In fact, I believe that artists and creative people make the best business people. Here’s why.
Artists are experts in seeing the big picture.
They can hold an expansive point of view. This creative perspective,
this ability to see what isn’t there and to relish possibility, is key
to business success.
Good artists are adept at pinpointing the details.
A painter knows the difference between cobalt and azure, a writer uses
specifics to describe a character, and a sculptor’s strokes will make
all the difference in the end expression on a sculpture.
Artists and business people are willing to risk. There is no
guarantee in art, business, or life, but creative people take risks
every time they go into the studio. In fact, any art worth its salt
takes the artist and the viewer outside the realm of the known and
shows them something new.
Artists are able to dwell in the unknown. Art making is the
biggest adventure there is. If you do not know what you are creating,
if it will appeal to anyone, or if you will make any money at all,
you’re in good company with both artists and business people.
Business and art are fueled by a high level of passion. Any
advice on running a business will preach that you need to be passionate
to fuel the long stretches of challenging times. Artists thrive on
passion.
All of these characteristics give artists an edge over others in the
business realm. It’s great to be fueled by the knowledge that you do
have what it takes to succeed, and you also need to operate in a
business-like way to make it happen. Here are the keys to business
success that I have used and enjoyed.
Vision You have to want your creative success from a deep,
deep place. What is this about for you, anyway? Have a vision for
yourself and your business. Write a vision statement that springs from
your values and passion for your art.
Commitment In a business or art career, there will be plenty
of ups and downs. It’s important to have a solid commitment that you
can return to when times are tough. You will question this commitment
again and again, but if you have a clear sense of your commitment at
the beginning, the dips will be navigable. Write a mission statement
for how you will fulfill your vision.
Follow through. Most success can be attributed to those extra
actions we take – sending a thank-you note, making a call, going the
extra mile, or researching a tip. Follow through is a key factor in
being able to maximize opportunities, build connections and deliver on
your promises. It’s also a key to being perceived as professional and
on top of things.
Build authentic relationships. Do
business with people that you want to be around. You want to be able to
be yourself with your support team (accountant, banker, coach) and your
clients (gallery owners, editors, clients). Connect with people who
share similar values, interests and art forms. Some people say that
building relationships is the key to success, so become a master at
being a good human with others.
Maintain self-care practices. Making art and building a
business is a lot of work. There can be a lot of stress involved with
art and business, so having a stable personal life is key. Know your
needs and do what you can to get them met. Know what helps you release
stress. Make sure that you have play time, too, since it can be easy to
work all the time at your art business.
Perspective This is the secret weapon. Perspective is the
most powerful tool we have. How you see the world, yourself, and your
enterprise all have an enormous impact on how successful you will be.
If you can shift your perspective easily, you’ll have a much broader
range of options available to you in your art and business. Practice
noticing throughout the day what perspective you are operating from.
Does it feel good? Bad? In between? How does the perspective of any
moment contribute to your work?
Systems For business success, you’ll want systems for
operating your enterprise, for marketing your work, and for handling
all the money that comes your way. Contact systems, marketing systems,
bookkeeping systems, and ways to catalogue your art and record your
sales are all essential for a thriving business.
Support Without peer, professional or mentor support, running a business is very difficult. You need people to bounce ideas off, professional guidance to steer you on the right path (accountants, bookkeepers, legal counsel, etc) and peers who can help you stay connected to what’s happening in your industry.
If some of these essentials make the artist in you cringe, take that
as an opportunity to see where you could grow. I can’t think of any
other work that challenges us to grow more than art and business. If
you want to stay safe and unchanged, you’ll want to choose another
path. But why would you? Art and business are grand adventures!
I’ve been in business for over eight years. I didn’t start out to be
a businesswoman, but to survive, I became one, and I like it. Running a
business is one of the most satisfying and empowering ways to express
your creativity in the world. I love helping other creative people be
successful businesspeople. If you want to start a business or bring
your current business to the next level, contact me for coaching or
consulting.
Celebrating Your Creative Success
When you’ve hauled yourself over the line of your deadline, when you’ve gotten the news that your story has been accepted, when a gallery finally sees your brilliance and puts your work on the walls, it is time to celebrate.
Here is a list of creative, inexpensive and fun ways to celebrate your successes. (The full article about celebrating is in this week’s The Muse. What? Not a subscriber! Go to my home page and join the party!)
Write a love note to yourself outlining all your brilliant characteristics.
Treat yourself to a new notebook or pack of pens.
Visit the art supply store and buy a new brush, tube of paint, sheet of beautiful paper, or other creative treat.
Take a pause. Go to the park or other natural environment and allow the sights and sounds to rejuvenate your spirit.
Give yourself an afternoon in the library, museum or bookstore. Pick up ideas and inspiration for the next creative phase.
Call up a creative buddy and schedule a walk or coffee date. Trade acknowledgements of each other’s progress.
Make a list of all the things you have done for your creativity in the last six months. Give yourself gold stars for everything.
Reread a journal or free write notebook. Take stock of how far you have come and prepare for more.
Compile your victories in a portfolio or notebook. Use a three-ring binder with plastic sheets to protect your clips, reviews, articles about you or other kudos you get.
Ask your significant other or a friend to help you celebrate. Let them in on the fun.
Get tickets for a concert, reading or gallery or museum show opening. Connecting to others’ creative expression will feed your own.
Make notes about what you brought to bear on your creative life. Your persistence, your sense of humor, your willingness to listen to your instincts, all will help you in the next phase of the journey.
Plan a retreat – an afternoon, a day, a weekend, a week – in a nearby locale to fuel yourself.
Make a list of your own celebrations and rewards. When you hit a milestone, small or large, you’ll be ready to party on! How do you celebrate? Share your ideas here.