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.
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