I’ve been honored to be a guest on several cool podcasts in recent months, and I plan to share them with you here on the Original Impulse salon.
My pal and creative collaborator Cory Huff invited me to his Creative Insurgents video podcast last fall. We’d met up in Paris for pizza and he asked me to be a guest for him. This is one of my favorite interviews because Cory, founder of The Abundant Artist, was able to see how all of my diverse interests and talents combine in a cool way. I love that!
Don’t mind how scary we look in the screenshot here; we’re both really warm and lovely.
Show notes from Cory:
:47 – Cory introduces Cynthia Morris, artist, writer, writing coach, and fabulous dancer (you’re too kind, Cory!)
1:20 – Cynthia shows off her art journals a little bit and shows how she got started with them. She also mentions some resources from Frederick Frank, including Zen Seeing, Zen Drawing and Art As A Way.
5:20 – how visual thinkers can quickly capture ideas and thoughts in a visual format instead of journaling or note taking
11:00 – Cynthia and Cory discuss the fact that even artists who are very experienced feel insecure or are unaware of how good they are at their art. Cynthia talks about putting your head down and building up chops.
15:00 – Cynthia shares her tips on how to finish a book or other long-term projects. She emphasizes the importance of understanding that big projects really take something from you, and you have to strategize on how to deal with that beforehand.
20:00 – Cory & Cynthia both talk about dealing with self-doubt and how to face that kind of fear
21:00 – Cynthia talks about how her dancing videos help her filter out people who are not a good fit for working with her
25:00 – Cynthia talks about what it means to live a creative life on your own terms
Enjoy! I’d love to know if this interview sparked any new ideas or practices for you. Please tell us in a comment below. And maybe dance a little!
Creativity
100 Day Project: I accept the challenge
I’m excited to embark on the 100 Day Project hosted by Elle Luna and featured on The Great Discontent. Check out the video to find out what I’m going to make for 100 days!
Are you doing the 100 Day Project? Let us know in the comments below. And if you’re not doing it, dream a little. What would you do for 100 days if you were going to do something wacky like this?
Creative Accountability Monday
Happy Monday, Creative Dynamos!
Let’s start the week off right, shall we? With a bit of support for our creative challenges, because we’re in this together!
Share in a comment below ONE thing you will do this week in your creative realm. Something that you need a nudge for. Something a bit daunting.
Whether you’re a photographer, painter, sculptor, writer…any kind of artist. I’ll help hold you accountable this week to doing something you really want to do.
For my part, I am committed to return to making regular videos. I want to do this, yet it keeps getting pushed to the back burner. I commit to making and posting a video by this Friday. There. I said it, publicly. GULP!
What one thing will you do? And when you do it, will you return here to add another comment and perhaps a link?
Forget goals; invest in practices for creative satisfaction
How do you get everything done? Writing, art making, coaching, teaching – just a few of the roles I juggle. I’m sure you’ve got as many or more roles you play. We’re all trying to squeeze more into every day. How do I get things done?
It’s a constant adjustment process of my work flow. In fact, it’s the problem we seek to solve at Original Impulse: how do we get our best creative work done despite everything that conspires against us?
I’m always looking for the right combination to fend off distraction, OPA and decision swirl. I want to focus on things that matter to me, that challenge me, and that serve to inspire others’ creative dynamism.
So, rather than set big goals for 2015, I’m trying a new schedule. My hope is that new structure makes it easier to do what I love. Here’s what I’m experimenting with: [Read more…] about Forget goals; invest in practices for creative satisfaction
Writing accountability: What is your creative edge for 2015?
I’m sure you’ve got your word of the year. Goody. It’s nice to have a guiding principle.
Now, what are you going to make happen in 2015?
I’ve seen that we glean the most satisfaction and actualization when we specify a creative edge for the year. When we dedicate ourselves to a very specific phase of the creative process and dig down deep.
Look at the following four creative edges in the writing process below. If you were to focus on one, which would give you the most satisfaction this year? [Read more…] about Writing accountability: What is your creative edge for 2015?
Creative People: Are You Clinging to an Asset That's Really a Liability?
By Cynthia Morris
Recently, I was with a group of creative adventurers, and we were sharing our dreams with each other. One person’s story showed me the truth of something I’d suspected for a long time: what we consider an asset is actually a liability. Here’s what I mean.
As he described one project idea after another, I clearly saw his energy drain away from him. A film, a book, a new business, blog ideas…all these great ideas buzzed around his head. We listened and I know I wasn’t the only one who was initially excited, then drained by all the possibility.
He confessed that he wasn’t making satisfying progress with any of his ideas. Yet he still clung to the notion that having all these ideas was a good thing.
It struck me like a gong and I had to speak. “Your wealth of ideas is actually a liability,” I said. “Thinking that an abundance of inspiration is a good thing is actually holding you back.”
An abundance of ideas is only an asset if you consistently make and ship them.
No one wants to hear this. We love or precious and brilliant notions. You’ve probably said, “If only I could be paid for all my great ideas!”
But here’s the truth: ideas by themselves are worthless. The thing that makes a creative idea valuable is the sweat and tears and work that goes into making it real. Our creative ideas are nothing without the commitment and labor we bring to them.
Here’s where the true gold lies: our creative projects work us. Your great ideas are not going to make you happy perched in the attic of your imagination.
No. Your idea is going to make you happy because it’s going to demand the best that you’ve got to give and more. Because once your great idea is an actual reality, you’re going to be a different person. A better person.
This is why I spend my precious life coaching people to create their great work: we’re given these great ideas not so we can get our jollies from looking at them and talking about them. We’re given these flights of imagination so we can get on board, one idea after another, and pilot our way to best selves through the work they demand from us.
If you’re guilty of hoarding your ideas as a precious asset, drop it. Instead, commit to one asset at a time and build true creative wealth.
How about you? Have you turned the corner from thinking of your ideas as an asset only if you execute on them? I’d love to hear what you think about this. Please comment below.
Get Ready to Feel More Sane and Creatively Rich
I got a lot of great feedback from this article I posted in last week’s Impulses, my private newsletter for creative dynamos. (Not a subscriber? Get in here, you! Sign up over there to the right.)
One simple practice has become one of my best allies for work and creative satisfaction. In all the years I’ve been coaching creative people, I’ve learned that bringing this simple yet vital missing piece makes all the difference.
What’s the trick? It’s a little bit of space/time on a regular basis.
Raise your hand if you pack your days with more than you can actually handle. Don’t worry, I won’t judge. I call this misplaced optimism. Given our exuberant natures, we want to do so much. We think we can squeeze one more thing in between tasks.
But this doesn’t work so well, does it? We end up feeling rushed and scattered and often late.
I propose something else: take time back by giving yourself 15 minutes a day for something that actually fuels you. Some possibilities for fifteen minute pauses:
- meditate to start the day or as a transition between activities
- play with your art supplies, sketching, coloring or collaging
- visualize what you want to manifest, either in your mind or on paper
- leave early so you don’t rush and arrive like the richest person in the world – with time to spare
- spend some time in nature, even if it’s just with a houseplant
- free write on your current state of mind or on a project you’re working on.
I’ve found answers, insights, calm, contentedness and more in these fifteen minutes.
You may be shaking your head, oh, no, I don’t have fifteen extra minutes. But if you can’t slow down a bit every day, what are you missing? What are you avoiding?
I assert we don’t have to be constantly running and going and doing. If you are an artist or writer or entrepreneur, it’s ESSENTIAL to take space. If you’re like me, you know that when we have space, our best ideas can bloom. And we feel more sane and creatively abundant.
Do you do this practice or a similar one? Leave a comment below and let us know how this impacts your happiness and creativity.
Yes! I Respect!
We’ve made countless dates and I stand you up every time. Sometimes I bother with a lame excuse – I had to do the laundry, or I got engrossed in online surfing – and sometimes I don’t even give a reason. I rarely apologize and yet I insist that our relationship is important. And then I do it again. I blow you off.
With good reason, you’re not so happy with me. Sometimes you even tell me off. I’m afraid that you will abandon me altogether and find people who show you respect.
Is this how your relationship with your creativity looks? Might your Muse feel disrespected and abandoned?
I sincerely hope not. I hope you’re heeding the call to create and showing up consistently to practice, play and finish your creative projects. If so, you can stop reading and head back to your writing or art making.
It’s time to live like you respect your creative impulses. Say YES to your creativity and build trust and self-respect. And be a lot happier. If you’re feeling guilty about the lack of respect you’ve shown your Muse, read on.
Six ways to say yes and repair your relationship with your Muse
Yes to creating first. You have a lot of other obligations. Try creating first and see how it fuels your relationships with yourself and others, your work, your other pursuits. If your other relationships are based on respect, your loved ones will be happy that you’re creating.
Yes to prioritizing. Recognize where creating stands on your list of priorities and honor that. Your priority list may look like this: family, health, writing. Honor the place writing has in your life by making time to write and then filling that time in with nothing other than writing – not researching, not talking about writing.
Yes to focus. Create muscular goals. Muscular goals challenge you to your edge. They give heft to the impulse and commitment to create and help you to move past obstacles.
Yes to progress. Respect all and any minor or major accomplishments. This is vital to building trust and momentum for your art making. We often gloss over our achievements and focus on what isn’t happening. Respect your progress and let it fuel more creating.
Yes to completing. Respect your ideas by following them through to their natural end. This will mean different things for different people and different projects.
Yes to confidence. Enjoy the confidence you build in yourself by respecting your creative impulses.
If you’re not feeling the love between you and your Muse, try saying yes more. You’ll both be happier!
How else do you show respect for your creative life? Share your respect in a comment below.
Video Book Review: Daily Rituals: How Artists Work by Mason Currey
I’ve been reading a ton of great books lately, and this summer I’ll share what I’ve gleaned from the creativity books I love to consume.
This week’s video review: Daily Rituals: How Artists Work by Mason Currey.
One line review summary: Read this book for entertainment, not for how-to advice.
I’m giving away a copy of this adorable and entertaining book. Simply tell us about a daily ritual that you do that helps you be more creatively satisfied.
Leave a comment here at the Original Impulse blog by Friday, June 21st at noon MT to be entered into a drawing to win.
Come out and Play This Summer!
If you’re like me, summer is your favorite season. You relish the chance to play outside more. To eat farm-fresh produce. To lie under a tree relaxing.
You want to make the most of summer. So do I. One of the ways I do that is to capture the wonders of my world in my illustrated journal. I’ve been doing this for years, and almost everyone who sees my journals says, “I want that.”
That = creative expression. That = play and messiness. That = having a colorful, vibrant record of your life. That = a way to play more and feel more creative.
Let’s make this your best summer ever, shall we? Join me to play my Capture the Wow Summer Scavenger Hunt.
You’ll love this scavenger hunt game that pulls you toward what you love and pushes you – gently – past the inclination to sit on the sidelines and let your summer fun pass you by.
All the Beauty and Magic Is Here…
The best speaker at the 99U conference earlier this month, hands down, was Jane ni Dhulchaointigh, founder of Sugru.
Perhaps I should say hands up, because she was the only speaker to incite a standing ovation.
Jane said a lot of things I captured during my New York week but this was the best. Her process of creating Sugru was a long and arduous one. Jane reminded us to relish that process.
If you want to relish your daily life a bit more, and perhaps even have a lot more fun doing so, stay tuned. Tomorrow I will publicly launch my mission to help you have your most fun, creative summer ever.
For now, look for the beauty and magic in your process.
P.S. If you want to learn how to spell a long or difficult word or name, just do a hand lettered sign. I can spell Jane’s name now!
What Helps You Make Your Creative Mark: Interview with Author Eric Maisel
An Interview with Eric Maisel
Eric Maisel is the author of Making Your Creative Mark and twenty other creativity titles including Mastering Creative Anxiety, Brainstorm, and Creativity for Life.
Eric coaches individuals and trains creativity coaches through workshops and keynotes nationally and internationally. Visit him online at http://www.ericmaisel.com.
I’d like to know more about what you call the “freedom key.” What sort of freedom are you talking about?
Many different sorts—let’s look at just one, the freedom not be perfect; or, to put it slightly differently, the freedom to make big mistakes and messes. Not so long ago I got an email from a painter in Rhode Island.
She wrote, “I’m a perfectionist and I want my artwork to be perfect. Sometimes this prevents me from getting started on a new project or from finishing the one I’m currently working on. I think to myself: If it’s not going to be the best, why bother to do it? How do I move past these feelings?”
One way to get out of this trap is to move from a purely intellectual understanding that messes are part of the creative process to a genuine visceral understanding of that truth. You need to feel that freedom in your body. As an intellectual matter, every artist knows that some percentage of her work will prove less than stellar, especially if she is taking risks with subject matter or technique.
But accepting that obvious truth on a feeling level eludes far too many creative and would-be creative people. They want to “perfect” things in their head before turning to the canvas or the computer screen and a result they stay in their head and never get started. You have to feel free to show up and make a big mess—only then will good things start happening!
Another key that interested me is what you call the “relationship key.” What sorts of relationships did you have in mind and what can an artist do to improve his relationship skills?
All sorts of relationships! And relationships in the arts are frequently very complicated. You may be very friendly with a fellow painter and also quite envious of her. You may actively dislike a gallery owner or a collector but decide that he is too valuable to cast aside, maybe because he is your only advocate or your only customer. You may respect your editor’s opinions but despise the rudeness with which she delivers them.
There may be no such thing as a genuinely straightforward relationship anywhere in life but relationships in the arts are that much more complicated and shadowy. The main improvement an artist can make is to actually think about the matter!
You can decide how you want to be in relationships but only if you actively decide. You get to decide if you want to be honest and straightforward even if others aren’t, if you want to be polite and diplomatic even if others aren’t, if you want to be quiet and calm even if others are stirring the pot and making dramas.
It may not prove easy to be the person you want to be at all times and in all situations, especially since the marketplace has a way of throwing us off our game, but you can nevertheless hold the intention to try your darnedest to be the “you” you would most like to be. This takes thought and preparation!
Thanks, Eric, for sharing gems from your book with us!
How to write books and articles more quickly
All of my clients bump up against the frustration of how long it takes to write. Because we can access and send things at lightning speed, we think we should be able to write and create that quickly. But writing remains a slow process. Especially a book: this requires deep thinking and space to hash out and develop our ideas.
I think what you’re looking for is more efficiency so you can make the most of your writing time. You can set yourself up to write more efficiently. The main work is knowing your own style and systems and sticking to them without wavering.
Here are seven suggestions for feeling like you are mapping and writing with more efficiency and momentum: [Read more…] about How to write books and articles more quickly
My Secret Sauce for Creative Success
I’m as nutty as the next creative person – lots of ideas, interest in a variety of mediums, a preference for play over work.
So why have I been able to consistently start, finish and launch e-books, books, classes and programs? How do I make time for the creative adventures that are fun for me and continue to work?
The short answer: I became a coach and that forced me to the finish line in two ways:
1. I learned productivity and time management skills, and tweaked them to work with my creative ‘insanity’. I kept training myself to do things I didn’t want to do so I could have time to work on projects that matter to me.
2. I dug into my value of integrity; if I was going to help other people be creatively successful, I better walk the talk.
But the long answer? I discovered and held to my three F secret sauce: focus, follow through and finish.
Focus
Every year, I decide what my focus for the year is. This year, it’s making and showing my art, and developing my personal practices in order to have a life outside my business.
Every month, I make a map of the projects I am working on that month. I set deadlines and drive myself toward them.
Every week and every day I force myself to focus on what matters to me and the people I serve. This isn’t easy, but I am committed to refining my work and my life. I’m always learning and that’s why I invest in coaching and programs like The Good Life Project.
Follow through
Like most creative superheroes, I receive a daily stream of new! exciting! different! paths I could follow.
It’s so frickin’ hard to ignore the thrill of these new things. Every day I leap like a trout at small flies that hover on the surface of my idea stream.
But I’ve learned that I’m only allowed to add new things if I am still able to follow through on my current projects.
The main way I am able to follow through is to be accountable to someone else. I use my mastermind partnerships to stay on track.
Finish
Because I’m not able to start new things until I finish current projects, I am motivated to complete things. I also know that great ideas have a shelf life and if I don’t get it out into the world, the idea will wither or someone else will do it. Which would stink.
It’s not easy to drive projects across the finish line. But the more I do it, the more trust I build that I can finish important creative work.
That’s it. This is how I stay on the right side of the nutty line and don’t veer into ‘flaky’ territory. This is what I help my clients do: focus on what matters to them, guide them to follow through on things that will get them where they want to go, and keep them on track to finish their best work.
That’s my secret sauce. Don’t get me wrong; I still struggle with all the same issues we all face in the adventure of living our best creative selves. But I find that this mantra or policy really helps me stay on track so I feel more successful as a creative person.
What’s your method for staying on track to ensure your creative success? Tell us in a comment below, and if there’s someone in your life who might benefit from this simple formula, for goodness sake, share this with them!
Artists and writers: drop the confusion and define your own labels
At an art gallery, I squirm when the owner asks if I’m an artist. After hesitating, I finally say no. But I’m not convincing myself or her, and my hesitation just confuses everyone.
Have you found yourself unable to claim ‘artist’ ‘writer’ or ‘photographer’ even though you write, make art and take photos on a regular, if not daily basis?
I coach a lot of beginning writers who struggle with calling themselves writers. I tell them, if you write, you’re a writer. But it’s not as simple as that.
There are two sides that make it a sticky issue for people to claim what they are: the artist or writer herself and the person on the other side. And the assumptions others make based on what we call ourselves.
It’s the gap between your label and their label that causes us to disown ourselves. Even when we work regularly on our art and make money at it, we squirm.
Decide who defines you
In our culture – I’m speaking of the Western culture of capitalism, the labels we give ourselves imply a monetary component. If we say we’re a writer or an artist, the implication is we make money doing so.
But that may not be the defining factor for the creative person. I make art every day. I do this because I like it and because I am trying to improve. Doing art improves the quality of my life as well as my art making skills.
I have made money from selling my art. But that’s not my primary goal now, and I’m not sure if it will ever be.
Am I am artist?
I write every day, and publish my writing on this blog and elsewhere. I write to get my ideas about the creative process into the world. I write to help others.
Writing made up 19% of my income last year.
Am I a writer?
I have no problem calling myself a writer or an artist – to myself. It’s speaking this to others that brings complications and assumptions.
Let’s stop the squirming about how we label ourselves. Here’s how:
1. You decide what criteria you will use to determine if you can own the label ‘writer’ or ‘artist’.
2. You decide whether you want to have conversations with strangers about your work. You decide whether you want to open yourself to their labels and assumptions.
If you have a hard time claiming a label for yourself, consider what is important about calling yourself writer or artist. Consider if it’s a label you need to claim privately or publicly.
What are your criteria for the labels you affix to yourself? How do you deal with others’ assumptions? Share with us below what works for you, and be sure to pass this article to your friends who struggle with this.