One of the things I love about teaching is that it keeps my mind fully engaged with what I’m talking about and trying to share with other people. Something that comes up often in classes is how connected or disconnected people feel from their own creativity. On occasion, people have asked if I could offer prompts to help keep momentum going and I do it for a while, but then forget over time (same thing with working out! there must be something to unpack there). This is my attempt to not let such a request fall by the wayside.

Here’s how it will work (this is my fantasy as of now- keep me honest if slack!):

• On the first of each month, I’ll offer some thought, idea, inspiration that is centered on summoning energy from the bottomless creative well we all have within us. I’m thinking monthly because honestly, we need time to let ideas steep and take hold, let alone play with the ideas in an effort of making/creating.
• Some months will have insights from others who tend to their creative landscape, some will be my own thoughts, some will address those pesky things that can get in the way of efforts such as these.
• These will never be over-complicated or expensive suggestions.
• I’ll continue this for as long as there is something useful to say.
• Welcomed: if you have things you do that keep your creative life energized and flowing, and you’d like to participate in the conversation, please write, comment, share! I love co-creating efforts to lift the veil off our own artistry.
• Suggestion & Request: if you are into this idea and want to make sure not to miss one, follow this here blog! My goal is to get out a new summoning each month. And, share this with others who you think might be interested! (at the bottom of each page on this site there is a place to subscribe).

Summoning Creativity #1

These are two suggestions I’ve used in my classes and I wanted to share them here. Hope you enjoy them!

1. Make a List– make a list of 25 things that you love. Leave the list in a place where you will continue to see it and let it work on you. Are there things on your list that nudge you a little? Or pull you a little bit? Just notice what happens as you spend time with your list, imagining these loved things. Don’t overcomplicate this. It could be a color. A smell. A temperature or moisture level of the air… just tune in. Then, move towards…

2. Nurture Your Inner Judge~ aka the fear-monger– most of us have a “voice” that pops up and tells us things when we are in new territory, especially when we feel vulnerable, exposed, frustrated… I read something a while ago that really resonated with me, and it was this: our inner critic is trying to protect us from harm. When it senses we are stepping out of our comfort zone, it tries to reel us back in because it doesn’t want us to experience something that is painful, scary, or embarrassing. Chances are, this fear-monger showed up for us when we were little, and it had an important job to do. The thing about this judgy fear-monger is, it doesn’t know when to stop. And I wonder if it doesn’t know what to do with itself when it sees us taking steps into new terrain. It reminds me of how I’ve felt when my kids tried new things like skateboarding, snowboarding, etc. Inside I wished they’d just stay safe and not put themselves in harm’s way. Every part of me wanted to keep yelling, “Be careful! Slow down! STOP!!!” So I had to work on dealing with my own fear while helping them know how to responsibly do the things they want to do. This is how I think about my own inner judge. 

Now, when I hear my inner judge piping-up, I address it directly. I let it know, “we are safe and I’m just playing. Nothing bad will happen, even if what I’m making doesn’t turn out how I want it to.” I let it know that it can join me in the play and sometimes, if I remember, I thank it for trying to protect me, but that it doesn’t need to at the moment. It also doesn’t need to be banished. It can be reshaped into something more gentle. That’s when I find myself thinking about vulnerability and creativity, and where they intersect. 

For this prompt, I just ask for you to notice your fear-monger. What does it say? How have you dealt with it so far? Can you invite it to relax and look around, and see that it’s safe to explore and play?

Until next time… bradie