i feel this at the moment because i have to organise a filmed live session of me playing my songs with a band and i have so much resistance to it. like, i DO NOT WANT TO DO IT for various reasons (all the reasons pointing towards 'what if i'm not good enough? what if it just sucks?'). i scheduled in a thing with a bunch of people in a studio but i cancelled it last week because i just don't feel inspired or ready to make it. am i just waiting for inspiration to strike? yes. is this a bad idea? maybe. let's see how it goes!
when i get stuck i often take a step back. i let myself focus on things that i wanna focus on, even if it seems like something stupid and completely unrelated to what i wanna do. like, making little bracelets. or getting really into a new band. or going to wrestling shows. you need to fill the well with RANDOM STUFF in order to process it, add new ideas, and come up with something new.
and i am doing good thanks! summer sucked in various ways and to be honest i got a new lease of life on september 1st but also i started to use Google Calendar properly and i feel like a new woman, but also slightly crazed because i think i went a bit mental on the ol' productivity on the last 2 days. how are yoouuuuuuuuu and what's your hot take on brat summer finally being over and will BAT autumn replace it?
Thanks for the Sublime link! It's perfect to deal with all the screenshots and snippets I've been collecting in 10 different places and never revisiting.
When I'm stuck, usually overwhelmed by where to start on something, I pick something tiny and bounded in the same skill. eg
writing: fill a notebook page with a brain dump on anything. Could be 'I don't know' written 100 times but just fill the page with something. Often I end up at a starting point for what I'm actually working on.
Incidentally applies to other areas too. Don't wanna clean? Tidy one shelf.
And if that doesn't work, I still did something, so a net positive. Admittedly, it's been easier to do this practice since being forced to rest due to the burnout caused by a lifetime of 'just do the thing'. I encourage anyone still in that mindset to do everything they can to step back and rest, before having no choice in the matter!
I’m listening to AI read your newsletter and, as tears stream down my face, it’s just what I needed to hear!* I’d spent the afternoon going over the fine points of my publishing contract, which made me less than inspired to actually do any writing. So I took a 20-minute power nap. And you know what? Inspiration struck in that half dream state. The material I was “struck” writing became clear! (Because I stepped away? Because my brain needed a “rest and reset” moment?) whatever it was, you are correct. We do not need to justify our rest. But isn’t perfect when rest proves just what we need?
*I’m prepping dinner while listening to your newsletter on 1.2x speed 😂 the nap did help me figure out what I wanted to work on, and I started to draft a little bit before the stomach started to growl. If only I had Batman‘s staff to make dinner for me. I could still be writing instead of tearing up over sliced onions.
'Then do it scared' is fantastic! ! I love that! (also, some philosopher dude back in the toga days said that you can't be scared by what you don't know, not even death because when you die you don't feel anymore so you literally cannot be scared then)
Loved this! I feel like this moodboard should be made into a wallpaper for my living room. Or maybe I should just paint all these words on the walls??
I find that getting a hot drink and a snack at a cafe close by helps. Or a walk and writing on the go. Someone told me I should record my thoughts when I can’t write and then retranscrive the audio, I haven’t tried this yet but I liked the idea! This seemed somewhat easier than sitting down to organise the said thoughts while they’re thinking. But also, I haven’t actually tried it yet, so who knows!
So timely, as I'm over here wrestling with many creative paths and little time to execute on any of them! When you slow down and embrace the idea that living a life is a creative act and source of inspiration, creative "work" becomes less *something you do* and more *who you are and how you show up in the world* 💙
god that austin kleon quote goes so hard
I still feel very stuck. Sometimes I do t even know what to do even while scared.
Feeling more inspired but physically worn out from stress
i feel this at the moment because i have to organise a filmed live session of me playing my songs with a band and i have so much resistance to it. like, i DO NOT WANT TO DO IT for various reasons (all the reasons pointing towards 'what if i'm not good enough? what if it just sucks?'). i scheduled in a thing with a bunch of people in a studio but i cancelled it last week because i just don't feel inspired or ready to make it. am i just waiting for inspiration to strike? yes. is this a bad idea? maybe. let's see how it goes!
when i get stuck i often take a step back. i let myself focus on things that i wanna focus on, even if it seems like something stupid and completely unrelated to what i wanna do. like, making little bracelets. or getting really into a new band. or going to wrestling shows. you need to fill the well with RANDOM STUFF in order to process it, add new ideas, and come up with something new.
and i am doing good thanks! summer sucked in various ways and to be honest i got a new lease of life on september 1st but also i started to use Google Calendar properly and i feel like a new woman, but also slightly crazed because i think i went a bit mental on the ol' productivity on the last 2 days. how are yoouuuuuuuuu and what's your hot take on brat summer finally being over and will BAT autumn replace it?
Totally agree with doing the random stuff inbetween! It's like the glue around the big stuff
Surely I'm not the only one who saw the moodboard and thought "this is just Tumblr"
Thanks for the Sublime link! It's perfect to deal with all the screenshots and snippets I've been collecting in 10 different places and never revisiting.
When I'm stuck, usually overwhelmed by where to start on something, I pick something tiny and bounded in the same skill. eg
writing: fill a notebook page with a brain dump on anything. Could be 'I don't know' written 100 times but just fill the page with something. Often I end up at a starting point for what I'm actually working on.
Incidentally applies to other areas too. Don't wanna clean? Tidy one shelf.
And if that doesn't work, I still did something, so a net positive. Admittedly, it's been easier to do this practice since being forced to rest due to the burnout caused by a lifetime of 'just do the thing'. I encourage anyone still in that mindset to do everything they can to step back and rest, before having no choice in the matter!
Can I help you with this .
Ok, I needed the heck outta this
I’m listening to AI read your newsletter and, as tears stream down my face, it’s just what I needed to hear!* I’d spent the afternoon going over the fine points of my publishing contract, which made me less than inspired to actually do any writing. So I took a 20-minute power nap. And you know what? Inspiration struck in that half dream state. The material I was “struck” writing became clear! (Because I stepped away? Because my brain needed a “rest and reset” moment?) whatever it was, you are correct. We do not need to justify our rest. But isn’t perfect when rest proves just what we need?
*I’m prepping dinner while listening to your newsletter on 1.2x speed 😂 the nap did help me figure out what I wanted to work on, and I started to draft a little bit before the stomach started to growl. If only I had Batman‘s staff to make dinner for me. I could still be writing instead of tearing up over sliced onions.
'Then do it scared' is fantastic! ! I love that! (also, some philosopher dude back in the toga days said that you can't be scared by what you don't know, not even death because when you die you don't feel anymore so you literally cannot be scared then)
somewhat off topic but I literally love the concept of sublime!! so excited to use it!
Loved this! I feel like this moodboard should be made into a wallpaper for my living room. Or maybe I should just paint all these words on the walls??
I find that getting a hot drink and a snack at a cafe close by helps. Or a walk and writing on the go. Someone told me I should record my thoughts when I can’t write and then retranscrive the audio, I haven’t tried this yet but I liked the idea! This seemed somewhat easier than sitting down to organise the said thoughts while they’re thinking. But also, I haven’t actually tried it yet, so who knows!
Thanks for writing and sharing this 😊
So timely, as I'm over here wrestling with many creative paths and little time to execute on any of them! When you slow down and embrace the idea that living a life is a creative act and source of inspiration, creative "work" becomes less *something you do* and more *who you are and how you show up in the world* 💙