At Work – photo by Stanley Zimney

While creating our art, there is often alot of thought-chatter in our heads.  Some of these thoughts may be fresh, valuable ideas about directions to take our art.  Chances are, most of the chatter is negative and unpleasant.  This chat is likely full of doubt, self-recrimination, fear and perhaps hurtful words spoken by others at a particular time in your life.

These voices tell you you’re not good enough to be an artist.  They critique your art and warn you about going in the creative direction you’re going down to what strokes to paint, words to write and materials to use.

Which, if any, of these thought-voices do you listen to?  How do you choose what you will listen to?  How do you weaken the negative chatter? How do you resist it?

First, you keep creating your art.  You get on a regular schedule and even if you give it 5 minutes, you give it 5 minutes.  Nothing…..NOTHING substitutes for this.  If you talk about it, think about it, do “shadow” activities (writing the most eloquent FB post ever!) instead of creating, you feed fear and resistance.

With resistance strengthened, the next time you think about creating, it will be easier to put it off.  The next time you actually do create, there will be a thicker layer of pain to wade through before you are in flow with your art.  It will make you cry.

First, show up for your work.  Create.  No matter what.

Second, meditate.  Meditation has a powerful ability to quiet the mind for hours after you do it.  One of the benefits I notice is it makes thoughts shorter.  It makes them less thread-y and tenacious.

Find a practice you like and even if you give it 5 minutes, give it 5 minutes.  Every day.