My Creative Routine
“To see beyond what others see, we need time away from tasks so that we can imagine. ”
Creatives are the world changers. We take horrible things and shine light on the beauty that comes from them.
We design things that make others' lives easier and more enjoyable. Our work evokes positive emotions in an otherwise lackluster world.
The world needs us.
To see beyond what others see, we need time away from tasks so that we can imagine.
If you are a Creative and have felt uninspired or frustrated, think about restructuring your daily routine to allow your vision to flow more freely.
I'm going to share with you my creative routine, and I hope this article will give you a few ideas to incorporate into your day.
Three are three parts to creating something meaningful:
Asking. Looking at pain and problems.
Receiving. Receiving answers and solutions.
Doing. Putting hands on the project and making it happen.
Asking
I am intensely curious and cerebral, always pondering. I spend a lot of time trying to figure things out, solve problems--seeing the Truth about a matter after lifting the veil of the drama.
My mind is an incubator. It looks like not much is going on, but you can be sure that the quieter I am, the more I am hatching something big.
The period of asking is mentally taxing, and I believe this is where Creatives get stuck. From my vantage point, we've spent far too much time in the asking part of life. Inspiration needs space and time, and plenty of it.
Receiving
The next step is to empty our minds of problems to receive inspiration. Your emotions will guide you on how much time you need in quiet. The more negative you feel, the more time you need to get soft and receive inspiration.
Some artists need days to regroup in this manner.
I do this with naps, drives in my car, meditation, mindfulness--many things that altogether remove my mind from thought to receive fresh ideas.
My husband has learned to respect my quirky routine. Fortunately, he sees and values the quiet I need. So instead of wondering where I've disappeared to in the early afternoon, he looks at the closed bedroom door and understands I'll emerge soon refreshed.
Many of my artist friends prefer the quiet of night to imagine--they are inspired to create when the "normal" world sleeps at night.
Then there is the interactional artist. These Creatives refill with conversations and people interaction. My husband is this way. I've come to respect his need for conversation and human interaction, even though it would be counter-productive for me.
Doing
Though writing is not my only creative outlet, I have developed a specific routine around it. Here it is:
I wake up before everyone else, pour a cup of coffee, and sit on my couch with my very best friend, my Mac laptop.
When I'm in this creative mode, it seems like all the things I've put in my curiosity bank come together. Then, finally, all the ideas and problems flow together into a solution.
My articles are written directly in Grammarly. However, when I am writing a book, I use Scrivener.
New writers often put too much pressure on themselves to write well their first draft. But the process of writing is first to get your ideas on paper. Everything else is about rearranging sentences and paragraphs to make it flow better. And also to find better words to express meaning.
As a designer and Instagram influencer, it's important to add aesthetic beauty and color with images. So somewhere before my final draft, I go to Canva and create the graphics.
Next, I publish my article on LinkedIn, then my blog. And then to other social media sites.
This process takes me about three hours each day, but it took some time to develop a streamlined routine.
We each have unique activities that reinvigorate us. So take some time to think through which routines will send more positive vibes through your soul. Because the world needs you, now more than ever.
Tami Green is a compassionate disrupter. She is an artist, writer, and life coach. She is currently reimagining old homes, fixing them up, and giving them back to the world to enjoy. You can contact her here.
