One of our chief needs as creative beings is support…. Unfortunately, many artists never receive this critical encouragement [and become] caught between the dream of action and the fear of failure [there] shadow artists are born…. For all shadow artists, life may be a discontented experience, filled with a sense of missed purpose and unfilled promise.
Julia Cameron
Most of the time when are blocked in an area of our life, it is because we feel safer that way…. This is seldom a conscious decision. It is more often an unconscious response to internalized negative beliefs…. Negative beliefs are exactly that: beliefs, not facts.
Julia Cameron
This morning I reviewed my notes and The Artist’s Way chapter, Recovering a Sense of Safety. It was a way of reminding myself that my creative practice has always served as my way through my questions. ♥
This is a chapter focused on confronting [naming] and letting go of the negative thoughts and beliefs that we have internalized as a result of external influences:
- discouraged and unsupported
- criticized or made to feel small
- dismissed for creativity
- “You always have your head in the clouds.”
Remember that in order to recover as an artist, you must be willing to be a bad artist. Give yourself permission to be a beginner.
Julia Cameron
Finding a sense of safety can be the result of embracing our desire for creativity and practicing (try over and over) our art and creative choices.
Make your own recovery the first priority in your life.
Robin Norwood
Affirmations (which I prefer to refer to as “grounding statements”) are a foundational element of my creative practice. This can be as simple as a guiding word or simple phrase that sets (or redirects) my focus and energies.
Maybe it’s perpetual quest for stability; I want a ritual to hold on to, a recurring photo taken in the same spot every year, or maybe I’m trying to blot out old memories and replace them with happy ones.
Caitlin Metz
What does all of this have to do with planning?
Chronicling the details of our days is a way of understanding ourselves + mapping our desires. Tracking (and reviewing) our thoughts and routine activities reveals our beliefs and values — and helps us to discover our pace and rhythms.
Showing up for ourselves on the page along with setting aside time and space on a regular basis for both tangible and intangible processing is how we come to identify our desires + get clarity.
- Everything is an opportunity. Everything we have lived and loved, questioned and lost is a part of who we are.
And, Braveheart, there is enough time and space and energy for our dreams and desires, wishes and want-to’s (even when we doubt that enoughness).
Our dreams take time. Without some type of visual chronicle to serve as a “map” — as well as a reminder and directive — the timelines of our desires and experiences become jumbled. What matters most becomes forgotten and ignored.
Thank you kindly for your presence here, Braveheart.
I appreciate your interest and support.
~love & good wishes~
2024 Right Brain Planner® Kit | field notes | Right Brain Planner® FAQ
2024 Right Brain Planner® Kit [Theme] Kaleidoscope Perspectives ✨ [Focus] — Noticing Beauty (within the kaleidoscope of your living: the ongoing, ever-changing “formations” of color and meaning)
❤️ Braveheart, as the Creator/Artist of Right Brain Planner® I am ever-grateful to have the opportunity to share my creative work online + support other creators! 🎉
- This is possible, in part, by {you} and your presence here. But also because of the support of my Ko-fi patrons and the other other member/subscriber communities I host (via their presence, input and paid subscriptions).