Creative Abundance - a Blessing and a Curse

Being a creative person in business is so often a two-sided coin - we thrive on inspiring and being inspired, yet can often deal with so many ideas coming to us at once that it can be hard to cut through the noise and focus on just one idea at a time. The fear that if we don’t immediately act on artistic thought or endeavour that it will be gone, the moment lost, or worse yet that some else will take the idea forward before we have a chance to act. This sort of fear can be utterly paralysing, leaving us unable actualise one idea, let alone several.

Alternatively we spend months, years chasing one pursuit after another, never finding time to focus on one thing, to make it truly special and see it through from concept to end. The next idea always seeming bigger, brighter and more exciting. We yearn for that thrill of coming up with the something unique and incredible, something to wow our audiences and critics alike, but fail to do the hard work that sees it come to fruition. This leads to frustration and feelings of failure - the antithesis of what we imagined a creative career would be. We long for the fulfilment of seeing our dreams come t o life the way we first envisaged.

So how do we manage this overactive imagination, chase the ideas that will work and cut out the noise?

10 Ways to Calm your Inner Muse

1. Allow time to actually allow your mind to explore the infinite possibilities. The more we try to ignore our inner voices, often the louder they become. By allowing yourself time to explore an idea that comes to you, to properly give it due consideration, the quicker you will either know it is a path to follow, or one to leave unrealised.

2. Write everything down. Even the feeling of having committed an idea to paper, or have it stored somewhere safely can allow your mind to refocus on the things at hand. I have a secret Pinterest board of ideas, several (pretty!) notebooks, and an ‘Ideas Inbox’ - I email myself idea that I can return to at a later date when the timing is more suitable.

3. Ask a mentor or friend what they think of an idea - having someone voice their reactions to your proposal can be helpful (even if you don’t agree with them!).

4. Spend time with people that creatively spark your imagination in positive ways. Avoid spending time looking at competitors social media accounts, or those you are envious of artistically (even if it’s just for a short while).

5. Practice a form of mindfulness that you find helpful, it may be physical like yoga or going for a walk, or it could be stillness like colouring or reading.

6. Find ways to overcome the points in a project where you become disinterested or find it hard to move to the next step. We excuse our lack of completion of projects as being creative, but it is possible to overcome this and focus on completing projects. I find it helpful to visualise the finished project, how it will make my clients feel to have finished my course or received a photographic print, financial goals can also be highly motivating (eg paying for that trip abroad you’ve always craved, or that artist’s retreat you have longed to attend). Attaching real life outcomes can help you stay on track, rather than jumping to the next idea before the last one is complete.

7. Find an accountability partner - someone who will keep you on track and ensure you are meeting your milestones.

8. Make your workspace a calm environment that you enjoy being in - if you lack concentration ensuring there as few distractions as possible in your place of work can be highly effective.

9. Learn to trust your gut. Intuition is one of our greatest assets as artists, we all need to learn to trust ourselves more. If an idea feels right, days, weeks or months after the first thought, then it’s likely something you should pursue. If when you return to an idea it no longer feels as vital or exciting as it did in those first moments, it may well be time to let it go.

10. Avoid comparisonitis - don’t feel like you should pursue an idea just because someone else is doing something similar. What makes creative people successful is their own style, their own sense of self. Don’t lose your individuality.

Do you struggle with creative overwhelm? What are your top methods for fighting against it and creating a calmer mind?

If you find this a tricky area in your business that you’d like some support with, do get in touch below for a discovery call on how a programme of mentoring could help you.