Go with the Flow

what you need to know

Back in September, I wrote this post about the importance of getting and staying in creative flow.

I talked about the need to be the river, be in constant and powerful flow, and the benefits it brings, but I didn’t give much advice on how to do that. I failed to give you my 10 tried and true, tested, and workable tips on how to get, stay, and thrive by being the river, aka, being in flow.

So here’s how: Try any and all. Better yet, give them all enough time, and they’ll become a habit—a good habit. The more you do, the deeper your flow and the further you’ll go.

    1. Trick Yourself  – If you think you have no time for your creative passion, tell yourself you’ll fool around with it for 5 minutes. It could be organizing your creative space, painting a background, or even tearing inspiration from a magazine. Once you have begun, you’ll get hooked, the endorphins and adrenalin will flow, and you end up with the energy to work much longer than those 5 minutes you committed yourself to. Easy to be the river if you’re already wet.

    2. Keep Many Projects Going - Different projects call for different tasks at different times. If there are always a few things to work on, you can find time for them: 5 minutes to apply another coat of medium, 10 minutes to glue down the background, or 15 minutes to weed the garden or knead the dough.

    3. Leave It Out - Don’t put your project away. Find a place to leave it out where you can see it, even if it’s in a see-through box. Just step right up. This will not only allow your mind to work on it visually and keep you in flow, but it will also be easy to dive back in and get right to work.

    4. Always Leave Something To Do – If you finish a project in your block of time, you will then have to face the hurdle of starting something new. Starting is the hardest part. The temptation is to put it off and not start. Instead, leave the last bit for the next time so that you will be eager to return to it, stay in flow, and start another.

    5. Create Where You Spend Time -Finding time during your busy day can be challenging. It can take effort and discipline to go to a separate room for your creative time. Bring your art into the places you spend all your time—the kitchen, the family room, your car, or your bed. If your work is where you spend your time, it’s easier to stay in flow.

    6. Take Advantage of Other Time – Staying in flow, being the river, isn’t all hands-on creative activity. Use the time you spend driving, cooking, doing laundry, etc., to dream up, design, and develop new ideas so that when your hands are free, you can dive right in.

    7. Fill Your Head – Read, look at art books or magazines. Fill your head with inspiration so that when you have the time to create you have the desire and ideas. Even a shopping trip can be a design lesson. If your head and heart are filled with art it will eventually burst out into your creations. There’s both a mental and physical state of flow.

    8. Go to Bed Happy – If your free time doesn’t come until the end of the day when you are exhausted, there’s still time for flow. Drag yourself over to your work and get going (see #1). Journal. Read about topics, people, and activities that inspire you. When you connect to your passion in even the smallest way, you don’t go to bed feeling disappointed or down on yourself for being lazy or not pursuing your dreams. That good feeling will flow into the next day.

    9. Stay Away from Flow Stoppers – Don’t listen to or spend time with people who don’t understand or appreciate why you would rather work on your art than go shopping or to a movie. Especially avoid people that put you down or make you feel inadequate. They are the dam to your flow.

10. GetWet - If looking at other peoples’ art in your favorite magazine, Pinterest, Instagram, or anywhere online makes you feel depressed, it’s because they’re doing it and you’re not. They’re swimming, and you’re on the shore. Jump in the river. There’s no flow without action.

Quote of the Week

If you stay ready, you don’t have to get ready.
Will Smith