Creating With Gratitude

This week I put a bow on a series of podcast episodes that I have really enjoyed and have been very therapeutic for me called, “Creating With Gratitude.” If you missed all or some of this series, I just wanted to jot down all the ideas of it quickly for you in a post so that we can all (me included) refer back to them when we need it most.

Many creatives struggle with self-motivation. We kick around ideas around the clock but seldom do what it takes to start any of them, much less, see them through to completion. I think some of these issues can be traced back to confidence and confidence traced back to gratitude.

When we create with a grateful heart, the sky is the limit, not our self-image. When we create with a grateful heart we change our perspective, we increase our creativity, raising our art to a new level.

Here’s how to create with gratitude:

• Mindset is key.

  1. Keep a positive attitude (resist “just keeping it real”).

  2. See obstacles as opportunities.

  3. Stay present: do whatever it takes to snap back into the moment.

• Schedule Creative Fuel Days. This is a day intentionally set aside for you to refuel your creativity. Just like anything else, if all you do is pour out and never take to fuel back up, you’ll run out of momentum in no time. I recommend you host these days for yourself quarterly. Here are some ideas to fill up on these Creative Fuel Days. Have a plan. Share with others before and after your creative fuel day. Journal or document any new inspiration along the way.

  1. Go see a movie

  2. Visit an art museum

  3. Explore a new neighborhood

  4. Eat at a new restaurant

  5. Have a deep conversation

  6. Listen to a lecture

• Use Morning Pages. Morning Pages is a journaling concept introduced by Julia Cameron in 1995 in her book, “The Artists’ Way.” Morning pages are three pages of longhand, stream-of-consciousness writing, done first thing in the morning. *There is no wrong way to do Morning Pages*.

  • Morning pages help me:

  • Warm up my mind for the day. (bonus, it’s not with a screen.)

  • Remove mental distractions. Don’t suppress the SFD’s.

  • Stay focused on what matters. Reflect on what’s on my mind. Get rid of the junk, and keep the focus.

• Be thankful. This is where I thank YOU. I’d be remiss if I did a whole series on creating with gratitude and didn’t share my whole-hearted thankfulness to each of you who listen or watch each week. I started out this year with the goal of releasing weekly content for all 52 weeks. With the exception of 1 week, I have done just that, and that’s a huge thanks to you.

Which of the above will you implement today to take your creativity to the next level?