When you are in a state of creative indecision it can feel like you are being held hostage by yourself. Wiggle too much and the ties get tighter, think too much and the mind gets muddled, feel too much and you are drowned by emotions instead of moving through them.
Breaking free from a state of creative indecision can be simple or complicated, but you aren’t as powerless as you may feel about your “stuckness”. Trying to control how it evolves or effects you is what makes it easy or hard. Typically it’s not the decision that’s challenging to make as much as it’s the emotional connection or expectation attached to what you perceive as your choices.
To get some healthy space away from the sensation of being trapped in creative indecision, here are 5 ways to turn the tables and regain a sense of grounding and clarity:
Try Something New, Please! Leave whatever choices you are battling in your head and heart and just do something completely different. Being torn between two similar or opposite choices can be equally frustrating because of the likenesses or obvious polarities that pull your mind back into battle. Get outside, go for a drive, take the day off or tap into some self-care modalities to unwind and regroup. This will help you move past your self-imposed limitations.
Leave Space to Let an Answer Come to You. Willing an answer to appear doesn’t work and can often leave you mentally and emotionally exhausted. Don’t put a time limit on your choice if at all possible. If you need to make a choice in a limited time, you really can just pick something and move forward, but do your best not to attach worry to the outcome. Often the purpose of any choice is the lesson you get from picking something that wasn’t ideal, but moved you into a place clarity to support a way out of creative indecision. Leaving space so you can do deeper passive listening. This is often when the best clues show up.
Ask for Help from a Good Listener. People want to be acknowledged and heard. When I do an intuitive reading for a client who feels overwhelmed or confused, or I help a client move through a challenging creative block in their business, I’m simply listening and reflecting back things they may not be able to see as clearly as I can. Asking for help isn’t always easy, but it can help push you through a space of creative indecision that’s dragged your inspiration to a halt. Just be sure to ask someone you trust who can be objective.
Look at the Reasons Behind Why you Need to Make a Choice Right Now. Is this true or are you just impatient and simply want to stop feeling uncomfortable? Aside from age-old common sayings about “right timing”, there’s something to be said for trusting how things unfold. A rush to be done with uncomfortable feelings is often the reason why you feel so much added pressure to do something quickly. It can make simple decisions seem very big and more frustrating. Just sit with your reasons, whatever they are, and don’t judge them. Pay attention to what you are really saying to yourself, then notice what they begin to trigger in you mentally and emotionally. It will help you see the truth of the situation more clearly.
Cut yourself Some Slack. When was the last time you thanked yourself or acknowledged all the things that go right for you? What about all the little things you do to help your family and friends, or the efforts you are successfully making to move towards personal goals? Creating is not about draining every last ounce of energy to make something that reflects your inner gifts, it’s about replenishing your spirit with self-care, positive feedback and inspiration that feeds your soul so you can tune in and create something new.
While creative indecision can feel uncomfortable, it’s the perfect way for you to see how you are limiting yourself or what needs to change for you to feel freer, more in the flow.
If you need an objective listener, I can offer you support and clear intuitive guidance through a Creative Reflection Reading. Contact me to set up a time. If you are looking for other posts that might help, check out Creative Purpose and the Power of Crafting Inner Questions or The Direction of your Life is Never Direct.
Photo Credit: Anne-Lise Heinrichs, Eva the Weaver, B Rosen