Creative success is incremental, not a straight and narrow path.
Is there a creative success formula? A series of steps that when done, to the letter, will create abundance, acknowledgement and happiness? It’s a big question with a simple answer — yes and no. The bigger question is what is creative success to you, and what are you willing to do, or not do, to move towards it?
The Fantasy of “Making It”
Let’s get real; we each have our own fantasy of what “making it” looks and feels like if money were no object. This type of prompt helps you break free from conventional thinking and gives your heart the chance to speak first for a change. (If you’ve never imagined a success “fantasy”, you’ve got some homework to do.) For me, the familiar money cue feels played out and doesn’t work to inspire me to let go and really imagine something expansive for myself. Instead, I like to leave the creative fantasy floor completely open and see what rolls through, no limits, when I ask myself two short questions:
What if my work didn’t matter? What would I do if I was the only person who mattered?
This may sound selfish to some, or abhorrent to others who feel they are here to make a difference. But if you aren’t making a real difference by getting clear within first, what good are you contributing? Not too much. Without a connection to the inner you, all you are really establishing is a lifestyle that is unsustainable long term, not to mention terribly unhealthy. Not directing your attention inward also takes you away from all the exponential good you can create in the world when you are clear, positive and have solid coping tools for stress.
These tendencies are definitely learned behavior. Many cultures place tremendous focus on improvements and big success without any direction whatsoever on how to first tune into core desires. This in and of itself creates stress because you cannot be sure what parts of your success fantasy are really yours, and what is just a jumble of hundreds of other voices, roosting and squawking like a too-full hen house. So, first step to tapping into your creative success formula is to allow yourself to daydream about what you would love do if your “work” didn’t matter, letting all the ideas and judgments of what success means to the outside world burn up in flames.
Tinkering with your Creative Success Formula
A creative success formula isn’t something you scribble into a notebook, chant over, twirl three times and kapoof, things are insta-awesome. It starts with getting clear on what you really want (hint: it doesn’t have be money, status or a whirl-wind lifestyle), and not apologizing for what no longer feels like a match for your deepest desires.
Will you need to tinker with the formula? Yes. Will it be obvious? No, not always, and you will start to feel uncomfortable at times. But as life flows through and changes you, the formula needs to change with it to keep things simple and focused on your personal creative success. Just remember it’s not always about grand sweeping changes. Subtle tweaks is where it all starts. For everyone.
As unique as snowflakes, we all have our own ways of getting into a day-dreamy state. If you are looking for some suggestions to get you into the tinkering state of mind, it’s always helpful to:
- Meditate, walk or exercise to clear the mind (Do one or all of these once a day)
- Schedule an “honesty check-in” time once a week, same time each week, and be willing to see what’s going on, where things might be out of alignment and really sit with them (this is a solitary task)
- Give yourself permission to daydream and play out fantasies of personal creative success in your mind, often
- Play with ideas, animals and other people to get out of your head
- Give/get a hug at least once a day if possible (reassurance and heart connection with another inspires a feeling of self-love within you, too)
Maybe you already do these things or none of them resonate. The important thing is that you find a way to create a doorway to peek in and explore what creative success feels like when you are rolling in it, floor to ceiling and head to toe. Then instead of “making time”, to work on it, the formula becomes part of your everyday awareness and a way of life.
Photo credit: memsphere